Easy as 1-2-3

I have never had much success with homemade spaghetti sauce so I usually cheat and buy it in a jar. Until now.......
I got a cool little cookbook from our local library titled The Clueless Vegetarian. It has some really easy and practical recipes and I really like it. And to my pleasant surprise there is a really yummy and easy tomato sauce recipe too. So I tried it last night and it passed the family test and Jubal and I even had it for lunch today. Here is the recipe for those of you looking for a good tomato sauce recipe. It can be used for lasagna, pizza, or anything else you can come up with. You can also make a big batch of it and freeze it for later use. If you are a gardener and/or canner, fresh (or canned) tomatoes from the garden are perfect for this recipe.

2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 onion, chopped
2 or 3 cloves of garlic, crushed (more if you like garlic)
1 carrot, finely chopped (optional)
1 stalk celery or small green pepper, finely chopped
8 C. chopped fresh tomatoes or 2 19 0z. cans of diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 C chopped fresh basil

In a large sauce pan heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is transparent. Add carrot, celery/green pepper and continue to cook 6-8 minutes. Dump in the tomatoes (if using canned tomatoes, don't drain), tomato paste, salt, pepper, oregano, and basil. Bring to boil, lower heat and simmer. Stir occassionally and simmer for 35-45 minutes or until sauce is thick. Add extra seasoning to taste.