Passata Pasta Sauce

(Source: Bill HR through Flickr. This photo was taken on January 10, 2009 using aCanon EOS 50D.)

Having mentioned to a colleague that I'd been impressed with the flavour a Jamie Oliver Tomato and Rosemary pasta sauce my colleague recounted how she makes her own pasta sauce each week. So having taken note of her instructions I was keen to give some budget friendly Passata a go  - the jarred sauces are getting increasingly expensive aren't they?

Well I don't pretend to be an expert, so I'm not embarrassed with having not learnt about this sooner, but I thought I'd share this tasty money saving tip.

Ingredients to make enough pasta sauce for 2 meals for 2 to 4 people depending on how greedy you are:
2 tbls Olive Oil
1 - 2 onions
garlic - to your taste, I like lots so 4 crushed cloves
One packet of Passata (40p at Co-op, bargain!)

1. Gently heat the oil, garlic and onion on a low heat until the onion has cooked to a translucent texture.
2. Once the herbs have softened, add the Passata and leave to simmer very gently for 10 mins.
3. If being prepared for another day, leave to cool and either divide into two for the fridge or freezer.

This is the basic tomato sauce to which you can add different herbs and chopped vegetables depending on the style you are cooking for. 

Please also see the lovely Hannah's at Lou Lou Loves Vintage Basic Sauce Recipe  for a heavier tomato based sauce.