This combination creates an Herbed Spaghetti Sauce which has a great fresh-tasting sauce that marries the flavors of the herbs perfectly. In celebration of all the spaghetti my family eats I have come up with 4 different spaghetti sauce recipes that use similar ingredients but have their own distinct flavors. Tomatoes go fabulously with so many of the Italian spices.
Herbed Spaghetti Sauce
This recipe makes approximately 7 quarts of herbed spaghetti sauce.
Ingredients:
32 pounds quartered Tomatoes
5 chopped Onions
3/4c minced Garlic
3/4c Olive Oil
6 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp Oregano
1 tbsp Basil
2 tbsp Parsley
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 tbsp Pepper
1.5 tbsp Sugar
3 tbsp Salt
2 tsp crushed Red Pepper
2 tbsp Lemon Juice per quart
soften tomatoes
Soften the tomatoes by simmering for about 20 minutes.
simmer butter, oil, onion and garlic
While this is softening combine the olive oil, butter, garlic, and onion. Simmer for 5 minutes.
add spices to the onion mix
Add the oregano, basil, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, sugar, salt, and crushed red pepper. Simmer an additional 5 minutes and then set aside.
food mill and strain tomatoes
Process the soft tomatoes through a food mill or a blender if you prefer to keep the seeds and skins. Then place the pulp in a strainer (I like my husband’s honey strainer.) or cheesecloth to drain out the juice. Save the juice to be canned later. This step of straining the sauce allows you to skip the reducing down process which usually takes about 3 hours to do. If for some reason the sauce seems too thick you can add some of the juice back in.
simmer together
Place the strained pulp in a large saucepot and add the onion mixture. Simmer for 20 minutes.
add lemon juice
Filling and Processing Jars of Herbed Spaghetti Sauce:
I like to put a little of the sauce in the bottom of the hot jar before adding the lemon juice to give the jar a buffer from the cooler temperature of the lemon juice.
I then fill it up leaving 1/2-inch headspace.
Place the lid on top of the jar and add the ring. Tighten the ring to fingertip tight and process in a boiling water bath for 40 minutes if at sea level. Remember to adjust your processing time if you are above 1000 feet in elevation.
processing complete
Once your sauce has completed processing, space the jars about an inch apart on the counter for 24 hours to cool and completely seal.
If your jar did not seal, then place it in the fridge and use it immediately. Store the sealed jars in your pantry to enjoy for the next 1-3 years. After three years the nutritional value of canned food diminishes. The quality is best in the first year.
Herbed Tomato Sauce
If you have any questions about canning with a pressure canner or how to adjust the pressure or processing time for altitude, take a look at our canning basics videos.
