This one, I owe entirely to my brother-in-law. It's a very simple but very delicious recipe for a sauce meant to be eaten cold or at room temperature (i.e., not as a pasta sauce). The way he makes it is with either the basil or the garlic, but I tried combining both and it's great, so that's what I'll post here. The instructions are quite vague but this is really the kind of thing for which you need to choose the measurements based on your personal preferences:
Easily serves about 8 people.
Ingredients:
- Good quality extra virgin olive oil (approximately 2/3 to 3/4 cup).
- Good, ripe tomatoes (about 4 large ones), quartered. I couldn't find good tomatoes in the supermarket, so I used a can of whole San Marzano tomatoes. Those cans are huge, so I probably only used about 3/4 of one.
- Large bunch of fresh basil, coarsely chopped. If you don't have a basil plant or a large bunch available at the supermarket, think of getting at least 2 of those single-serve packs. In a pinch, you could use about 1 1/2 Tbsp. of dried basil but fresh is much better.
- About 3/4 Tbsp. of dried oregano.
- 3-4 cloves of fresh garlic.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
Directions:
1. Put the tomatoes, basil, oregano, and garlic cloves into a blender or food processor, and pulse until the garlic is chopped but not so much that it's a completely homogeneous mixture.
The choice of instrument is yours -- the disadvantage of the blender is that you'll have to keep poking around in it to get everything properly chopped and mixed, whereas the food processor has a higher likelihood of leaking.
2. While mixing (if you're using a blender or a food processor where you have to remove the lid, obviously stop mixing while you do this), slowly add the olive oil until the sauce is a lighter shade of red, so you can see the sheen of the oil and taste it in the sauce. This is based on how much olive oil you like in the flavor, so add at your discretion.
3. Add salt and pepper and mix one final time.
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week, if it lasts that long! It is delicious as a dip or spread for good crusty bread (rosemary bread is a particular favorite of mine). It also goes very well with hard cheeses, like Manchego. I love to have the bread, sauce and cheese with a small salad for lunch or the tortilla espanola for dinner.
Easily serves about 8 people.
Ingredients:
- Good quality extra virgin olive oil (approximately 2/3 to 3/4 cup).
- Good, ripe tomatoes (about 4 large ones), quartered. I couldn't find good tomatoes in the supermarket, so I used a can of whole San Marzano tomatoes. Those cans are huge, so I probably only used about 3/4 of one.
- Large bunch of fresh basil, coarsely chopped. If you don't have a basil plant or a large bunch available at the supermarket, think of getting at least 2 of those single-serve packs. In a pinch, you could use about 1 1/2 Tbsp. of dried basil but fresh is much better.
- About 3/4 Tbsp. of dried oregano.
- 3-4 cloves of fresh garlic.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
Directions:
1. Put the tomatoes, basil, oregano, and garlic cloves into a blender or food processor, and pulse until the garlic is chopped but not so much that it's a completely homogeneous mixture.
The choice of instrument is yours -- the disadvantage of the blender is that you'll have to keep poking around in it to get everything properly chopped and mixed, whereas the food processor has a higher likelihood of leaking.
2. While mixing (if you're using a blender or a food processor where you have to remove the lid, obviously stop mixing while you do this), slowly add the olive oil until the sauce is a lighter shade of red, so you can see the sheen of the oil and taste it in the sauce. This is based on how much olive oil you like in the flavor, so add at your discretion.
3. Add salt and pepper and mix one final time.
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for about a week, if it lasts that long! It is delicious as a dip or spread for good crusty bread (rosemary bread is a particular favorite of mine). It also goes very well with hard cheeses, like Manchego. I love to have the bread, sauce and cheese with a small salad for lunch or the tortilla espanola for dinner.
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