This week I made Tomato Sauce from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. You can buy delicious jarred tomato sauce at the grocery store, but homemade is always better. This recipe makes about 1½ quarts and stores well. Next time, I would double the recipe to have it on hand for quick dinners. Tomato sauce is great on pasta, but I also love it with polenta, garlic bread, meatballs, or chicken.

In a Dutch oven, heat olive oil and butter over low heat for about five minutes. Increase heat to medium, and cook until mirepoix is tender and pancetta is beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook for an additional minute until garlic is fragrant, but don't let it begin to brown. If the garlic browns, it has a bitter flavor. Add tomato paste and cook for two minutes, stirring constantly. Add flour and cook for another two minutes, stirring constantly. Whisk in chicken stock, slowly at first. Then add canned tomatoes and bring to a full boil. Turn off heat and add parsley and oregano. Cover Dutch oven with lid slightly ajar and transfer to oven.

Cook for three hours, stirring every hour. Make sure to keep the lid ajar. Roasting the tomatoes creates a deep rich sweet flavor, which is why I didn't add sugar. In Julia Child's recipe, she adds a little sugar to the tomatoes.

After three hours, remove from oven, let cool slightly, and adjust seasoning. Purée with a food mill, using the medium blade. Puréeing makes a sweet, cohesive sauce with a great texture.

Use immediately or let cool completely and store in the refrigerator for up to one week or freeze for six months.

There are a ton of different ways to make tomato sauce, and they are all pretty great. I tend to prefer the tomato sauce recipes that have minimal ingredients: tomatoes, garlic, and basil. This recipe was much more complicated, so I was a little skeptical. It's a bit outside of my usual way of cooking. However, the flavor was deep and complex. I loved how it turned out, and I will make it again.

Next week I will be making Hollandaise Sauce.