Roasted Roma Tomatoes

A mid winter's jewel to pull out of the storage pantry.  By far, this is my MOST favorite recipe for canned tomatoes.  Its rich earthy flavor can make spaghetti sauce go from plain to out of this world.  Rarely do I have to add additional tomato paste when using this jarred goodness as the base in tomato dishes.  Made from roma or paste type tomatoes, roasted fresh garlic, charred tomatoes, onions, a hint of extra virgin olive, fresh oregano .. and a little sea salt .. it begs to be awarded a blue ribbon.

Recipe:

12 lbs roma or paste type tomatoes
4 bulbs garlic
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1-1/2 cups chopped onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
bottled lemon juice

Drizzle the garlic with a little bit of olive oil ... wrap the heads in a pouch of aluminum foil; sealing well.  Place on a shallow baking dish and bake at 350F for 30-60 minutes (or until soft).  Remove from oven and cool.

If you have a second oven, while the garlic is baking, wash tomatoes ... pat dry.  Then place them on a baking sheet or broiler pan and place under the broiler until they just begin to char.  Turn tomatoes over with a pair of large tongs and broil the other side.

Place the tomatoes fresh from the broiler into a heavy brown paper bag that is sitting on a tray to catch any leakage from the bag.  Fold over the top of bag and wait for about  15 minutes.  This process took three times for my tomatoes.  When cool enough to handle, the skins should just slip off.  Cut tomatoes in half and squeeze out some of the seeds.  Chop the tomatoes into 1/2 inch pieces.  Place chopped/seeded tomatoes into a large stock pan.  Either peel or squeeze the garlic out of the skins and add along with other ingredients.  Cook until hot.  Add 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice to each quart jar.  Seal properly and process in a boiling water canner for 1 hour 25 minutes at sea level.  Adjust time according to your altitude.  Makes 4 quarts.  (Each quart takes 3 lbs of tomatoes .. I had 15 pounds of tomatoes so adjusted the recipe accordingly and ended up with 5 quarts).

This recipe is from the Ball Blue Book guide to preserving, 2010 edition.  Please refer to canning safety guides if you are new to home canning.

A Pickle By Any Other ...

... Name just wouldn't be the same.  I have fond memories from childhood of eating watermelon rind pickles when visiting the farm tables of family in the mid west while on summer vacation.
Today I ventured back in time and made a batch of sweet watermelon rind pickles ... just in time to enjoy when my folks are in town for a visit.  My Pop will think he's back at his boyhood home as I'm sure his mother made these.  The recipe is from the Ball Blue Book of Preserving.  I cut the recipe in half ... getting 6 half-pints.  Do you have a favorite unusual pickle?

Rich, Thick, Hearty ..

Roasted Roma Tomatoes!  This past summer, I canned, froze and roasted well over 140 pounds of tomatoes.  Last night I opened up a quart labeled, 'Roasted Roma with Garlic' ... and, well, they are THE BEST canned tomatoes I've ever tasted.  I found the recipe in the 2010 Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving and wanted to give a shout out if you're interested for next summer.   What makes them so flavorful is that you roast them for a bit adding great flavor.  Here's the recipe:

Roasted Roma Tomatoes

Yield about 4 quarts (I'm so glad I made 12 quarts :)

12 pounds Roma tomatoes (I used a mix of Roma and Amish Paste tomatoes)
4 bulbs garlic
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/2 cups chopped onion
1 Tablespoon minced fresh oregano
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
bottled lemon juice

Roast tomatoes on grill or in broiler until skins begin to wrinkle and become lightly blackened in spots, turn to roast other side.  Remove from heat.  Place tomatoes in a paper bag and close tightly.  Cool until tomatoes are easy to handle, about 15 minutes.  Slip skins off tomatoes, cut in half and remove seeds.  Cut into 1/2 inch chunks, set aside.  Place garlic on aluminum foil and drizzle with the olive oil.  Wrap the foil tightly (place on a baking sheet) and roast in a 350F oven until tender (about 30 minutes).  Remove from oven and cool enough to handle.  Slip the garlic cloves from the skins and add to tomatoes.  Stir in the remaining ingredients and cook over medium heat until hot throughout.  Add 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice to each quart jar.  Ladle hot tomatoes into hot jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Remove air bubbles.  Adjust two-piece caps.  Process quarts 1 hour and 25 minutes in a boiling water canner.  Be sure to adjust for altitude (consult the directions in a reputable canning guide).

This recipe is the only one I'm going to use next year!!  Yah .. it's that delish!  It will make a GREAT start to a pizza sauce, spaghetti sauce, or bruchetta.  It's nice and thick .. no tomato paste needed for thickening your sauces.  Be sure to use Roma or Amish Paste tomatoes.

2011 Garden .. It's A Wrap

Today was the last day harvesting in the garden before we get our first predicted frost.  I was also canning tomato sauce, watching my little grandson and cleaning up from hosting my oldest daughter's baby shower on Sunday.  That left a very slim window of time to pick the last of the raspberries and stash uprooted/re-potted celery, peppers and parsley ... along with potted geraniums and herbs into the garage to deal with in a few days.  Our apples were carefully picked and have been stored wrapped in tissue paper in the cool basement.  It smells wonderful every time I walk into the storage room.

The past few days were peak for autumn colors in the yard.  I even brought in a few boughs of maple leaves to use as 'floral' arrangements for the baby shower.  This year the sweet peas I planted produced an abundance of blooms .. they are one of my favorite flowers to pick and bring indoors.  All of the seed pods were harvested to plant next year.

It really does take many years of practice to have gardening become second nature .. even then there is something new to learn.  I have not gotten up to speed with extending the growing season using protective coverings .. perhaps when hubby retires he will lend a hand and the end of gardening season won't be as demanding (not).

For now, we have more food stored away than any previous years.  It was a lot of work keeping up with canning and freezing.  Who knows, maybe I'll have time to start blogging again :)

Hurry Up Already

I'm trying to get all of our fruit and vegetables processed before my upcoming trip.  Hubby won't know what to do if twenty pounds of tomatoes ripen .. or that the apples should be picked carefully without bruising .. or our second batch of raspberries is ripening up and should be picked before the frost hits.  I've got two days to get this work done .. and pack .. and get my hair cut .. and, and, and ..

Today I roasted Roma tomatoes and garlic .. then canned four quarts.  The berries got turned into a nice raspberry cordial.  All the apples are picked waiting for??? Sauce, storage, etc.  Only 40 lbs of tomatoes to go and I'm done til next week.

Adios ..