Here’s your weeknight dinner answer for the next forever. We’re not going for gourmet, but it would be cool if we can check off a couple different food groups instead of just putting cheese on a tortilla and calling it a quesadilla again. Just me?
A creamy sauce built around sun-dried tomatoes dresses up fish, chicken, or whatever else is hanging out in your freezer. Even better, you can make a quick paste from pantry ingredients and spices instead of heading to the store for a little jar of sun-dried tomatoes. Add roasted broccoli for some green goodness and you’ve got a real meal on the table in 15 minutes, well done!
Sun-dried tomatoes are crazy good but also crazy expensive. A little jar that’s half full of oil can run over $6, and let me tell you that I can easily make that disappear in a single meal. Sometimes the splurge is definitely worth it, other times I’m perfectly happy to cheat a little bit.
I fell in love with (not) Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce from Budget Bytes years ago and it has a permanent place in my fridge. I’ve updated it a little here and there, but the basics are the same and you won’t even miss the real thing in busy recipes.
I’ve scaled down my version of the (not) sun-dried paste below, but I really recommend making a full batch from Beth’s original recipe to have on hand! Like pesto, just a spoonful can really make a dish so much more flavorful. I love it stirred into eggs, as a pizza sauce base, and tossed with balsamic to make vinaigrette.
Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes minced, or paste (below)
- 2 T. butter
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- salt to taste
- 1/3 cup plain greek yogurt
Instructions
- Heat sun-dried tomatoes or paste over medium heat in a large skillet.
- Add butter and garlic. Stir until butter has melted and garlic is soft.
- Pour in chicken broth and stir until fully combined. Add salt to taste.
- Remove the skillet from heat. Fold in greek yogurt until the sauce is a creamy rose color.
- Serve over fish or chicken.
Cheater's Sun-Dried Tomato Paste
Ingredients
- 2 T. olive oil
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 t. oregano
- 1 t. basil
- 1 t. rosemary
- 1/2 t. thyme
- 1/2 t. red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 t. honey
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium low heat in a large skillet.
- Saute garlic, herbs, and red pepper flakes until fragrant. Garlic should be soft but not browned.
- Stir in tomato paste and honey. It will take several minutes for the oil and paste to combine; just keep mashing them together.
- To continue making cream sauce, continue cooking in the same skillet.
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