Saucy

During FriendshipFest 2011 (which I still need to post about...slacker), we had a pizza feast on our first night. I was in charge of pizza dough and sauce. Daddy helped me with the dough, and I tried my hand at my first ever homemade sauces. I made tomato sauce and alfredo sauce; they were both delicious and SO easy!

Pizza/Spaghetti Sauce
fresh tomatoes (I used the 5 I got at the farmers' market.)
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes (I squished them up myself...fun!)
minced garlic (I used 2 cloves.)
Italian seasoning (or fresh basil, thyme, oregano)
cayenne pepper
pinch of sugar

In a pot on the stove, squish up the canned tomatoes (with a fork or your hands, if you enjoy a good mess like I do) and dump in their juice. Dice the fresh tomatoes and add them (seeds, skins, and all), as well as the garlic. Season to taste with all the other seasonings, and bring to a low simmer. I let it simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 2 hours. The goal is to let the water simmer out so the sauce will thicken a bit. Since we were using this on pizzas, I swiped an immersion blender around a few times to make it a bit smoother. I think some chunks would be nice if you use it as a spaghetti sauce.
 
*You could use all fresh tomatoes, or all canned...just depends on what you have handy.
*This made 8-10 servings.
 
Alfredo Sauce
1 stick of butter
1 8oz pkg cream cheese, cut into chunks
1 cup cream, half&half, or milk (I used milk.)
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
garlic powder (optional)
black pepper, to taste

Melt the better in a saucepan or small pot. Add the cream cheese chunks, and whisk until completely melted together. Add milk (or cream, or half&half), Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and pepper. Whisk well. Remove from heat to thicken, and serve.

*If it's too thick after being refrigerated, thin with a bit of milk.
*I thought this was plenty creamy with milk as the base. You can adjust according to your taste; the sauce will just vary in richness.
*This also made 8-10 servings.

Go forth and sauce it up! Enjoy.