HOMEMADE MARINARA SAUCE

Introducing our mouthwatering homemade marinara sauce – a culinary delight crafted from the freshest ingredients straight from our farm to your table. Dive into the rich flavors of ripe heirloom tomatoes, blended with aromatic herbs and spices, to create a sauce that's perfect for pasta, pizza, or any dish in need of a savory kick. Get ready to elevate your meals with this deliciously simple recipe!

Ingredients

  • 3 heads of garlic, peeled (approx. 32–35 cloves)

  • 5 large heirloom tomatoes (5lbs) – cut into chunks

  • 8 beefsteak tomatoes (5lbs) – cut into chunks

  • 3 medium Gin Fizz Heirloom (2lbs) tomatoes – cut into chunks

  • 6 medium purple Cherokee tomatoes (3lbs) – cut into chunks

  • 2lbs cherry tomatoes

  • 2 lbs specialty cherry tomatoes – quartered

  • 3 large white onions – quartered

  • 1 cup tightly packed fresh sweet basil, roughly chopped

  • 1 cup tightly packed Italian basil, roughly chopped

  • 1 cup fresh spicy oregano, roughly chopped (or regular oregano)

  • 1/4 cup dried oregano leaves

  • 2 Tablespoons dried basil leaves

  • 3 Tablespoons kosher salt (more to taste)

  • 1 Teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 1 cup olive oil

  • 1 1/2 cup dry red wine

Instructions

  1. Preheat: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

  2. Combine: Take large aluminum roasting pan and add all of your tomatoes, garlic, onion, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, olive oil and wine.

  3. Mix: Mix everything together thoroughly.

  4. Oven: Place in oven, uncovered, and let roast for at least 5 hours.

  5. Stir: Stir about every 30-45 minutes, especially the last 2 hours.

  6. Cool: After 5 hours, remove from oven and let cool for an hour or so.

  7. Spoonfuls: Take a blender and add several large spoonfuls (about 3 ladle-sized scoops) to it.

  8. Pulse: Cover with a thick towel and pulse the blender: 3 times for chunky sauce and approximately 8 times for smoother sauce.

  9. Serve or Save: Serve some immediately and can or freeze the rest.

Notes

  • Aluminum Pan: you will need a large aluminum roasting pan for this recipe

  • Clean Tomatoes: make sure your tomatoes are clean before use. I typically soak them in a 50/50 vinegar and water mixture for about 10-15 minutes and then rinse clean

  • Cutting Garlic Tip: dreading peeling a ton of garlic – simply cut each clove in half lengthwise and you can peel them so much easier!

  • Total Pounds of Tomatoes Needed: don’t get hung up on getting specifically the exact same number and type of tomato listed. While this is what I used, you ultimately need 22-23 lbs (352 ounces) of tomatoes, using a variety of different types and colors (for better depth of flavor).

  • Basil: If you can’t find both Sweet AND Italian Basil just use 2 cups of fresh basil and don’t worry about the type.

  • Red Wine: I don’t use any particular brand and really any red wine you have will probably be fine, but you will get the best flavor with a dry red wine.

  • Is 425 Degree Temp Too Hot?: I promise this isn’t too hot! Once those tomatoes start cooking down there is going to be A LOT of liquid that needs to be cooked off.

  • How much will it make: This recipe resulted in approximately 14 1-pint jars, but it will vary a little.  Feel free to use larger jars – we use smaller ones because that seems to work for a family of 4 making spaghetti and if we stored them in larger jars we would open them and not all of it would get used. Personal preference!

  • Immersion Blender or Food Processor: you could also use an immersion blender or food process to blend up the sauce.

  • Eat, Freeze, Can: Feel free to use some right away, store some in the refrigerator for a week or so if you are going to use it, freeze it or can it!

Recipe Inspired by The Wooden Skillet and a BigDaddy’s Facebook Family Member!

SaucesDenise ClontsTomatoe