3 Pepper & Vegan Sausage Tomato Sauce

3 PEPPER & VEGGIE SAUSAGE TOMATO SAUCE

OK, now let’s make some outstanding tomato sauce. I definitely prefer to make sauce than to buy pre-made. I always end up adding something to the pre-made stuff because it is never quite right and making from scratch is easy and cheaper.

Let’ check out the veggie line up:

We have:

• 6 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cubanelle pepper
• 1/2 red chili pepper
• 1/4 red bell pepper
• 1/4 red onion

Dice up the peppers and red onion and put to the side. On medium-high heat, warm up a small stock pot (a 2 quart size is good) with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Add the veggies to the pot and saute. As the veggies are getting warm and flavorful, rough dice the garlic and dice 2 links of Tofurky Italian Style Sausages (an added vegan bonus).

Add them to the pot:

Saute all the ingredients for about 5 min on medium heat. Once the onions begin looking translucent, it’s time for the tomatoes to join the party.

What you’ll need:

• 28 oz can of tomatoes, preferably diced
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1/2 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

I purchased a can of whole peeled tomatoes from Trader Joe’s.

I prefer diced tomatoes, because I like a few tomato chunks in my sauces. However, TJ’s was sold out of diced, so I got these. Now, I have to take a couple extra steps…if you have diced tomatoes, skip the next procedure.

Open the can and take out two whole peeled tomatoes, dice and add to the pot. For the rest in the can, use your immersion blender and puree. (No immersion blender…that’s okay, just dump into your blender…it will work just as well)

Now that your whole tomatoes are pureed, add to your pot.

Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for at least 10 minutes.

There you have it. A great sauce with not a lot of effort. This sauce is great for pizza, lasagna, parmesan or simply over your favorite pasta.