Frugal Tomato Sauce

I make this tomato sauce when tomatoes aren't in season. This recipe makes about 1.5 liters so I freeze it in ziplock bags. The bacon scraps are essential as they give this sauce a smokey flavour. Keep bacon scraps or rinds for this use, I freeze mine and each time I make this sauce I take some out from the freezer. This recipe is from the first book I bought for catering school 'practical cookery'

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 10
• Yields: 6 cups

Ingredients

• 25  g margarine
• 125  g onions (roughly chopped)
• 125  g carrots (roughly chopped)
• 60  g celery (roughly chopped)
• 2  garlic cloves
• 1  bay leaf
• 3  sprigs thyme
• 25  g flour
• 25  g bacon, scraps (rind is ok)
• 125  g  tomato concentrate
• 1  liter  stock
• 1  teaspoon pepper
• 1  teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Melt the margerine in the pan, add the roughly chopped vegetables, garlic, bayleaf, thyme and bacon scraps and brown slightly.
2. Mix in the flour and cook to a sandy texture. allow to colour slightly.
3. Mix in the tomato concentrate, remove from fire.
4. Gradually add in the boiling stock , bring to the boil. Simmer for 1 hour.
5. Remove the bay leaf, bacon rind and thyme sprigs and blend to achieve a nice smooth consistency.