There is something about a homemade tomato sauce that just warms my heart.  Walking into the kitchen with a nice pot of tomato sauce simmering is one of the best smells I know of.  Making tomato sauce from scratch makes me feel like I am connecting with simple fresh ingredients and the result is breathtaking.  With this easy simple sauce you can pair with anything from pizza, pasta, fish and chicken.  All you do is sautee onions, carrots, garlic, and celery in a little olive oil.  Then add the herbs and tomatoes.

That simple!  Do you have an all time favorite simple tomato sauce?

Gather your ingredients together: Celery, Carrot, Garlic, Onion, Olive Oil, Black pepper, Sea Salt, Butter, Crushed Tomatoes, Bay Leaves and Basil.

Chop up your veggies.

In a large casserole pot, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.

Add tomatoes, basil, and bay leaves and simmer covered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick.

Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning. If sauce still tastes acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.

Add half the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.

If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.

Simple Tomato Sauce

(Adapted from Giada DeLaurentiis)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
• 4 to 6 basil leaves
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, optional

In a large casserole pot, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, and bay leaves and simmer covered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning. If sauce still tastes acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.

Add half the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.

If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.