The key to a good tomato sauce is, in my opinion, to add something sweet to balance the slightly acidic tomatoes. You can simply add a small amount of sugar or honey to the sauce, but this recipe includes carrots and bell pepper. These slightly sweet veggies give the sauce the perfect amount of subtle sweetness and they also add more flavour and nutrition to an otherwise very simple tomato sauce.
My not-so-secret trick is also to add a spoonful of tahini (sesame seed paste) at the end of cooking, which makes the sauce so much more creamy and delicious. We add tahini to just about everything, both savoury and sweet, in our household, but in this and similar recipes it works especially well. Tahini is high in fat which almost makes it act like cream in sauces. It also adds a depth of favour which I really like. The fatty acids in tahini are good for you, and it also contains some minerals like calcium and iron.
We served the sauce with red lentil pasta and broccoli. Simple and delicious!
Tomato Pasta Sauce Recipe
1 tbsp olive oil
2 medium or 3 small carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
2 cloves of garlic, pressed or finely grated
1 small red bell pepper
pinch of turmeric
3 tbsp tomato purée
2 tins/boxes of crushed tomatoes
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3-4 tbsp finely chopped fresh or frozen basil
Herbal salt, black pepper and parika powder, to taste
1 tbsp tahini
- Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the grated carrots, garlic, bell pepper and turmeric. Sauté for 3-4 minutes while stirring.
- Add the tomato purée, crushed tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, basil and spices. Bring to the boil, stir and then let the sauce cook on low heat under the lid for about 30 minutes.
- Add the tahini and stir thoroughly. Serve and enjoy!
