food and drink friday - tomato sauce with tuna fish and olives

down in tucson where i am now the weather has turned a bit brisk .. its into the 30s at night time if you can believe it!

but as with most places, november and december do tend to bring on chillier temperatures and changing styles of cooking.  one of the big things you might notice is that you gravitate more towards things that cook for a long time.

if you're like me an you love olives and capers when they're used just right, this dish is for you.  it works great as a sauce to have with rice, or of course with pasta as well.

for the ingredients there are some essentials, and then some optionals.
the essentials i would consider as follows:

• tuna fish (4-6 cans depending on size and how big of a batch you're making)
  
• sauced tomatoes (try to find minimal additives and so on .. we'll bring the flavor ourselves! .. Pomi is a brand that's pretty decent!)
  
• onion and garlic
  
• olives and capers
  
• salt and sugar (just a pinch!)
  
• balsamic or red wine vinegar (just a splash!)
  
• herbs (dried or fresh will do .. basil, parsley and oregano are all great here!)
  

and thats about it.  if you haven't made much tomato sauce from scratch, don't be intimidated .. its easy as can be.  just chop up your onions and put them in a larger saucepan with some oil on medium heat.  as the onions soften (don't let them burn) you can chop up your garlic.  in this phase you can also add the herbs if you are using fresh.  just toss the whole stem right in the pot with your onion and olive oil and watch the flavors and essences comingle.

once the onion is nice and soft add in the garlic.  garlic only takes a minute or two and if you leave it much longer it will burn very easily so be careful!  once the onions and garlic are 'there' you want to make sure to add some liquid to the pan to stop the whole thing from scorching.  i used beef broth in my latest batch but you can just splash in a quarter cup or so of fresh water, along with your tomatos.  and from there you can add your vinegar and olives and capers and canned tuna, along with the salt and pepper and sugar (just a pinch!).

let it simmer for a while, and if it cooks down too thick, just splash in some water or broth.  just make sure to stir as it cooks and monitor the heat.  develop a relationship with your sauce and it will make your belly and that of your loved ones that much happier!