Right now I'm reading a book, American Pie, by Peter Reinhart.  It's a cookbook that gives recipes after giving the story of Reinhart's search for the perfect pizza.  To say he went on a meticulous and extensive search is like saying the Sistine Chapel's ceiling is a meticulously crafted large piece of art.  The description doesn't do it justice.  Reinhart searched Italy and the US over for pizza perfection.  In the beginning of the book, he recounts a time when he ate from his childhood favorite pizza place after not having eaten their pizza for years, and the pizza fell short of his memory.  He mainly attributes this to his own culinary scope having expanded over the years. 

Now after that introduction, I don't know if Reinhart would approve or not of the following recipe, and maybe as I develop I'll change my mind, but I think I've found the perfect pizza sauce.  It has a nice balance of acidity and sweetness, and the tomato flavor is fresh, though from canned tomatoes.  It's easy to make and fairly quick to bring together, and it makes enough for 2-3 pizzas. 

The recipe was part of a pizza feature from the May 2010 issue of Cooking Light, and I just this summer have gotten around to making it.  We tried it with the veggie grilled pizza, which would have been great but got way burned.  I still hope to make that for you some day. 

Basic Pizza Sauce
from May 2010 Cooking Light

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic to pan; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Remove tomatoes from can using a slotted spoon, reserving juices. Crush tomatoes. Stir tomatoes, juices, salt, and oregano into garlic mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Notes

• San Marzano tomatoes are not only difficult to find around here, but they're expensive.  I used whole peeled tomatoes- I may (can't entirely remember) have used Italian plums.  Just find the closest substitute if you can't do the San Marzanos.