Meredith Deeds | (TNS) The Minnesota Star Tribune Whether you’re growing your own, buying them at a farmers market or finding the ones “locally grown” at your favorite grocery store, tomatoes are now at their ripest, which makes them just right for a big batch of fresh tomato sauce. Making a fresh tomato sauce that truly captures everything we love in a tomato can be a difficult task. It often turns out watery and lacking in flavor.
It’s no wonder. Tomatoes contain a lot of water which can, in a sauce, dilute the intensity. Getting rid of that water, though, comes with a price.
You could cut up the tomatoes and strain out some of the liquid, but that liquid, as loose as it is, has a lovely tomatoey flavor that would be a shame to waste. Reducing all that extra liquid in the cooking process can take away the freshness that comes from not cooking or barely cooking the fresh tomatoes. This week’s recipe, Buttered Fresh Tomato Sauce, takes an approach that addresses both issues.
It starts with choosing the right tomatoes. I like a combination of a paste tomato, like Romas or plum, and heirloom tomatoes. Using a variety of tomatoes gives the sauce a balanced flavor and hearty texture.
Both kinds are easily found in most grocery stores this time of year, but if heirlooms are difficult to find, choose a ripe beefsteak instead. For this sauce, the tomatoes are puréed. A portion of the purée is set aside, and the remainder is cooked down to a thick sauce.
The reserved fr.