Notes:
I make up a big pot of this for the whole family and use it for lunch, a soup, a side dish or base or topping to jazz up just about anything.
You can also put it through a blender, adding stock or water as required and make a soup. It is super simple, is very low calorie and sometimes I eat it on its own because it is so tasty.
It is not expensive, and you can vary the ingredients depending on your preferences, what is in season, what you have on hand and cost.
You can also make up smaller batches or larger ones and freeze it.
I also take some of the thickest mixture, add plenty of chili, and use it as a salsa or dip for carrot and celery sticks. It is a great low-cal alternative when you want a snack.
Depending on what you add, it works out about 60-70 calories per cup serving, unless you add a lot of potato, then it could be 100 calories per cup.
Servings: 2-16
Ingredients:
• 2-4 small (440gm/14oz) or 1-2 large (907gm/2lb) cans chopped peeled tomatoes. Put the tomato, plus any juice into a large pot. If you have whole tomatoes or fresh tomatoes, just skin and chop them.
The following ingredients are all optional. They are just an example of what you can add, but you need to put something in to make it interesting enough to eat! If you like a particular vegetable add more if you wish, or if you don’t like it, omit it. You can cut the vegetables as finely or chunky as you like. Obviously chunky ones will take longer to cook.
• 1-4 cups diced celery
• 1-4 cups diced carrots
• 2-8 cloves crushed/minced garlic (gently frying it in a teaspoon of olive oil first brings out the flavour. You can do this in the big pot and then add the tomatoes, but it is not strictly necessary to fry it).
• 1-4 cup diced onions or spring onions/salad onions/scallions
Optional: Once the other vegetables have softened, add:
• 1-4 chopped capsicums/peppers/bell peppers (try a variety of colours)
• 1-2 cups button or sliced mushrooms.
You can also add mushrooms, broccoli, courgette/zucchini , corn, etc to only that portion of the sauce you are heating up. That way they will keep their colour and bite.
You can also add:
• Fresh herbs as desired, e.g. parsley, oregano, chives, lemon grass, coriander/cilantro, etc. I am not a fan of dried herbs, but if you like the taste of them, why not add your favourites to a portion of the sauce.
• Want a bit more kick? Add chopped chili, Tabasco, cayenne or chili powder or spice to taste. Check calorie content first if you use pre-made chili or other spiced sauces are quite calorific.
• Salt and Pepper if required, but see if you really need it before adding
Directions:
If you wish you can gently saute the garlic in a teaspoon of olive oil in a large pot. If you don't want to use oil, or don't have the time, just add the garlic to the tomato mixture at the beginning of the cooking.
Put the tomato, plus any juice into a large pot. If you have whole tomatoes or fresh tomatoes, skin and chop them first.
You can cut the vegetables as finely or chunky as you like. Obviously chunky ones will take longer to cook, so add these (except peppers and mushrooms) first. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Simmer until vegetables until the vegetables have almost softened.
If you are using peppers and mushrooms, add these towards the end of the cooking time.
You can also add mushrooms, broccoli, courgette/zucchini etc to only that portion of the sauce you are heating up. That way they will keep their colour and bite.
You can add chili, dried herbs, etc at any time during the cooking period, but you may choose to wait until it is cooked, then split the mixture into batches and add chili, herbs etc to just a portion. I'd recommend adding fresh herbs just when reheating or serving as this will keep the colour and flavour.
Check seasonings and add salt and pepper if required.
