Moosewood Mexican Red Sauce

A friend just gave me the Moosewood cookbook and it is filled with delicious vegetarian recipes including this one....yum! I actually use petite diced tomatoes from a can in place of water and chopped tomatoes. You can add heat to the sauce by adding crushed red pepper or jalapeno.

• Ready In: 40 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons olive oil
• 1  cup onion, minced
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons cumin
• 2  teaspoons chili powder
• 3  cups chopped tomatoes (peeling and seeding optional)
• 1  cup water or 1  cup tomato juice
•  black pepper, to taste
•  cayenne pepper, to taste
• 4 -6  garlic cloves, minced
• 1⁄4 cup cilantro, minced

Directions

1. Heat olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan. Add onions and salt, and saute over medium heat for about five minutes, or until the onion is translucent. Add cumin and chili powder, and saute about five minutes more.
2. Add chopped tomatoes and water/juice. Bring to a boil, artially cover and lower the heat. Simmer at least 30 minutes; even longer. Add black pepper, cayenne, and garlic at any time during the cooking. (The later you add the garlic, the more prevelant the flavor). Add the cilantro when finished cooking the sauce.
3. The sauce can be left in chunky form, or pureed in a blender to make smooth.