Quick and Simple Marinara Pasta Sauce
about 7 minutes
makes about 2 cups of sauce
1/4 cup of butter (real butter works best, but if all you have is margarine, then that will work too)
1/2 onion, chopped fine
1/2 can of pureed tomatoes (stewed or diced would work too, but my kids don't like to see the tomatoes in their tomato sauce)
1/2 tsp to 1 tsp Kosher salt (you'll have to do this to taste, as some canned tomatoes are salty)
few cracks of pepper
1/2 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp mixed dried herbs – I used thyme and oregano, but basil and oregano would have been better
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Make sure to keep an eye on the butter, it will burn if it gets too hot. Once the butter is melted and bubbling, add in the chopped onions. Saute, stirring constantly, until the onions are clear. Add in the tomatos, salt, sugar and herbs. Heat, stirring constantly, until thoroughly heated through. Allow to simmer until your pasta or ravioli is finished.
Just a note here: the purists will be horrified, I know. A good sauce should simmer for a while, let the flavours develop. But this was an emergency! I had kids hungry enough to eat a yak, and I just needed something red that didn't taste bad to put on top of their ravioli. This turned out pleasantly well, and I bet if you let it simmer for a little while it would be even better.
Good luck! In a later post I'm going praise the great cost saving ideal of planning meals in advance, but here is proof that I don't necessarily practice what I preach!