Easy “Homemade” Pasta Sauce

Raise your hand if you’ve ever used jarred pasta sauce.  Give me an amen if you use it on a regular basis.  For those of you who didn’t raise your hands or give a shout out to the Lord…I don’t believe you.  It’s okay to admit it, this is the internet, I can’t see you.  Personally, I have both hands raised and singing a hearty amen sister.

Jarred pasta sauce, the best thing since sliced bread and one of the most usable kitchen conveniences I can think of.  but every now and then I want to feel homespun so I make “homemade” sauce.  It’s not completely homemade b/c I don’t go to the trouble of dicing and stewing tomatoes.  Sorry.

Should you feel the need to get old school (but not too old school) with your sauce here is what you will need:

1 can petite diced tomatoes, fire roasted
1 can tomato paste
1 can low sodium chicken broth
1 lg shallot, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 yellow squash*, diced
dried oregano
1 handful fresh parsley, chopped
salt & pepper
1 Tbs. sugar
olive oil

1.  Heat 2 Tbs olive oil in a skillet and saute shallot and garlic until fragrant, about 3 minutes.  Add squash and saute another 2-3 minutes.

2.  Add tomatoes, tomato paste, chicken broth and sugar.  Stir to combine.  Season with a couple of dashes of oregano and salt and pepper.  Add parsley and combine.  Simmer on low for 30 minutes.

*  If you don’t have squash there are lots of substitutions.  A jar of roasted red peppers would be divine or cup of sliced mushrooms.  If you want to feel healthy add a cup of diced carrots.