Very Veg Tomato Sauce for pasta or pizza

Pizza used to be a tricky one. My younger loved it, my elder hated it. So my younger never got it unless in restaurants, and even then we would often get the kids a plate of something to share and it was usually pasta.

Then one summer. something in my elder daughter’s brain switched. She decided she liked pizza. Really REALLY liked it. And so it began. And because I love to bake and make homemade food from scratch as much as possible, I decided that homemade pizza would be the way forward.

However, the happiness of my child’s love of pizza, versus the endless search through supermarkets between nursery drops to find a smooth tomato sauce that my daughter would approve of and eat became a nuisance. Not only did it need to be smooth, but also one that didn’t contain miniscule green bits of herbs that would immediately be noticed. I couldn’t tell you the amount of times my eldest small person has poked a finger into her meal and with a horrified expression asked ‘WHAT IS THAT?’ and pulled out a barely visible piece of mushroom/carrot/anything healthy. Throw in a no added sugar requirement and you have a very difficult task.

So, There began the task of making my own sauce, which is actually surprisingly easy. It does take a bit of time, but it is worth it for the amount of sauce you get and you can freeze in small batches and defrost quickly for a good and healthy supper on pasta or as a pizza topping. Or disguised in bolognese. The possibilities are endless.

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Into a large roasting tray throw the following:

Carrots, peppers of any colour (except green), tomatoes, red onions, garlic. If you feel inclined, also throw in peeled courgette, aubergine and any other vegetable that is not green. (Green will be noticed). You don’t need to worry about peeling if you are sieving the lot later.

Drizzle with olive oil and roast in the oven until all is soft.

When it’s ready, allow to cool and transfer to the magimix to blend fully. Keep blending until you have a puree. You can either use this as the pizza sauce or you can go one step further, which is what I always do to ensure the sauce is absolutely smooth, and sieve it.

I won’t lie, this part is not entirely fun, but, it does make a very good smooth sauce and there will be not a lot of fibre/pulp left in the sieve.

This sauce can be spread over a pizza base and topped with cheese. My kids have no idea how many veggies actually go into the sauce and demolish it. Even the baby. It’s been served up to many many unsuspecting children, who have all chomped their way happily through.