Roasted Red Pepper & Garlic Pasta Sauce
If you are looking for a pasta sauce with complexity and depth of flavour, look no further. This sauce has that delicious distinctive flavour of tomatoes and herbs, but it is smoothed out and balanced with the sweetness of roasted red bell peppers and garlic. We have been making it for years and it is one pantry stable that I would not do without because my family uses it for pasta and as a base for pizza. Try it this fall when tomatoes and peppers are at their peak.
YIELD : 6-500 ml jars
WATER BATH PROCESSING TIME: 35 minutes for altitudes of 1000 feet or below. Adjust processing time for higher altitudes.
Equipment
- 12-litre stainless steel pot
- food processor
- or optional: KitchenAid with a fruit/vegetable strainer attachment
- canning pot
- wire basket or tray for the bottom of the canning pot
- jar lift
- magnetic wand for lid placement
- funnel
- scissors
- 6-500 ml sterilized jars and rings
- 6 snap lids
Ingredients
- 12 pounds tomatoes (about 3 litres and 250 ml of tomato puree after peeling and processing)Â peeled and blended in a food processor or processed through a KitchenAid vegetable strainer attachment (in this case no need to peel)
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2-3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt or 4 teaspoons of regular table salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper fine ground
- 2 cups basil use the scissors to snip and measure after snipping
- ½ cup oregano fresh, snipped
- ½ cup parsley fresh, snipped
- 1 tablespoon thyme fresh chopped
For the roasted vegetables:
- 6 bulbs garlic cut the top off the bulb
- 4 medium red bell peppers quarter the pepper and remove the seeds
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
Additional ingredient- 1 tablespoon added to each jar before sealing
- 6 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
To roast the garlic and peppers:
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Put the garlic bulbs into the 2-quart casserole dish, drizzle with about a tablespoon and a half of olive oil and cover with a lid.
- Line two rimmed baking sheets with tin foil. Place the quartered peppers skin side up and drizzle with the remaining olive oil.
- Put the peppers and garlic in the oven and roast for about 35 minutes or until the peppers have started to char. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- Once cool, squeeze the garlic cloves. The garlic should just pop out of the skin.
- Peel the skins off the peppers and discard.
To prepare the tomatoes:
- If using a food processor, blanch tomatoes in boiling hot water for 45 seconds and then cool quickly by putting them in ice water. Peel the tomatoes and cut into large chunks.
- Add tomato pieces in small batches to a food processor and blend. Transfer the blended tomatoes to the 12-litre stainless steel pot.
- If using a KitchenAid vegetable strainer and mixer, process unpeeled tomatoes and transfer the tomato juice to the 12-litre stainless steel pot.
To make the sauce:
- Add the balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, salt and ground black pepper to the tomatoes in the pot.
- Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 50 minutes. Stir frequently.
- Stir in the chopped peppers. Boil for 20 minutes or until the mixture reaches the desired thickness. (You should have approximately 11 cups)
- Remove from heat and stir in the basil, oregano, parsley and thyme.
- Fill each sterilized jar with the pasta sauce halfway, add 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, continue to fill with the pasta sauce leaving ½" headspace. Stir the pasta sauce with a sterilized spoon to remove air bubbles.
- Wipe each jar rim with a paper towel or cloth dampened with hot water.
- Top each jar with a washed and briefly warmed snap lid. (I put the snap lid in boiling hot water for 30 seconds; this softens the seal.) Add the sterilized ring and tighten to finger tip tightness.
- Process using the boiling water method in a canning pot for 35 minutes. (Make sure to start timing when the water returns to a full boil after adding the pasta sauce-filled jars.)
- Shut off the canning pot and leave the lid on while the jars rest in the pot for 5 minutes. This is called venting.
- Remove the jars using a jar lift and place on a cutting board. Do not disturb for 24 hours.
- Remove the rings and inspect the jars. Wipe the jars clean with a soapy cloth. Store the pasta sauce without the rings in a dark cool place for up to a year. If any jars have failed to seal, store in the fridge and use immediately.
Nutrition
Serving: 1=¼ of jarCalories: 76kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 2gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0.4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.5gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 595mgPotassium: 615mgFiber: 4gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 2753IUVitamin C: 60mgCalcium: 49mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!