On Monday I did tomato harvesting, which I do every two days right now. They're coming in! I sorted out the most ripe ones and made canned tomato sauce.
One is a partial jar we'll use today to make a pizza. Making tomato sauce is time consuming! Seriously -- I could go to WalMart and buy 5 jars of Hunts diced tomatoes with basic/garlic/oregano for $5. Or, I can spent an hour and a half in the kitchen making my own. (Sigh) But it's fun, and I enjoy using the skills and using our own produce. So I do it.
These are all small tomatoes, so I clean them in a water with a little baking soda and grind them up thoroughly in the blender. I add: basil, oregano, thyme (from our herb garden), garlic, Worchester sauce, a little canned tomato paste, and salt and pepper.
I don't blanch or skin them. That would take WAY too much time.
On my table I have a platter of small red tomatoes, mostly Juliets, Cherry Chocolates, and Red Cherries.
I have yellow tomatoes, mostly Yellow Pears, Green Grapes, and Mini Oranges.
And I have a big platter of Matt's Wild Cherries.
I don't make the little babies into sauce. We just eat them straight.
Those photos are AFTER I've removed the tomatoes for sauce.
This morning (Wednesday) I went to pick tomatoes again. And now I have
tomato overload! And I won't be at the farmer's market on Saturday, so I won't be selling any, so we must do something with all these tomatoes! I think I have a day of sauce-making in my future.
I picked these three bags this morning. That one big 'mater on the end will be a sandwich for lunch :)
They are so pretty and golden!
That's a table full of tomatoes! Now I go to sterilize jars and pick herbs.
Great harvest! I noticed a few small green tomatoes on my plants when I got back from Texas. My summer squash also had blossoms. I'm amazed they're doing anything in this soil. Have fun keeping the canning tradition alive and well! :)
ReplyDeleteWowie zowie! I bet your sauce tastes delicious!
ReplyDeleteYou will be like Harriet the Spy, eating a tomato sandwich for lunch. Better have cake this afternoon, too. (Give me my milk! Give me my cake! Give me my milk and cake!) That's what Harriet says to the cook.
Yes, lots of work but I'm sure it tastes wonderful.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your pizza.
I do love seeing your tomato harvest in full swing! We rarely get much before August 1st! But on July 1st I got two Sungolds :-)
ReplyDeletePom Pom reminds me of the phenomenon of Tomato Cake, or is it Tomato Bread...? Do you ever make that? I have made the bread. And Tomato Pudding is yummy, if you are getting overwhelmed; but I would cut back the sugar on those southern versions!