I hate it when we don't eat up our fresh tomatoes fast enough and they become too mushy for a salad. They still taste great so fresh tomato sauce to the rescue!
I cut up the three tomatoes into big chunks, put them into my NutriBullet and pureed them – skin, seeds and all – for about 35 seconds. They get kind of frothy, runny and look pink after that, but don't worry. Once they cook down a bit, they will thicken and turn a beautiful red.
I sauteed veggies, added seasonings, started some Basmati rice, cleaned 1/2 pound of raw shrimp, added to the sauce and dinner was delicious! Oh, I also brushed some crusty sourdough bread with a little olive oil and toasted under the broiler.
What a great way to use those less that delightful but still tasty tomatoes. Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
3 medium sized tomatoes, cut into chunks (no need to remove the skin or seeds)
1/2 white onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, each sliced into thirds
1 sweet banana pepper, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup each of chopped fresh basil and thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt & Pepper
1-1/2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar (I used AllSpice Dark Chocolate Balsamic Vinegar)
1/2 pound of raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 Tablespoons Sonoma Seasoning or similar seasoning
Directions
Puree the tomato chunks in a blender, VitaMix or NutriBullet till smooth.
Start your Basmati rice (I made 2 servings for this meal: 1 cup water, 1/2 cup rice, 1 T butter. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Take off heat and let sit for 10 minutes.)
In a large skillet, sauté the onion, garlic and banana pepper till just cooked. Add in the tomato puree, herbs and salt & pepper. Stir in the balsamic vinegar. Let this mix simmer in the large skillet on low until the rice is done. If the sauce starts to reduce too much, cover and/or add some white wine.
Once the rice is done and fluffed up in it's pan, coat the shrimp with the Sonoma Seasoning and add to the tomato sauce in the skillet. Turn up the heat to medium and cook the shrimp until it turns opaque. This only takes a few minutes.
Serve the tomato shrimp sauce over the rice with a side of hot toasted bread.
This makes two large servings. Or three smaller ones with one leftover for lunch the next day! (Which is what we did!) This is a fast and easy way to make a tasty meal.
