Being an adult human seems to be an endless cycle of trying to figure out what to eat for dinner every night until you die. Despite the fact that we must figure this out on a daily basis, some of us (me) don’t ever seem to get any better at it. So many choices, so little time.

After working all day, commuting and dealing with family stuff, many people are left with less and less time to prepare food from scratch. But wait, there’s good news! This recipe, by the late food writer Marcella Hazan, creates a delicious and authentic pasta sauce with only three ingredients, and it takes hardly any work at all.

The three ingredient recipe has been bouncing around cooking sites for years, but here is the easiest version to follow.

  • Empty a 28-ounce can of San Marzano tomatoes into a saucepan.
  • Skin an onion and chop it in half. Toss it in the pot.
  • Add five tablespoons of butter (a little more than half a stick.)
  • Sauté for 45 minutes. Every now and then, stir and smush all the tomatoes.
  • Meanwhile boil some water, cook and drain the pasta.
  • Pull out the onion.
  • Throw the pasta into the saucepan with the sauce. Stir.

You can zhuzh it up any way you like by adding salt and pepper, basil or parsley, or grating some fresh parmesan on top. Or you can savor it in its purest form. Enjoy!

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