Baking Bonanza - Soup, Sauce & Biscotti

Sometimes you feel like a nut. Today I guess I was a baking nut. I didn’t have any real plans (besides chores) and I think I was trying to convince myself that a marathon cooking session would burn as much calories as going to the gym. So I started at 10 am and ended at 4 pm with only a few breaks for lunch, laundry loading and playtime with my son. Here was today’s lineup:
1. Goya Bean Soup - I have had this package of beans to make soup since last June. For my first time making bean soup, I think it turned out pretty yummy. I ended up freezing a bunch of it for lunches.
2. Homemade Tomato Sauce (recipe below)– I like making a big batch of sauce to have on hand for last minute dinners. Although this is not as good as my mother-in-law’s sauce (a true Italian), I have found this recipe easy so when I get a free day I cook up a ton. You do have to have a few hours to let it simmer. I used this sauce to also make up lasagna that we had at a friend’s house tonight.
3. To top it off I had some very ripe bananas that I needed to use, but wanted to do something different than a bread. So I found a recipe on Cooking Light for Banana Pecan Biscotti. Yum!

So it was a busy day, but lots of fun. I defiantly think it made up for yesterday when I sat on my butt all day!

Homemade Tomato Sauce (I usually multiply this by 4)

4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes (or use several fresh tomatoes)
2 cups water
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
2 leaves of fresh basil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon each salt and black pepper

In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, sauté onions in the oil until golden brown. Add crushed tomatoes, water, tomato paste, basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Let the sauce come to a boil, lower heat to low and stir occasionally until desired thickness. Sauce is ready when oil rises to the top. Skim off oil.