Here is the recipe I use to make a Homemade sauce from scratch
2 quarts Roma tomatoes
1 quart slicing tomato (a "normal" tomato)
1 small can of tomato paste
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 large onion
1 green pepper (optional)
1 celery stock (optional)
1 carrot (optional)
2-3 mushrooms (optional)
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 bay leaf
4-5 fresh basil leaves
1 cup white wine
1 1/2 lbs low fat ground beef (optional)
1.) To start, boil a pot of water. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Put the tomatoes in the boiling water for 45 seconds, then plunge immediately into the ice water for 1 minute. The skin will peel off pretty easily. Its best to do 4-5 tomatoes at a time to avoid getting overwhelmed.
2.) Cut the tomatoes and remove most of the seeds. Place the Roma tomatoes in a food processor or blender. They only need to be in there briefly, you do not need to puree them. Coarsely chop the regular tomatoes into roughly 1/2 pieces, accuracy is not required.
3.) Dice the onion and any of the vegetables you plan to use (except the mushrooms, we'll add those later). I highly recommend using most or all of the optional vegetables if you do not plan on using any meat. In a large sauce pan, add At least 2 tablespoons of the olive oil (you'll use more with more vegetables). Sweat the vegetables until they become soft. Avoid a full saute or caramelizing the veggies.
4.) Combine all the tomatoes, the tomato paste, the cooked veggies, the wine, the rest of the olive oil, the salt, pepper, garlic (you'll want to mince it), thyme, oregano, and the bay leaf into the largest pot you have.
5.) Bring the mixture up to boil, then turn the heat all the way down to simmer the sauce. You'll want to simmer anywhere from 3-4 hours. Make sure to stir the sauce, about every 20 minutes to half hour.
6.) After the sauce has simmered for 2 hours, brown the beef if you are adding it and a quick saute on the mushrooms if you want to add those. Throw these in with the rest of the sauce. I wait until now so the beef and mushrooms don't get gross and slimy.
7.) Continue simmering until the sauce reaches the thickness. Once the sauce looks ready, finely chop the basil leaves and add them to the sauce. Let the flavors mingle by simmering for another 10 to 15 minutes.
8.) Add the sauce to you favorite pasta. Top with Parmigiano-Reggiano if you want some cheese on your pasta.
This recipe is an all day affair, so be prepared to spend a lot of time. The majority of the time is simmer time though, so this is a great recipe for those days when you have a bunch of household chores you have to be doing anyway. Also, don't be afraid to experiment. I use more herb and spice in my sauce, but cut down for this recipe as some people find it too spicy.