It's mostly to do with photographing food.

I'll be making a big batch of tomato sauce for the weekend. I'll be using canned Italian plum tomatoes which are unsalted (I stopped using canned chopped tomatoes years ago as I find the ones here too runny). If I make Marcella's I use (as instructed) a whole onion cut in half which is discarded at the end. For other purposes I much prefer to use either minimal or no onion as I think onions can add a gloopiness to the texture of tomato sauce that I dislike. Garlic (thinly sliced and sautéed in extra virgin olive oil first) if the recipe demands it, but never garlic AND onion. Salt and pepper of course. If the recipe calls for basil I add freshly torn leaves right at the very end. Basil stalks can go in earlier but I fish them out at the end (count them in, count them out!). The magic ingredient every time is half a teaspoon of sugar. The nonnas often do that even with the best, ripest tomatoes, and who am I to argue!