Easy Roasted Tomato Sauce

Don't know what to do with all your tomatoes?! Here is a SIMPLE recipe you will want to do!

This recipe is for one pan, which makes 3-4 cups; I usually double it, and simply rotate the pans halfway through the cooking times so that they roast evenly. If I'm planning to freeze the sauce, I omit the herbs so that it can be used in either Italian or Mexican dishes without any conflicting flavors. A side note: try buttering your hot spaghetti before saucing; it adds so much delicious richness.

Ingredients
3-4 pounds ripe tomatoes, ideally plum, stems removed
1 medium onion, halved and sliced
2-3 cloves of garlic, smashed and peeled
A large pinch of dried herb, crumbled (marjoram, thyme, basil or oregano) or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh (optional)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon each kosher salt and sugar
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oven to 375. Slice the tomatoes in half lengthwise, then arrange them cut-side down, in one layer on a large, rimmed baking sheet (mine is 12- by 17-inches), lined with parchment paper, if you like, for easier clean-up. Arrange the onions, garlic and herbs over the top, then drizzle the whole thing evenly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, sugar, and pepper. Bake for an hour and a half to two hours (or so), until the tomatoes are browning in spots and have fully collapsed. Around an hour in, the tomatoes will be sitting in a flood of juice in their pans, and then this juice will reduce as they cook further, which is what you want for a the thickest and most flavorful sauce.

Now you have two choices: put the contents of the pan (including all the juices), through a food mill: this will make a smooth, skinless and seedless sauce. Or else blend it all in a blender or food processor, which will make a good but more roughly textured and seedy sauce. Taste it: it will likely need a bit more salt, and more sugar too, if it seems acidic. Use it, or allow it to cool completely, then spoon into labeled freezer bags and freeze, or else spoon it into 1-cup containers and then, when these are frozen solid, turn them out into a large Ziploc freezer bag to store.