Lepisto's Light Pizza Sauce

See Also:	Lepisto's Pizza Cheese
	Lepisto's Pizza Dough

Note: Technique is what makes this recipe work. Also, this is the pizza sauce I now use exclusively.

Place a sieve over a large bowl and empty one can of tomatoes into the sieve (reserve the can). Use a spoon to gently stir the tomatoes in the sieve a few times then let the tomatoes sit for about 5 minutes to drain. Return the drained tomatoes to the can and repeat for the second can of tomatoes. Put the second batch of tomatoes into the first can with the others and reserve 2 1/2 cups of the liquid for later.

Place a large frying pan over medium heat until hot (about 3-5 minutes). Add oil and heat until oil is shimmers and is fragrant (about 1 minute). Add onion and stir occasionally for about 9 minutes or until some of the onion begins to show signs of browning.

Raise heat to medium high and add garlic and oregano. Saute until garlic is fragrant (about 30 seconds).

Add the drained tomatoes and stir every minute for 6 to 7 minutes. The tomatoes will begin to carmelize and brown towards the end (if you use a steel pan, you will see fond begin to form; this is not as apparent in a non-stick skillet).

Add the wine and stir constantly until the wine is reduced to a glaze (about 10 - 15 seconds). Use the wine to loosen the fond.

Add the 2 1/2 cups of reserved tomato liquid (i.e., tomato juice) to the pan and reduce heat to medium low. Add the crushed red pepper and raspberry jam and stir until the jam is dissolved. Season with salt and pepper.

Place a spatter screen over the pan or partially cover and allow to simmer for about forty to sixty minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove sauce from heat and put sauce into a food processor. Process on high until the sauce is smooth (about 10 seconds). Divide into five 1-cup containersand put in refrigerator over night. On the next day, use some of the sauce and freeze the rest (I use about 5 Tbls of sauce per pizza). Use with Lepisto's Pizza Cheese and Lepisto's Pizza Dough.

I use Centos Tomato Strips with Basil as they are already chopped and have a nice clean flavor. As an alternative (and more true to the original recipe), I use whole canned tomatoes. I break up the whole tomatoes in the sieve so they drain more readily.

I use yellow onion, the non-sweet variety. Be careful as too much onion makes this taste like a spaghetti sauce.

Everyone's favorite ingredient. This adds a bite to the sauce that really needs to be there. If you don't like garlic, don't use as much. However, don't add much more garlic than specified; otherwise, the other flavors will be overwhelmed.

Since this sauce cooks for an hour, I used dried spices. Oregano, when used in the small quantity here, adds a nice bitter, herbal flavor that works very well with tomato sauce.

These add a necessary bite to the sauce that is different from black pepper (although I do add black pepper as well). Not enough heat to bother someone who is picky about spicy foods but enough to balance the other flavors. I consider this a vital flavor but it shouldn't be overdone.

I use Smuckers Simply Fruit raspberry jam. I learned this secret from a friend of mine (Sandra) who put it in all of her tomato-based sauces. It balances the acid in the tomato sauce but in a more subtle fashon than plain sugar or honey. And the very subtle hint of raspberry flavor harmonizes very well with the tomato, onion and garlic. If you don't have raspberry jam, substitute about half a teaspoon of granulated sugar.

For this sauce I use a merlot, because that's what I usually have on hand for cooking.

I use extra virgin olive oil. It doesn't have to be a high-priced import brand, although I perfer Napoleon's Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which is imported. Napoleon's has a nice light flavor for the price. Cooking an olive oil tends to burn out the subtleties of a good olive oil so save the really good stuff for a salad dressing or a drizzle over pasta.

I use this form of salt because the grains are larger and dissolve more readily than regular table salt. It's also easier to handle and control between the fingers. A little goes a long way for salt, be careful. This sauce needs a little salt to bring out the flavors of the herbs, onion, and garlic.