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Fresh tomatoes should only be used if they are homegrown or from a farmer's market where they are in season and very fresh. Any other time I use canned tomatoes and I'm very picky about the brands I use.
I crop up a carrot, a stick of celery, a medium onion, half a package of crimini mushrooms, and a couple cloves of garlic. I'll sweat that for about 5 min and then add the tomatoes and up to a half a can of tomato paste. Depending on the tomatoes, I might add some sugar and/or crushed red pepper. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer till it thickens. When it is close to being done I add finely chopped fresh basil and some dried oregano. Lately I've been putting it in the blender, I wish I still had an immersion blender because it is easier to control the chunkiness of it.
The process takes about a half hour. My pasta pot takes almost that much time to boil water so usually the sauce and pasta are done at the same time.
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