Guiliano Hazan's Tomato & Onion Sauce

Adapted from Every Night Italian by Giuliano Hazan

I like this cookbook, with its simple recipes, very much. I use the recipe for homemade sausage, which I do not put in casings. This adaptation of his mother Marcella's famous Tomato and Onion Sauce is better than the sum of its parts. As odd as this sounds, it is especially good served on a plate with the Creamed Lima Beans. If you try it, I think you will make the combination often. The difference between this recipe and Marcella's Miracle Sauce is that here her son thinly slices the onion instead of cutting it in half. A simple difference, yes, but it does change the dish, so you will probably want both in your repertoire.

Enough for 1 pound pasta (I like this with spaghetti or rigatoni.)

1 cup very thin yellow onion slices (Russ Parsons says do not cook with sweet onions, only eat them raw.)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
A 400g can of Italian whole peeled tomatoes, with their juice, crushed with your hands
Salt
⅓ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (can also mix half and half with Pecorino Romano if you like its sharpness)
Freshly ground black pepper, optional

Put the onion and butter in a sauté pan or saucier, and place it over medium-low heat. Sauté the onion very s l o w l y until it turns a light caramel color. This will take about 10 to 12 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, and season lightly with salt keeping in mind that you will add cheese at the end. Raise the heat a little so that the tomatoes cook at a moderate simmer. Cook the tomatoes until the butter separates from the sauce, about 20 minutes.

Cook the pasta, completely submerged, in lots of salted boiled water - at least 6 quarts for a pound - until it is al dente. Drain the pasta, and immediately toss it with the sauce. Mix in the grated cheese and optionally season with black pepper. Serve at once.