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Creamy Tomato Sauce For Pasta

Creamy tomato sauce in a skillet and a wooden spoon inside it.

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5 from 3 reviews

Savor the rich and velvety Tomato Cream Sauce, perfect for transforming your pasta dishes into a culinary delight. This homemade sauce combines tomatoes, heavy cream, and fresh basil, resulting in a luxurious and flavorful experience that will make you forget about store-bought sauces.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 can (400 g / 14 oz) chopped tomatoes, pureed in a blender
  • 4 leaves fresh basil, chopped (or ¼ teaspoon dried basil)
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon paprika, optional
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • Optional: ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan (to be used either in the sauce or when serving the pasta)

Instructions

  1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Sauté diced onion until translucent. Add in garlic and cook for a minute, stirring constantly.
  2. Add in tomato paste, tomato sauce, chopped basil leaves (or dried basil), paprika, black pepper and salt. Stir well until smooth. Let it cook for about 5 minutes. 
  3. Reduce the heat and add in the cream. Cook for 2 minutes or until it thickens.

Notes

  • For pasta: 8 ounces (225 grams) pasta of your choice, we use fettuccine. Boil a pot of salted water. Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Toss the cooked pasta with the tomato sauce and serve immediately.
  • Optional parmesan addition: You can add it in two ways: 1) In the tomato cream sauce: You can add ¼ cup freshly grated parmesan in the pan together with the cream. Cook them together for 2 minutes and remove from the heat. 2) On the pasta: Leave the sauce as it is and grate some parmesan cheese on the pasta when serving.
  • Use high-quality canned tomatoes or fresh, ripe tomatoes for a rich, vibrant flavor.
  • For even an easier option, you can combine a store-bought marinara sauce with cream in a skillet and cook until it has a good consistency.
  • For a vodka sauce variation, add a splash of vodka after sautéing the onions and garlic, allowing it to cook off before adding the tomatoes.
  • Adjust the sauce's consistency using reserved pasta water if needed.

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