September 3, 2024

Weekend Labors...

It was Labor Day Weekend, so I kept busy in the kitchen. I bought forty pounds of beef steak tomatoes from a local producer, with stewed tomatoes, homemade Rotel™ and tomato juice in mind. I processed the first fifteen pounds of tomatoes, which yielded these gorgeous seven quarts of stewed tomatoes, plus two quarts of juice.

I would have processed more tomatoes, but there was a gentlemen who brought pears and McIntosh apples (Handsome's favorite) to the store where I work. We had this big plastic tub, filled with bags of both. I get our pears from Andy and Shelly, but all our apples from the old tree dropped before they ripened, so I jumped on the Macs. 

I came home with twenty five pounds, so Handsome and I cut them all up and put them in two Nesco™ roasters to cook down while I did the tomatoes. I didn't finish the applesauce until midnight, but went to bed with fourteen quarts cooling on the counter. One didn't seal, so it went into the fridge so we'll eat that first.

I did blanch and peel the beef steaks, so I saved  the peels to dehydrate. Did you know that you can also preserve these to make tomato paste? I only just learned about this. Once dehydrated, I pulverized the skins in my little grinder (dedicated to spices and veg - no coffee) and then placed them into a jar.

To use for paste, mix 1 part powder to 1 part water. It's that easy. In the alternative, the powder can be added by the spoonful to soups or other dishes to enhance the flavor. It takes a while to fill a jar, but I have more tomatoes to process, so there will be more skins.

I took the day off on Sunday to rest and spend time with Handsome, but got back to it yesterday. We didn't have plans as Handsome tires quickly, so I want him to rest. Instead, I processed twenty pounds of San Marzano tomatoes (like Romas) into pizza sauce.

I don't peel these tomatoes. Instead, I cut out the core, and then cut them into quarters to run through my food processor...peels and all. The peels are undetectable when the mixture is cooked, and it adds more texture to my paste. As always, I then season the tomatoes with my favorite, Mrs. Wages Pizza Sauce packets to cook.

By mid-afternoon, I'd processed twenty one 12 ounce jars, and eight 8 ounce jars of sauce. After they cooled, I removed the rings (I do that with all my jars), made sure they'd all sealed, wiped the rims and labeled them. They're now in the pantry cupboard awaiting our next homemade pizza.

I work today, but will process the rest of the beef steak tomatoes tomorrow. Then I'll be taking a little rest from canning to work on some craftier pursuits. First things first. I'd better finish getting ready for work. I don't want to be tardy. See you tomorrow!

7 comments:

  1. It looks like you labored on Labor Day! :)
    What a great assortment of things for the pantry.
    Marilyn

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    1. Hi Marilyn:
      I sure did! Except Sunday. I rested on Sunday.
      xoxo
      Donna

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  2. Goodness, that truly was a LABOR day! So much tomato goodness! It must be so satisfying to look into your pantry as we head into Fall knowing that there will be so much homemade goodness to enjoy during the upcoming chilly seasons 😊

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    1. Hi Lois:
      I love the smell of the farmhouse when I'm canning tomatoes. Yum!
      xoxo
      Donna

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  3. Oh my word - labor day has nothing on you!! I thought I was doing well to do two batches of zucchini relish and a batch of plum jam. Sadly the jam didn't set and I had to reboil it this morning (looks better now).
    I had heard of dehydrating tomato skins to make powder but didn't know what to do with it from there. Interesting to know. We don't process enough tomatoes to do it but it would be a fun experiment.

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    1. Hi MA:
      Sounds like you were busy, too! I don't know why our jams don't set these days. I had the same issue this spring with the lilac jelly. It never was an issue before. Probably "climate change". lol (Don't we blame everything on climate change...except aging? lol)
      Try dehydrating the skins next time. Even if you only get a small jar-full, it really adds a lovely something extra to any dish. I wonder how it would taste on ice cream? (Can you tell I woke up with my smartypants gene turned on?)
      xoxo
      Donna

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    2. Hmmm - tomato powder on ice cream, you might be on to something!

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Blessings, Donna