Well, tomatoes continue to dominate my life at the moment. Although I will confess that today I am enjoying a break from simmering, cutting, peeling or ladling tomatoes of any kind (I gave away 20 pounds or so to my father so he could do his own arduous tomato work). Meanwhile, the garden is still bursting with soon-to-be ripe fruits so I know I will be toiling away in the kitchen once again in the near future.
So far, our tomatoes have allowed us to can whole tomatoes, salsa, pizza sauce, marinara sauce, tomato sauce and ketchup. Okay, the ketchup was kind of a bust. It was the first time we have attempted anything like that (I'm new to the canning/freezing world), and although I love to make my own foods, it's safe to say that ketchup is not really worth making in our own kitchen. Eight pounds of tomatoes yielded maybe 6-8 ounces of ketchup when it was all said and done -- two tiny containers that I plopped in the freezer. There's nothing more dissatisfying than putting a lot of time, energy and physical labor into a project only to get a tiny bit of product in the end.
For those of you out there looking to use seasonal ingredients to make large batches of sauces for freezing, here's a great pizza sauce recipe. We love making homemade pizzas here, and now I'm so glad I have cans of homemade pizza sauce at my finger tips (instead of having to make it each time I make a pizza). Although time-consuming for a day, making this up and freezing or canning the portions ultimately saves you time down the road. So roll up your sleeves, grab a large bucket of tomatoes and get cooking!
Pizza Sauce -- Bulk Recipe for Canning/Freezing
Yield 5-6 pints
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cups finely chopped onion
2 T. garlic, minced
12 oz. tomato paste
8 cups tomatoes, seeded and pulsed in a food processor *(see note)
2 T. dried oregano
1 bay leaf
2 T. sugar
1 T. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1. Heat oil in a large stockpot. Add onion and cook until softened, 5-8 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste and cook about 1 minute until lightly brown and fragrant. Stir in tomatoes, oregano, bay leaf, sugar, salt, and pepper.
2. Bring to a simmer then reduce heat to medium-low. Continue to cook uncovered at a simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened to desired consistency, 1-2 hours. Salt and pepper to taste.
3. If freezing: allow sauce to cool for 30 minutes, place into freezer containers, chill in the refrigerator then freeze.
If canning: follow instructions for your pressure cooker.
*If desired, tomatoes can also be peeled before being processed. To do so, bring a large stock pot with water to a low boil. Meanwhile, fill a clean sink with ice water and score the bottom of the tomatoes with an"X" using a sharp knife. Place a few tomatoes into the boiling water at a time. Allow to cook for 30-60 seconds until skins start to peel away or crack. Remove tomatoes and place in sink filled with ice water. Repeat until all the tomatoes have been blanched. Using a paring knife, easily peel the skin off the tomatoes.
So far, our tomatoes have allowed us to can whole tomatoes, salsa, pizza sauce, marinara sauce, tomato sauce and ketchup. Okay, the ketchup was kind of a bust. It was the first time we have attempted anything like that (I'm new to the canning/freezing world), and although I love to make my own foods, it's safe to say that ketchup is not really worth making in our own kitchen. Eight pounds of tomatoes yielded maybe 6-8 ounces of ketchup when it was all said and done -- two tiny containers that I plopped in the freezer. There's nothing more dissatisfying than putting a lot of time, energy and physical labor into a project only to get a tiny bit of product in the end.
For those of you out there looking to use seasonal ingredients to make large batches of sauces for freezing, here's a great pizza sauce recipe. We love making homemade pizzas here, and now I'm so glad I have cans of homemade pizza sauce at my finger tips (instead of having to make it each time I make a pizza). Although time-consuming for a day, making this up and freezing or canning the portions ultimately saves you time down the road. So roll up your sleeves, grab a large bucket of tomatoes and get cooking!
Pizza Sauce -- Bulk Recipe for Canning/Freezing
Yield 5-6 pints
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cups finely chopped onion
2 T. garlic, minced
12 oz. tomato paste
8 cups tomatoes, seeded and pulsed in a food processor *(see note)
2 T. dried oregano
1 bay leaf
2 T. sugar
1 T. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1. Heat oil in a large stockpot. Add onion and cook until softened, 5-8 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste and cook about 1 minute until lightly brown and fragrant. Stir in tomatoes, oregano, bay leaf, sugar, salt, and pepper.
2. Bring to a simmer then reduce heat to medium-low. Continue to cook uncovered at a simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thickened to desired consistency, 1-2 hours. Salt and pepper to taste.
3. If freezing: allow sauce to cool for 30 minutes, place into freezer containers, chill in the refrigerator then freeze.
If canning: follow instructions for your pressure cooker.
*If desired, tomatoes can also be peeled before being processed. To do so, bring a large stock pot with water to a low boil. Meanwhile, fill a clean sink with ice water and score the bottom of the tomatoes with an"X" using a sharp knife. Place a few tomatoes into the boiling water at a time. Allow to cook for 30-60 seconds until skins start to peel away or crack. Remove tomatoes and place in sink filled with ice water. Repeat until all the tomatoes have been blanched. Using a paring knife, easily peel the skin off the tomatoes.