My Blog List

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

A Bushel And A Half Of Roma Tomatoes !


My son came to see me from Ottawa this weekend and brought me a bushel and a half of roma tomatoes, they were beautiful, its the last thing he bought for me from a farmers market near my daughters house.
They were gorgeous heavy things , smelling of sunshine and earth
I decided to can them for use over the winter .
This is how I did it.

First I got a huge pot of boiling water going and I dropped some tomatoes in until the skin blisters a bit, I score the blossom end first as well.
You do this in batches.
Then I put on latex gloves for the next part.
You peel the skin off the tomato then squish them one by one between my fingers until they are mushed up well.I don't leave any large bits.
You could use your processor but that makes it too mushy for my taste.
I didn't add anything not even pepper because I don't know what I will use those tomatoes for , could be in any number of things from soup to chili to pasta sauce or what ever....
*You will notice my use of proper culinary words !

Then in the oven it goes for hours on end until your happy with it ,I waited until it was reduced to half in consistency.
When your sauce is nearly ready prepare your jars by washing them in the hottest water you have and I pour in each jar boiling water to sterilize them , also do the lids the same way.
Then in each jar I added a few tablespoons of real lemon juice and half a teaspoon of salt.


Then the jars go into a hot water bath for 15 minutes.Dont forget to put a towel on the bottom so the jars dont bump into each other and shatter.


This is the result of half the tomatoes I had , today I will do a repeat performance with the other half.
The house smelled wonderful when I was done.
Felt like a real accomplishment.
I think its tomato soup for supper with a slice of toasted crusty bread.

19 comments:

Wendy said...

Sounds great, and I'm so happy to see you are enthused again! It takes time, but take it day by day, hour by hour....thank God for your children! Have a wonderful day!

JoAnn ( Scene Through My Eyes) said...

What a wonderful gift - the tomato sauce looks great.

LJ said...

I love a good tomato! I love tomato soup and grill cheese sandwhiches. I have to say I've never had homemade tomato soup though. Would you mind to share that recipe?
Hugs~

Needled Mom said...

I did that last week, Diane. It's a lot of work, but so worth the time when winter comes and you cannot get a nice tomato for anything!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh hush up! Crafty AND a great cook? I am very impressed...I'll be right over with a store bought apple pie to trade for a jar of your sauce. Would you fall that? Looks so pretty in the jars and I bet it's delicious, too.

Liz

Deb from WhatsInMyAttic said...

This sounds so good...tomato soup. Yum, just my very favorite. I haven't done any canning since 1978...no kidding! Kudos to you for being so domestic!

Dolores said...

Diane.... I'm thinking of you each day with healing thoughts and prayers.

The tomatoes look wonderful and the finished product looks so delicious.... I bet you'll enjoy the wonderful taste and think of your sweet son too....
Hugs,

BetteJo said...

I like to mix some cheese into my tomato soup, it's wonderful when it melts. Great job Diane! Looks great!

Attic Clutter said...

YUMMMMMM (:) looks great and will be so good to have on hand ..So glad for your comfort of your children Diane(:)
I am the same here with several tomatoes but not enough to 'can'
I did make some freezer jam though the other day (:)
big hugs,Patty

Brenda Pruitt said...

Diane, those jars of tomatoes are beautiful, and works of art in and of themselves! You'll be eating great stews when you're surrounded by snow soon.
Brenda

Carole Burant said...

I can mine a bit differently from you but it's still the same idea! lol We've never tried growing Roma tomatoes, I wonder if there's much of a difference between them and the ones we grow, mostly Bonnie Best tomatoes. It's a lot of work canning but so worth it:-) xoxo

Attic Clutter said...

HI Dear (:)
How are you doing today ??
hugs,Patty

Lib said...

The sauce looks great! I Love canning Romas!
Hope you're doing good.Think of you often and send up prayers!
Blessins',Lib

Lois Evensen said...

Hi,

I hope you are doing well. Love the tomato canning - it reminds me of my mom canning tomatoes. I can almost smell the wonderful aromas. Later in life my mom brought me bags and bags of peaches from her trees that I canned. Thanks for bringing those wonderful memories.

Hugs,
Lois

Julie Harward said...

YUM...what a great bit of work! I have done so much of this so I can really appreciate all the work it take...they look great too! :D

Janean said...

doncha adore the look of home canned tomatoes??? yay!

Attic Clutter said...

Hi Diane(:)

So good to hear from you..
yup these green plants I love..they both should do well in my shady backyard..
I have your bushel of tomatoes on my page ..love them (:)

Hope you have a good day ~I know it is hard these days.. blessings and prayers to you dear friend up north (:) hugs,Patty

Grandma Yellow Hair said...

Honey I thought of you everyday that I was gone wondering how you were holding up.
Wish you were here with me so I could take care of you.
Love that you canned these and showed us how. I so wish we were neighbors so we could do things like this together.
Ok how far are you from Texas. hahaha
Know we all love you and are praying for you. It is so hard but hold your sweet lovely head up and remember this ole Texas Grandma loves you
Maggie

Ozoz said...

Lovely photos - interesting for me to see tomatoes sold by the bushel. I thought it was only in Nigeria you could buy them in large quantities - we bulk buy ours in wicker baskets.