Tomato Ketchup: August Can Jam

Okay, so this month's issue of the Tigress' Can Jam was all about tomatoes. How do I know? I picked it! So, along with my assorted eight tomato plants, I also bought fifty pounds of tomatoes from the nice folks who farm a few miles away from me. They were all heirlooms, and one case was "softs," and one was the good stuff. It was more tomatoes than I've ever purchased before, and I had quite a marathon. Especially since I had also purchased a case of peaches at the same time. Ahem. Can you say crazy person?

That, my friends, was a darned lot of blanching. I will also tell you this: instead of using a billion ice cubes for your water bath, why not use an ice pack? I did and it made things much easier. Especially if your water is running warm, just pop another one in. Ice is a pain.

There were a lot of things I made, and there are many things still left to make. Tomato preserves and tomatillo salsa are two of them. The chipmunks are eating all my husk tomatoes, so that's not happening. I made Fresh Vegetable Salsa from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving and Tomato Basil Sauce from Canning and Preserving with Ashley English. I also made a ton of ketchup. And I know a lot of people are making ketchup these days, and I say Kudos! Because it's a long, splattery road, but the rewards are well worth it.

That said, I had a plan to make it easier. And it's nothing no one's done before. But I'd like to toot it on a horn, because I like the idea so much. And it's this: use your crock pot! Or slow cooker! Whatever you call it, just use it. Because then you can just walk away from it while it sloooowly cooks. Or let it cook while you sleep. Even better. And can it up when you want. Just make sure it is fully heated up before you jar the goodness. As a two-year old friend of mine says, "Oh, my goody!"

I used two recipes, one was the Joy of Cooking's Tomato Ketchup recipe, using it for spice and flavoring, and Food In Jars' Slow Cooker Blueberry Butter for measurements and inspiration. I made two batches. The first one was just from JoC, and it was way too much for the pot to handle. It took almost a day to cook and still it is rather thin, but the flavor was just what I look for in a ketchup. I realized I needed to make a smaller batch (ten pints is a bit much, no?), and to make sure I drained it before pureeing it.

8 cups of peeled, drained and puréed tomatoes and one medium yellow onion, diced.

Basically, I blanched the tomatoes to remove the skins. Then I roughly chopped them and drained them in a sieve. Then I pureed them in the food processor. I chose not to food mill it, and the seeds stayed in. I thought this might keep some pectin in for thickness, and also, it was easier. The onions were left in a rough dice, as I intended to use the immersion blender on it in the end.

Into the crock pot on low for six hours. For the first hour, keep the lid on. After that, I propped it with a wooden spoon. The next time I will keep the lid off the entire cooking time. Tomatoes have so much water I do believe they can afford this step. However, as in FiJ's recipe for fruit butter, fruit might suffer.

Then add sugar and spice, take off the lid and put it on high.

2/3 cup of dark brown sugar

A few cloves of peeled garlic

A spice sack: cinnamon stick, bay leaf, black peppercorns, allspice berries, celery seed

1/2 cup cider vinegar

1 or 2 teaspoons of salt, to taste

I use these neat little packets that are made for tea for my spices

Taste it! Then can it!

Make sure the consistency seems right to you. Remove your spices. Use the immersion blender if you so desire. Then, having prepared for this step before hand, can it. That is, have your jars warmed and sterilized, fill them to 1/2 inch headspace, and process them in a boiling water bath for fifteen minutes. My yield was four pints, plus a little for the fridge.

To Tomato, With Love: Tigress' Can Jam August Pick

Dear Tomato,

You are the one. How can August be August without you? How could Tigress' Can Jam be complete without you? Isn't it amazing how far you've come—from a green or golden little-known fruit in South America to a many-colored phenomenon featured on people's plates the world over? People have called you some strange names, like "love apple" and "wolf peach," but you made it into your own genus, Lycopersicon esulentum, a while ago. It's amazing that people see you as a vegetable, but really you're a fruit, and if you want to get specific, you're classified as a berry! Quel scandale!

And speaking of scandal, I know there's been talk of your notoriety, being from the Nightshade Family and all. I didn't know that your leaves were slightly poisonous if eaten, and that you are toxic to dogs! But I won't hold that against you. I know you're not trying to be mean, you're just trying to protect yourself.

Thank goodness you can be canned! You know, in a hot water bath so we can enjoy you in the winter months when you are long gone? Like the fruit you really are, your acid levels are high enough to pass muster (I know you need a little bit of lemon juice to help you out, though). It makes me dreamy: tomato sauce, tomato juice, tomato paste, tomato salsa, hot sauce, ketchup, and just you—tomatoes—in a glass jar are a thing of beauty! And I won't forget when you get all fancy and jump into a jam or confit or something like that. You can really change gears from work horse to operatic diva.

This is why I am picking you to be the star of August's Can Jam. I know everybody loves you every which way. Plums, cherries, big beefsteaks, heirlooms, greens, reds, yellows, oranges, and for good measure, let's include your cousins, tomatillos and husk tomatoes! Summer just wouldn't be summer without you!

