Tomato Sauce

This is a simple, excellent tomato sauce with only 32 mg of sodium. Be sure to use San Marzano tomatoes, which can be found at most supermarkets.

• 4 28-ounce cans of Italian plum peeled tomatoes
• 4 peeled whole garlic cloves
• cup olive oil
• 2 pepperoncino (or substitute crushed red pepper flakes, to taste)
• 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• cup fresh, washed and dried basil leaves

Use a large (24″ at the minimum) open non-stick frying pan. Heat the olive oil on very low heat. Add the peeled whole garlic cloves. Add the pepperoncino and let the garlic and pepperoncino cook for about 10 minutes. You can turn the cloves of garlic so they are nicely browned on all sides. The garlic will soften. Add 1 can of tomatoes and turn the heat to moderate-high. Add the pepper. After 5 minutes, with a potato masher, mash the garlic and tomatoes until almost pureed. Add the other 3 cans of tomatoes and cook on medium heat for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add basil and serve.

Nutritional information per serving: 126 calories, 9 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 32 mg sodium, 9 g carbohydrates, 2 g fiber, 2 g protein.