Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

3 tb Extra virgin Italian olive
-oil (There is a
-difference)
2 Cloves of very fresh
-garlic, crushed and
-chopped
14 oz Can San Marzano peeled
-tomatoes or 1 lb fresh,
-ripe whole tomatoes peeled
-and segmented
1/2 ts Salt
5 Very large or 10 medium
-basil leaves, fresh and
-unbruised

Heat the olive oil over low heat in a heavy, non-reactive saucepan
and add the chopped garlic and a grind or two (no more) of black
pepper. Take care that the garlic doesn't brown. After a minute (no
more) add the tomatoes and stir with a wooden spoon. Break up the
pulp evenly. Add the salt, stir, and let the sauce stew for about 6 ~
7 minutes over a gentle heat. You don't want to reduce the sauce at
all. Wipe, but do not wash, the basil leaves. That may cause
discoloration. Add them whole to the sauce and cook gently until the
tomatoes are soft and the basil has released its flavor. Do not
overcook. Remove from the heat, allow to cool and remove basil
leaves. They should be dark and wilted. If you follow these
directions exactly, and use only the finest ingredients, you will be
very pleased with this sauce. You may find tomatoes label "San
Marzano Style" or "San Marzano Type." Ignore anything but "Genuine
San Marzano Tomatoes." Don't waste your money on imitations. If you
can't find Genuine San Marzano Tomatoes, buy Progresso and save your
money. And don't waste your money on out of season "fresh" tomatoes
from your local supermarket. They're nothing but insipid impostors!
If you've never tried Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Italy you're in for
a treat. Spend as much as you can afford, and don't substitute Greek,
Spanish, Portuguese or French oils. They're fine, and they have their
place, but not in this recipe. And be careful, there are some oils
with Italian names that are labeled Extra Virgin, but if you read the
fine print you may discover that the oil is from someplace else and
has only been packed, or shipped, by a company with an Italian name.
For garlic, look for large, rounded and well developed cloves on a
smooth, unblemished head. Purple colored outside skins are often the
most flavorful, but the more common white garlic will do.

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