When you bite into a warm, ruby-red tomato right off the vine and the juice runs out, it’s pure magic. Tomatoes you buy in the store just do not compare to smell and taste to the ones right from the garden. When it’s time to pick the tomatoes, I get so excited because I get to make this Raw Fresh Garden Tomato Sauce.
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When I was in Vancouver, studying raw food preparation at the Raw Food Foundation Culinary Arts & Nutrition Institute, we learned how to make a Marinara sauce that tasted like it had been simmering all day in your grandma’s kitchen. I was surprised at how bold and deep the flavor profile was just by making it in a blender.
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I adapted the recipe into a tomato sauce that I make a large batch and use on pasta, spiralized vegetables and for homemade pizza. I always reserve a small amount of this sauce to freeze separately. When I am making a recipe that needs only 1-2 tbsp. of tomato paste, this is handy to have on hand. The other bonus to this recipe: it’s so easy. You soak, blend and store. That’s it. You are then left with this rich garden tomato sauce that did not have to cook all day. Trust me–no one will know!
Raw Garden Fresh Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups roma tomatos, chopped (they are the best as they have the least amount of liquid)
- 2 cups sundried tomatoes. soaked
- 1/2 cup pitted dates, soaked
- 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled
- handful fresh cilantro
- 1/4 cup fresh basil
- 2 tbsp. dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne
- 1/2 tsp. chipotle chilli pepper (add more if you want more heat).
- 1 tbsp. pink Himalayan salt
- 1 lemon Juice of one lemon
Instructions
- Soak dates and sundried tomatoes in clean filtered water in separate bowls for 30 min- 2 hours (the longer the better but when you are pressed for time, 30 minutes will still do the trick).
- Drain sundried tomato & dates but reserve the water from the dates for later use, if needed
- Place all other ingredients into the blender and process on high for about 2-3 minutes
- The sauce will be thick and here is where the reserved date water comes in. If you wish to thin the sauce, add a little of the reserved date water and blend. Otherwise, the date water can be discarded.
