Tomato sauce! the best sauce!!!

Yesterday me and my friend Andrea were thinking about dinner ( again), and we end up between Burritos from a Mexican restaurant and homemade food, so we ended up to make  a nice tomato sauce with ravioli, and salad!

Use a big chopped onion and olive oil .stir ,till the onion turn brown and then add a tsp of sugar( sugar helps the tomato sauce to not get sour, cause of the acid that  tomatoes have), white or red wine (1/2 cup) and then the tomato can ( I use two large cans ). season with salt , dry basil or fresh ,bit of cinnamon, oregano,pepper and a bay leaf, add some warm water (1/2 cup). stir for 15-25 minutes in medium fire. you can add dry peppermint or mint if you wish , even some sweet paprika. if you want to use the sauce for your pizza , don't put cinnamon there but add some Heinz ketsup. Because there is always left overs , you can freeze the sauce in small portions..

so here is the tomato nutrition facts.

Tomatoes are filled with lycopene ( lycopene is double when the tomatoes are canned) which is an antioxidant that protects cells from oxygen damage, certain cancers, and heart disease. Some of the cancers it helps fight are breast, lung, prostate, colorectal, and pancreatic.Because the lycopene, which is a carotenoid is absorbed into the body with fats, it's better eaten with certain fats like olive oil, avocados and the like. When buying tomato products try to purchase the darker red organic products, they contain up to three times the lycopene that you get with regular brands. Tomatoes are also very high in vitamins C and A. Vitamin A has a lot of beta-carotene that neutralizes the free radicals that cause illnesses and disease, are also rich in vitamin K which is very good for the bones.
They also have fiber which is good for maintaining blood sugar levels, helping in the fight against colon cancer, and lowering high cholesterol.
 One study also showed that women who ate oil based tomato products ( like sauce we made ) at least twice a week had about a 34% lower risk of heart disease.
Choose tomatoes that are deeper red in color as this indicates more lycopene. They should be smooth without wrinkles or bruises. Store them at room temperature. When ready to use they should have a wonderful smell and give slightly to the touch. If they ripened too fast and you're not ready to use them you can put them in the fridge for a couple days. If they are not ripe enough place them into a paper bag with an apple and they will ripen quicker.

Here is the nutritional value for one cup of tomatoes,


Calories - 38

Calories from fat - 5

Protein - 2 g.

Carbohydrates - 8 g
Fiber - 2 g

Sugar - 5 g

Fats - .59 g

No trans fats

No cholesterol}


( I apologise if my writing is difficult for you to understand.. I am Greek and  I am trying my best)

pizza with friends!!!

Last Thursday me and my friends we decided to have pizza! and which is the best pizza in town? of course the pizza that we made !

so, I used the unbleached all propose flour, and the dry yeast( two bags or 2 tsps), mix the yeast with a table spoon of sugar and add warm water in a big cup (not hot water ) , let it be for 10 minutes about. Then in a mixing bowl put 4-5 cups of flour, spices that you like ( I add cumin, nutgmet,garlic powder) and salt. 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the yeast that has alreadyrose. Mix the dough till there is no flour left in the bowl, (add more flour or water if it needs), it have to be soft/medium dough. Take a bigger bowl pour some warm water in and use it as a bain-marie for the the bowl with the dough. Cover it with a kitchen towel till will be double size in a bout 40 minutes.

then use a thin long rolling pin ( you can find one in Lowe's in the department with the wood supplies). take a hand full of the dough place it on the clean surface,powder with some flour so it is not sticky on the rolling pin and roll it to the size you want. Then place it in the baking pan or the stone, ( I use the racks from the oven with the baking paper on) ,spread  the sauce and the toppings. You can use mozzarella cheese or your favorite one. Mozzarella is not fat at all, and doesn't cover the flavors of the toppings)
 (to make the sauce use a big can of tomato sauce a big well chopped onion and a clove of garlic, fresh basil( 1 tsp) pepper and salt, olive oil and red wine (1/2 cup), oregano, let the ingredients to cook for 30 minutes at least, or check my tomato sauce post!)

Bake the pizzas in a hot oven about 400, till it is brown under and the cheese melted on the top. If you put pineapple, mix it with some garlic.
Good luck!! My friend Andrea and Shauna love that pizza!! anyway there is no butter in there at all, and normal size family pizza its only something like 1340 calories!!

for dessert we had Creme brulee, homemade of course

Emmanuel