Marinara Sauce

      In an effort to save money, I began substituting my homemade marinara sauce in any recipe that called for tomato sauce.  This sauce has become essential to Homemade Hamburger Helper, Spinach & Chickpeas, Sloppy Joes, and homemade pizza.  Anything that can be thrown into the slow cooker, without sacrificing flavor, is a brilliant recipe in my kitchen.  While I used to make fun of my mother for her love of crock-pots, I now understand the magic behind this handy kitchen gadget.  In this recipe, I exclusively use whole tomatoes.  Substituting crushed or diced tomatoes results in a watery sauce.  My favorite brand of canned tomatoes is Muir Glen and I strongly recommend using them in this recipe.  I have experimented with other organic store brands, but none produce the equivalent results of Muir Glen.  This sauce is great for the freezer.  I use wide mouth canning jars to portion out my sauce, but any freezer safe container will work.  

Ingredients

• 2 (28 oz.) cans Muir Glen whole peeled tomatoes, in juices
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup carrots, chopped
• ½ cup celery, chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 teaspoons Celtic sea salt
• 1 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a slow cooker, combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, oregano, olive oil, sea salt, and pepper.  Cover and cook on high for 6 hours.  Cool the sauce slightly before using an immersion blender to puree it.  Yields 7 1/2 to 8 cups of sauce.

Make ahead:  Cool the sauce over night in the refrigerator.  Freeze up to 6 months.  I divide the sauce in 1 or 2 cups portions when freezing.   This makes it easy to pull out for pizza, meatballs, spaghetti, and casseroles.  

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