Homemade Roasted Tomato Sauce

This is one of my favorite things to cook, period. But for those of you who need a specific recipe... sorry, I don't have one. This sauce is the epitome of my "taste as you go cooking." Here in this post today, I wrote roughly what I would usually do for a basic tomato herb sauce.

Like I said, this is the basic tomato sauce, but I like to mix it up depending on the day and what veggies I have around. It is really fun to get creative and add in some roasted red peppers or mushrooms when you have those available!

This sauce is quick and great on noodles for an easy dinner with a side salad. BUT this sauce has great flavor and picks up other flavors really well. I love using this sauce on grilled chicken with a slice of melted cheese...almost like chicken parmesan except faster, easier, and without the extra mess or extra calories of breading and frying the chicken. It freezes and thaws great, too.

When I first started making this in college I was only cooking for myself. I would make a whole batch of it, and freeze it in little mason jars or Tupperware. The stuff thaws well and tastes great up to 6 months later (probably longer, just never makes it that long before I eat it all)! I've used it on eggplant Parmesan, too, and it was a huge hit with my boyfriend's family.

I've thought too about making it into a base of a tomato or roasted red pepper soup... I'll have to let you know if that works out. Let me know if you try it first and tips for success!

Basic ingredient list:

• 2 Pints Cherry Tomatoes
• 1/2 White or Yellow Onion
• Garlic (~5 cloves)
• Fresh Herbs of Choice (basil, rosemary, thyme and oregano are all good) 
• If you don't have fresh herbs around, you can also use dried  italian seasoning or herbs de Provence
• Red pepper flakes (just a pinch)
• Red wine (~1/4 cup drizzled)
• Balsamic vinegar  (a little drizzle maybe a tablespoon or two)
• I usually do EITHER red wine OR balsamic... could do both I guess, just may be a little acidic
• Salt and Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
• Olive Oil
• Parmesan Cheese

Here's how it goes:

1. Rinse and dump: the cherry tomatoes into roasting pan or cookie sheet. Just make sure it has a little edge at least so things don't roll away into the bottom of your oven
2. Chop and dump: roughly chop your onion, smash the garlic cloves (don't need to chop), and chop fresh herbs and throw them all into your pan. If you're going to add red peppers or mushrooms or anything else at this point, just rough chop and throw it all in!
3. Drizzle and shake: drizzle some olive oil, red wine or balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper, and shake it all around to coat them a little
4. Roast in oven and do something else for a while: I usually roast them for ~30-45 min at 350 degrees. Just till the veggies are tender and the tomatoes are popping open
5. Blend it and Taste it: This is where I get to use my little rocket blender, or my boyfriends mom's awesome ninja blender... anything with blades and buttons will work. Pour all the stuff from the pan into the blender including all the juice. Blend it all up and add olive oil until it's the right consistency for you. I usually blend in some freshly graded Parmesan cheese at this point. Taste it and add whatever else you want. 
6. EAT IT

1. Need ideas: noodles, chicken, baked tilapia or other white fish, roasted vegetables, spaghetti squash, dipping sauce for appetizers, eggplant Parmesan, with a spoon. 

Really simple, really quick, really delicious.

Let me know what yummy combinations you've come up with!

Easy Creamy Cheesy Pesto Spread

This is a recipe courtesy of my friend Emily's family friend, Veronica. In college Emily and I roomed together and Veronica was nice enough to send us a half-gallon container of this stuff every couple months. The tub usually only lasted a couple weeks! This stuff is as addictive as I imagine any drug could be (not that I would personally know)

So, after my recent blog about homemade pesto I couldn't resist making this delectable treat! It is SOOOOO easy and fast you wouldn't even believe it! Great on crackers (I prefer wheat thins) or sandwiches or raw veggies! I'm sure it would melt down nicely over hot noodles also to make a creamy cheesy pesto sauce.

I like making this with homemade pesto, but if you don't have any on hand or don't want to go to the trouble, it would be great with store bought pesto as well.

Four Simple Ingredients:

• 2 oz Cream Cheese
• 4 oz Goat Cheese
• 1/4 c. Homemade Pesto
• salt and pepper to taste

All you do... mix your pesto, cream cheese, and goat cheese together in a bowl with a spoon or spatula until it is all blended and smooth. Season it with salt and pepper to taste, and devour!!!

Basil Walnut Pesto

This Pesto is so easy and so quick in the summer time. When you have fresh basil, I cannot think of anything better to do then to make homemade pesto!


I like adding walnuts in addition to the traditional pine nuts because I think it adds an extra layer to the depth of flavor!


1/3 c. walnuts
1/3 c. pine nuts
1 head of garlic (~9 cloves)
1 c. freshly graded Parmesan cheese
3 bunches fresh basil leaves (~5 c.)
olive oil (I used about 1 1/2 c.)
salt and pepper to taste

So basically all you do is put it all in the blender, and chop it up... order probably wouldn't mater, although I would recommend the nuts and garlic first, then adding the basil and cheese, and adding enough olive oil to make it into a thick paste. You can always add more oil later, so don't add too much in the beginning. If its a paste you can use it more as a spread too! If you're using it for pasta sauce you can always add a little starchy pasta water or some more oil to thin it out a bit...but don't make it too runny!

I accidentally added the blender attachment blades to my little "rocket" blender instead of the food processor one... so that is why the pesto looks a little more smooth than normal... but I promise, it tastes delicious!