Fresh Tomato Marinara Sauce (Instant Pot Instructions included)

Jackson wanted lasagna for his birthday dinner and I needed to use up some garden tomatoes and that led to the search for this recipe.  I had to let it simmer a lot longer than 1 hour, maybe 3 hours or so to get the consistency that I wanted.  I think next time I make it I might try it in the crockpot with the lid off and see if that works.  This tastes REALLY good though.  After transferring it to the lasagna dish, Steve and I were mopping up the remains with our lunch quesadillas.  I couldn't believe how much better it was than store bought, but really, why should this surprised me?  This is definitely going on my list of things to make when I have an abundance of tomatoes to use up.


FRESH TOMATO MARINARA SAUCE
(from allrecipes)

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped (I think I used a whole onion)
8 large tomatoes, peeled and cut into big chunks
 6 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup red wine (optional or can use a substitution like grape juice)
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon salt
 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon fennel seed (left this out since I didn't have any)
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, or more to taste

Directions

Heat olive oil in a stockpot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion in hot oil until softened, about 5 minutes; add tomatoes, garlic, and bay leaf. Bring the liquid from the tomatoes to a boil, reduce to medium-low, and simmer mixture until tomatoes are softened, about 30 minutes.
Stir red wine, honey, basil, oregano, marjoram, salt, black pepper, fennel seed, and crushed red pepper into the tomato mixture; bring again to a simmer and cook until herbs have flavored the sauce, about 30 minutes more.
Stir balsamic vinegar into the sauce.

*I also pureed it a little with my immersion blender after simmering awhile to make a little bit of a smoother sauce.

INSTANT POT instructions:
(found here)

In your Instant Pot, add the olive oil, onion, and garlic and saute until soft.
With the saute feature still on, add the large tomatoes, and bay leaf and saute for 4-5 minutes until tomatoes start to get soft and release their natural juice.
Turn the saute feature OFF, and add the red wine, honey, basil, oregano, marjoram, black pepper and salt and give it a good stir. Place the lid on the Instant Pot, seal the valve and set the pot for manual (high pressure) for 5 minutes.
Once the pot beeps finished, release the pressure, and add the balsamic vinegar before using your immersion blender (or, if without, pour into your blender) to blend until smooth. Test, and flavor with additional salt/pepper if needed.
Pour into canning jars leaving at least one inch of head room - refrigerate or, freeze for up to 3 weeks.