I got the two containers of tomatoes preserved today, but not exactly the way I had planned. I wanted to can them all as "diced tomatoes". It's a very time consuming process that involves scalding, peeling, coring, removing seeds and gel, then dicing the tomatoes. I had a large pot full ready to heat to boiling, but my boiling water bath was still just at a simmer. I am still getting used to this new ceramic cook top, and I was expecting the pot to boil much quicker than it did. By the time it finally began bubbling, the diced tomatoes had cooked to mush! So....instead of seven pints of diced tomatoes, I spooned the mixture into four jars and processed them as crushed tomatoes. I quartered the other container of raw tomatoes into the leftover juice and crushed tomatoes, added some fresh bell peppers, onions, basil, oregano, salt, pepper and sugar, then boiled it down until it had thickened. I filled four containers with a total of eleven cups of the seasoned tomato sauce. It's cooling, and will be frozen then removed from the plastic containers and sealed in vacuum bags for the freezer. So ends my first day of canning in 2011, as meager as it was.
Stop griping and calling that canning meager! It's more than somebody named Ginny got :o(
ReplyDeleteWell weren't you a busy bee today! Great job!!
ReplyDeleteDo you mean Ginny, of the 10,000 jars of pear butter and sauerkraut? That Ginny? :-D
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Mrs. P....just a bit busy, could have stood to be busier! I have pickles to do, but my dill is gone (planted way too soon, and the seeds have all dropped) and they wanted almost $4 for a tiny jar at the store! I mean, that's about a dollar a Tbsp.! Not gonna do it, I'll check the dollar store.
I have a ceramic cook top too. I canned for the first time on mine this year, I started the water at a boil in my canner before I blanched my tomatoes, and than turned it down to a simmer. It didn't take long before it heated up in the canner since it was almost at a boil. You still accomplished alot!
ReplyDeleteI still need one more canning session. Before my vacation I tossed all of my ripe tomatoes in the freezer. Lots and lots of tomatoes. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them.
ReplyDeleteRhonda, I learned my lesson! I thought, since my cook top came with a double heating ring for canning, that it would boil much faster than it did. I had almost given up and carried it out to the barbecue when it finally began to boil.
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Daphne, I rather liked having the tomatoes in the freezer. I didn't have to worry about any spoiling, or not having some of them ripe enough, and the cherry tomatoes were great to toss in the pot for sauce. I suppose I could have thawed and peeled them, then canned the whole tomatoes or quarters, but I just tossed them all in a pot for sauce and ketchup.
Well Granny, it may be a late start...but it's a start! Hopefully the weather will hold out and you'll have lots more to can! I will probably have lots of green tomatoes and peppers once this storm passes through!
ReplyDeleteSo far I have yet to do any canning this year. If my cucumbers ever get a head of steam on and start producing enough - I will do a batch of the dill pickle relish. Most everything else has been put in the freezer so far this year.
ReplyDeleteGlad you got at least some tomatoes done. I haven't done hardly anything in the garden this year. Other matters more pressing have been done instead. I walk outside once in awhile, though!
ReplyDelete~~Lori
Robin, we're expecting to stay in the 90s for a few days, then drop into the low 80s by Tuesday. I think the 70s won't be far behind, which is fine if the night temps don't plunge.
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Kitsap, I just want a few jars of dills for the daughter, but it's the lack of dill that keeps that from happening. I thought I had a bunch saved, so didn't harvest any heads this summer. I ended up only having about a tsp.! And the pot in the garden has already dropped its seeds. I shook off all I could to get a Tbsp. for the one jar I made last week.
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Lori, good beans, berries and lettuce got me out to the garden, but that's about all. Hopefully next year will be better.
Canning on the agenda here too Granny! Wish I had more tomatoes...
ReplyDeleteMe too, David, me too! It's a good thing I canned too much last year.
ReplyDeleteWhen life gives you mushy diced tomatoes... make lemonade!
ReplyDeleteNo no no, that is not right at all.
No, no, Prairie Cat....when life gives you mushy diced tomatoes, make goulash! It's all good :-)
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