Love,

Julia

Husk Tomatoes

P.S. The Deets: Your recipe must be posted between Sunday, August 15 and Friday, August 20. The deadline is Friday at midnight. Tomatoes should be ready everywhere! If the major crop isn't in, think of this as a test run for when it does! Read up on your tomatoes and use approved recipes. There's a lot of great information out there!

Tomatillos

Blossom End Rot

Is this a total bummer or what? This poor San Marzano tomato has blossom-end rot, which is caused by calcium deficiency that in my case was caused by drought stress. I was gone for a few days and stupidly believed the weather report which predicted a few days of showers. That was the beginning of our long dry spell and those few days of dry heat really messed with my tomatoes. I've pulled off numerous affected fruit, have been monitoring the moisture, and things seem to be looking good for the four afflicted tomato plants. My silver lining is that at least it's not late blight.

Here's a funny side note: the tomato plants that I cared least for and planted down by the barn where they get no extra water but what the skies drop on them are doing great. Huge, green, towering plants with massive fruit. They actually have the same exact soil as the other tomatoes, so I know it's not the soil that is deficient in calcium. You know why these tomatoes are doing so well? They get a constant supply of chicken manure. It's amazing. The tomato plant that is next to the manure compost pile? It is at least a foot taller than its neighboring plants. Just another reason why you should have chickens.

Lamburgers with Green Tomato Chutney and Steamed Mussels and Leeks

Lunch

There's nothing like a local lamb burger, unless it's a lamburger with New York feta and some green tomato chutney from your own unfortunate blight ridden garden. When life gives you green tomatoes, make green tomato chutney!

Dinner

How good are mussels? When you get 2 lbs. of sustainably farmed mussels from RI for $3 you really cannot go wrong. Steamed in a bath of white wine and shrimp stock, butter, olive oil, leeks, red onion, a little hot red pepper and parsley, served with local bread slathered with VT butter. (Gives you a good excuse to eat practically a stick of butter.)

Arugula and Tomatoes over Polenta with Goat Cheese

I love polenta, but I've realized that unless I buy some instant polenta (which is available and good, too) I shouldn't make it when it's just me and baby. Wayyyyy too much stirring is involved. I forgot. You can't watch a walking one-year-old and a bubbling pot of boiling cornmeal at the same time. Something will go wrong. Although, I did manage it the other day. I used medium ground organic cornmeal, milk, stock, butter, cheese, cheese and more cheese. And some rosemary. It was creamy and tangy. Topped with a quick saute of garlic in olive oil, arugula and big chunks of really ripe tomatoes. 

Goodbye, summer.

Enchiladas Verdes with Roasted Green Tomato Sauce

I was looking at a recipe for roasted tomatillo sauce and thought, I'm not going out to buy tomatillos, for crying out loud. But what can I use? Green tomatoes!! I am thrilled for a new and delicious green tomato recipe that does not require pickling.

Enchiladas: I poached a fryer chicken to make stock, as it's now soup season. Froze a few quarts of stock and left one out for cooking. This left me with a goodly amount of chicken meat, which I shredded, about 2 1/2 cups. Mix this with 1/2 cup of yogurt, and a 1/4 cup each of chopped cilantro and scallions. Next, fill six tortillas with the mixture, roll and place in lightly greased baking dish, seam side down.

The sauce: At 400 degrees, roast a pan full of green tomatoes (I used whole cherry), two quartered onions, a dozen garlic cloves, tossed with olive oil, a teaspoon of salt and flaked red pepper (you could go hotter and use real hot peppers of your choice). Let these roast for about 45 minutes, shaking the pan a few times in the interim. When done, let cool a bit and then whiz them in the processor with some stock--about a cup--until the consistency of your desire.

Shred some cheddar and swiss over the enchiladas. Pour the sauce over the whole enchilada and bake at 400 for about 15 minutes or until bubbly. My sauce was thick, so I added some stock for cooking.

Best new green tomato recipe!!

Cannellini, Cherry Tomato and Arugula Soup

I call this a hot bowl of summer. It's been getting cooler and cooler quicker and quicker, so I made soup the other day. Also, I didn't have much in the fridge. This was one of those soups that came out of nothing. Thank god for the garden! This utilized a bunch of split cherry tomatoes and the last of the arugula, which was getting a bit tough and stringy.

Saute chopped garlic and onions in olive oil. Put a bay leaf in. Add two cans of white beans (slowly, so they don't make the pot cool down too quickly) and then halved cherry tomatoes. Add a can or two of water. Simmer for a bit, until it tastes good or you're just plain hungry. Add washed arugula and a bunch of chopped parsley. Serve with a drizzle of good olive oil, cracked pepper and some grated cheese.

Et voila. Sorry I'm so lazy on the amounts. I just throw things in and see how they look.