There are a few telltale signs that summer is winding down in New Jersey: Shore traffic gets less aggressive, back-to-school supplies start appearing everywhere, and somewhere in North Jersey, an Italian family is awake before sunrise with pounds of tomatoes, iykyk.
For generations of Italian and Italian-American families, late summer has meant ‘Sauce Day’, the tradition of gathering the family together to turn fresh tomatoes into enough homemade sauce to stock the pantry for the year ahead. But Sauce Day goes far beyond what eventually winds up on a plate of pasta. It’s about preserving family recipes, stories, and Italian heritage one jar at a time.
