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Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce
A simple and flavorful pizza sauce recipe made with fresh tomatoes.
The Magic Tomato Garden
This summer my husband, Tom, decided he wanted to plant a garden. He planted a variety of peppers and tomatoes. We live in Minneapolis and have a very small yard. Therefore, the only place we could fit a tiny garden was on the very edge of the lawn between our driveway, a busy sidewalk and a fence. Clearly not ideal but we decided to give it a shot anyway.
I didn’t think much would grow in our little garden but I was very very wrong. The tomatoes multiplied faster than a heard of feisty rabbits. I swear to you, Tom brings me a dozen or so new tomatoes every few days… from a single tomato plant. The amount of tomatoes currently growing is truly shocking. Want to know the strangest part? We did not fertilize the area, we did not bring in any black dirt, we rarely water or weed the thing and it doesn’t get a ton of sunlight. From my basic calculations, the tomato plant should have died four times over by now from neglect but instead is the most fruitful plant to ever exist.
Needless to say, I have been using tomatoes a lot lately! I’ve made several pizza sauces over the past few months. Each time I change them up a little bit, use different ingredients and different amounts. This is the one my husband liked best which is awesome because it is also the simplest! Don’t worry too much about exact measurements. Follow your taste buds, not your measuring cup. If you’re feeling creative add other ingredients or put your own personal spin on it. Remember, cooking is an art not a science!
Pizza Recipes
Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce
Ingredients
- 6-8 medium tomatoes
- 1/2 cup onion , chopped
- 3 cloves garlic , chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh basil, lightly packed
- 2-3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Cut tomatoes into quarters or eighths (to help the blender out a little bit) and blend the tomatoes until smooth. If you like a chunkier pizza sauce feel free to blend until chunky!
- Coat the bottom of a deep pan with olive oil. I’d say maybe 2-3 tablespoons but a little less or a little more won’t make a difference in the end product. I eye almost everything because 1) I am very impatient and 2) it is easier, saves time and saves dishes.
- Place the pan over medium/low heat. Add onion, garlic, red pepper flakes and oregano. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until deliciously fragrant. Just make sure the garlic doesn’t burn because it will turn bitter. If you want to play it safe, start on lower heat and simply cook for a few minutes longer!
- Add the blended tomatoes and fresh basil to the pan. Note: I normally keep the basil whole simply because it is fastest. However, if you don’t like whole basil leaves swimming around in your sauce feel free to slice them of before throwing them in the pan. At this point the mixture should be very thin. Bring the mixture to a simmer (a little bubbling here and there) for 40-60 minutes while stirring occasionally. This will reduce the mixture down to the thick amazing sauce.
- Once the sauce has thickened up, you are done! Either use the sauce immediately or store in the fridge or freezer until needed. Enjoy!
