how to make a tomato cream sauce?

[speedracer]

Hi all,

How does anyone know how to prepare a tomato cream sauce? I was briefly told to use either canned sauce or paste and then to combine w/ half and half cream. I tried this w/ pasta sauce, but the cream and sauce wouldn't mix. I am obviously doing something wrong. Am I using the wrong type of cream? i.e use whipping cream? If someone could help I would appreciate it very much.

Edited July 9, 2003 by speedracer (log)

[Jon Tseng]

Hi mate

Try using as heavy as possible a cream; in the UK I use double cream (48% fat) for cooking. Lighter stuff tends to split.

It is splitting into globules of oil in the sauce? Sometimes can be rescued by zapping with a hand-blender, sometimes not (depending on the cream, qv)

In his Passion for Flavour, Gordon Ramsay has a useful recipe for what he calls "sauce gazpacho". Basically pureed, sieved and heavily reduced cherry tomatoes (excellent at this time of year) with butter and olive-oil stirred in at the end. Make an excellent summary dressing.

cheerio

J

[Lounge Lizard]

I have had trouble getting a smooth blend when combining tomato and cream in soups or sauces...heat, acidity....im never sure.

I found that if I add a cream sauce(bechamel), made with a roux, to the tomato product it never looks "broken" and combines nicely.

[JAZ]

How odd. I almost always add cream to tomato sauces and have never had any trouble. I started doing this when I tried a recipe for linguine with shrimp out of one of Biba Gaggiano's books.

Her method was to saute shrimp and garlic, add some brandy and stir until the shrimp is done and the brandy has amost all evaporated. Remove the shrimp, add canned tomatoes (I usually used crushed or sometimes diced -- not sauce). Cook for five minutes or so and then add your cream. Cook just til heated through.

Although I vary the ingredients quite a bit, one thing I've always done is to add the cream only at the very end. Cream has a tendency to separate out when cooked for too long. Maybe that's where you're going wrong?

[mamster]

Hey, I've made that recipe, JAZ! It's delicious. I also make tomato-cream sauces all the time and have never had a problem. We had penne alla vodka last night.

[malachi]

The easy (cheater) solution is to (as mentioned above) make a bechamel sauce (with roux), then stir in a small amount of tomato paste. Voila.

[Lounge Lizard]

You calling me a cheater!

[malachi]

Cheater = smart in many cases.

[Jon Tseng]

The easy (cheater) solution is to (as mentioned above) make a bechamel sauce (with roux), then stir in a small amount of tomato paste. Voila.

sauce choron?

[Katherine]

The real "cheater" solution is to take a can of whole tomatoes, crush them into a pan containing sauteed onion and garlic, and cook down until all the liquid is gone. Blend, sieve, and finish with heavy cream.

Also good when you saute a red pepper in there, too.

[jango]

Hi Speedracer - this just happens to be what I make when I can't think what to make. Delicious.

The key to a smooth sauce is to get it hot but not boiling hot. I think it's the acid in the tomatoes misbehaving when the cream hits it, so that's why your sauce wouldn't come together. There are ways around this by using a starch to make it blend better, as Malachi said, but it's easy to just control the heat.

This is so fast to make that you have to have the pasta in the pot before starting the sauce.

Take about 4-5 oz tomato paste and mix with some water (2 TBSP or more). It should have the consistancy of new ketchup.

Have ready 2-3 T of olive oil, about 1/3 cup whipping cream, black pepper, 1-2 cloves minced garlic, and some chopped, fresh herbs. (Basil's the best but you can use marjoram with great results).

Heat oil and tomato paste on medium heat. Stir. Do not get it too hot.

Add a few grinds of pepper.

Remove from heat and add enough cream to amalgamate the oil. Stir.

Add minced garlic.

Heat again until very warm but absolutely not bubbling. (Note: garlic does not cook - it warms up a bit).

Pour sauce into fresh cooked fusilli pasta and stir.

Serve garnished with a whole lot of fresh herbs.

Usually I put parmesan cheese on pasta dishes but I don't on this one. But you can do what you like.

- Jane