Jack Nicholson's Favorite Sauce

I was on a used cookbook hunt yesterday and was successful.  As I sifted through oodles of cookbooks, some in good shape, some ragged and well-used, I came upon the unusual!  I love finding a cookbook that I've never heard of, or one that has an interesting twist.  This book was it!  When would you ever expect to see Jack Nicholson's face on the front of a cookbook?  Cooking for Jack is a collection of low-fat Italian recipes compiled by Tommy Baratta (with his sister Mary Lou).  These delicious Italian recipes are the foods that helped Nicholson lose 25 pounds between the movies Hoffa and Wolf.  This is Jack'c favorite sauce.  Enjoy!

Tomato-Basil Sauce I
(page 157  Cooking For Jack by Tommy Baratta;  Simon and Schuster 1996;  ISBN 0-671-53560-9)

Olive oil cooking spray
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 small carrot, grated
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 32 oz. can Italian plum tomatoes
1/4 C dry red wine
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
salt and freshly-ground pepper, to taste
2 TBSP chopped basil

1.  Coat a large nonstick saucepan with cooking spray.
2.  Add onion and carrot and saute',stirring for 2 minutes.
3.  Add garlic and saute' for an additional minute.
4.  Add juice from canned tomatoes and wine and bring to a simmer over low heat.
5.  While sauce heats, cut each plum tomato in half and and rinse away seeds under cold, running water.
6.  Cut tomatoes into strips and add to saucepan.
7.  Stir in seasonings.  Cover and cook for 20 minutes.
8.  Stir in basil.
Yield:  About 3 cups

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A Return to Lovliness
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