This recipe is incredibly simple, quick and delicious – especially this time of year when locally grown and homegrown tomatoes are available. I used to think making tomato sauce from scratch was a difficult or time-consuming task until I actually tried it. Once you briefly boil the tomatoes the skin peels right off, and then the rest of this delicious meal is a cinch. Even my girls, who normally don’t go for tomatoes or prosciutto, scarf this dinner down as fast as they can. And in case you haven’t heard tomatoes are technically a fruit so we like to serve this dish with a side of veggies such as lightly sautéed summer squash.
Simple Spaghetti
Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Italian Cookbook
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 yellow onion
- 1/4 lb prosciutto, or pancetta
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper
- 10 tomatoes, ripe
- 1/2 lb whole-wheat spaghetti, (or penne, rigatoni, macaroni, etc.)
- parmesan cheese, grated (for topping, optional)
- basil, (for topping, optional)
Instructions
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Set a large pot of water over high heat.
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Dice the onion and proscuitto.
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Once the water starts boiling add the tomatoes, 2 or 3 at a time, for about 1 minute each. Remove tomatoes with a slotted spoon and let them cool on a large cutting board. Add your dry pasta to the same pot of boiling water to cook following directions on package for timing.
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Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high and add the olive oil.
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Once the oil heats up, add the diced proscuitto, onion, and red pepper flakes. Cook for 3 – 4 minutes.
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Meanwhile peel, seed and chop the tomatoes. With a dull knife score the skin on each tomato and then peel it right off. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and gently squeeze each one over a bowl to get the seeds out. It is okay if there are still a few seeds left in there. Cut out top of core/stem. Roughly chop into pieces and add to the onion/proscuitto mixture.
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Cook and mash tomato mixture with the back of a wooden spoon (or potato masher) until slightly thickened, about 8 – 10 minutes.
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Pour sauce over well-drained pasta, garnish with Parmesan and/or fresh basil, and voila! A delicious and very quick “real food” meal.
Recipe Notes
We recommend organic ingredients when feasible.
The Popcorn Trick for the Best Microwave Popcorn
I grow my own tomatoes in summer and freeze them whole right from the garden (I do clean them first to remove any dirt). I use the tomatoes right out of the freezer. make a small x in the skin with a knife and drop in hot water 30 seconds or so, remove and peel. Even frozen, they are easy enough to dice. They do add water to the sauce though so I recommended soft boiling the sauce a little longer to evaporate the extra water. A bit messy but totally worth it!
Do you have a recipe for over night crockpot spaghetti sauce using fresh ingredients?
Hello Sarah. These are Lisa’s other spaghetti recipes but none for the crock pot: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2011/10/19/recipe-whole-wheat-spaghetti-and-meatballs/ and https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2014/08/11/recipe-spaghetti-casserole-makeover/.