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San Marzano Tomato Sauce

A rich tomato sauce that boasts tender onions and a whole stick of butter. San Marzano Tomato Sauce was inspired by a recipe scribble in the pages of a chic lit book. After reading I just had to bring it to life!
San Marzano Tomato Sauce Recipe

This is one of the first recipes I published! I have updated the photos and brushed up the text, but the recipe is the same. This San Marzano Tomato Sauce is crazy delicious on all things pasta! It also makes amazing lasagna. DEFINITELY try this sauce with this Easy Cheesy Ravioli Recipe.

There is something you should know about me: I read all the time. I LOVE TO READ. I read everything I can get my hands on- articles, magazines, newspapers, the back of the cereal box… you get the point. But mostly I love fiction. I have a few favorite authors, a few off-beat genres that I really dig, and then there’s Nicholas Sparks. Don’t hate on my chic lit summer read choices, ok? Okay.

I knew about The Notebook because I don’t live under a rock. I know Miley Cyrus is in The Last Song because Netflix recommends that movie in my queue  at least twice a week (also, Chad totally watched it with me). But until really recently, like just this summer recently, did I discover what all the fuss is about.

Chad bought me an e-reader) for my birthday and I was looking for affordable books to download. I ended up with The Choice by Nicholas Sparks. I finished it in a day. I could not stop reading it.

I moved on to other authors for awhile, mostly because their novels were free… I can’t go around spending $7 or $8 a day on books or we might have to live in the car. And then True Believer popped up as a suggested read… I bought it. I finished it in a day. I could not stop reading it.

Nicholas Sparks' True Believer Tomato Sauce Recipe

Just to add icing to my I-love-this-book cupcake, there is a recipe tucked right in the middle of the story! So I made it.

I started with two cans of San Marzano tomatoes. Who knew canned tomatoes could taste so good? I certainly didn’t. I put these in a pot over medium heat and added a whole stick of butter (I never said it was a healthy recipe). I stirred the tomatoes around until the butter melted.

And then I peeled two onions, cut them in half, and put them in the pot (I swear I followed the recipe exactly- no slicing or dicing- just put them in the pot).

Bring the tomatoes, butter and onions to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for and hour and a half.

This sauce was easy and delicious. We finished all of it in a day. We could not stop eating it.

Sauce with San Marzano Tomatoes, Butter, and Onion

San Marzano Tomato Sauce Recipe
Yield: serves 4

San Marzano Tomato Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes

A rich tomato sauce that boasts tender onions and a whole stick of butter. San Marzano Tomato Sauce was inspired by a recipe scribble in the pages of a chic lit book. After reading I just had to bring it to life!

Ingredients

  • 2 cans of San Marzano tomatoes
  • 1 stick of butter
  • 2 medium onions, peeled and cut in half

Instructions

  1. Pour both cans of tomatoes and the stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the butter melts. Add the onion halves (don't pull them apart, just throw them in) and bring to a boil.
  2. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for an hour and a half. Serve over your favorite pasta with fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Nutrition Information:


Amount Per Serving: Calories: 0Cholesterol: 0mgSodium: 0mgCarbohydrates: 0gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 0g

 

Sally Freund

Friday 16th of February 2024

This was published in the Nicholas Sparks book Trie Believer. Not sure who got it from whom but he made it very well known. You published it?

Jackie

Wednesday 15th of January 2020

Is the nutritional info correct? I.e. no carbs? No sugar? A can of San Marzano tomatoes has both.

Heather Tullos

Saturday 25th of January 2020

Hey Jackie,

There's a disclaimer in the nutritional data section; I'd bank on the calories being correct but the other details I can't be sure of, and net carbs / sugar alcohols are keto-specific which this blog is not. So without manual calculations the default number is 0. If nutritional data matters to you I'd definitely calculate it on your own based on your specific products and serving size. Hope that helps!