Green Chili Sauce...

I'm starting to have tomato impatience...the darn things just won't ripen, (and I've heard it said from many a farming folk in this Valley of ours that I'm not alone)!

So...what's an impatient girl like me to do?  Bring on the Bernardin Home Preserving Bible, (er, I mean book).

You will need:

18 cups cored and chopped tomatoes

3 onions, chopped

3 large celery stalks, chopped, (I used 5 med sized ones)

1 green pepper, chopped

1 red pepper, chopped

1 hot red pepper, finely chopped

3 cups white vinegar

2 1/2 cups lightly packed brown vinegar

4 1/2 tsp pickling salt

4 1/2 tsp pickling spices, (tied in a cheesecloth bag)

-Combine all the vegetables, vinegar, brown sugar and salt in a large stainless steel saucepan...add your pickling spice mixture which you have lovingly tied in a cheesecloth bundle.

Now bring it all to a roaring boil, stirring frequently for a few minutes.  Then bring down the temp and boil gently for 3 hours or so, (until mixture reaches desired consistency)...stirring occasionally, (to prevent scorching).  Discard cheesecloth bag.  Put into freshly sterilized jars, (250 or 500 ml sized are best).  Put on lids and screw bands and put in a water bath canner.  Can 15 minutes for the 250 ml sized or 20 minutes for the 500 ml sized.  Remove jars and place on a level surface for 12-24 hours.  Label and store in a cool, dark place!

*I think this sauce would be great served on rice, or added as a sauce for a stirfry!  It's not too spicy, but really seems to have a unique flavour!  Although it did take a long time to make, it really wasn't much work after the chopping was done!

It yielded 10-250ml sized jars...not too bad for an evening of canning!

Enjoy!

xo maureen

Sundried Tomatoes in Oil!!!!

Every year I plant WAYYYYYYY too many cherry tomatoes and mini plum tomatoes!

Last year I harvested them, dried them and froze them, but to be completely honest with you, I wasn't inspired often to head down to the freezer to get them out. 

Then I read about a new way of preserving them...in oil!

So, here's how I did mine.

Start by cutting them into smaller pieces.  For the plum tomatoes I cut them into 3 slices, for the smaller cherry tomatoes I cut them in half.  You can also use larger tomatoes, just make sure you cut them into thin slices.  Put them in a bowl and marinate with some olive oil and salt.  I used about 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 Tbsp of sea salt.  Let it sit for 15 min to overnight.

Spread your tomatoes on a dehydrator sheet...and put your dehydrator on about 100 degrees for approximately 18 hours, or until your tomatoes are sufficiently dry, (you want them very very dry).  You can also dehydrate them in an oven on low temperature

This is what your dried tomatoes should look like.

Using a freshly steralized jar, put in your tomatoes and some sprigs of rosemary, basil and oregano.  Cover it all up with olive oil and keep it in the fridge indefinately!

*I would recommend using organic olive oil if you can

This recipe is loosely inspired by "RAW...the Uncook Book" by Juliano.

(he recommends putting in a clove of garlic, but my fear of botulism prevents me from doing this)!

If you're into raw food it's a great, colourful uncook book that I would highly recommend.

Happy preserving and putting away!

xo maureen

Crushed Tomatoes...

Oh these glorious tomatoes!    If you are thinking of canning anything this season, please consider canning your tomatoes.  Here's why:

"It has been proved that more than any other fruit or vegetable, tomatoes are the worst kind of product to be consumed, if they are stored in cans and tins. Tomatoes are very acidic to begin with. It is this acidity of the tomatoes that will cause the chemical that lines the can to permeate into the food. This chemical is known as bisphenol-A, or BPH. These cans contain about 50 mcg of toxic BPH, which can impact an adult severely, let alone a child. And thus when the chemicals permeate into the can, it leads to an increase in the toxicity of the canned tomatoes."

here's my source for this information

I know I use crushed tomatoes in many recipes...soups, stews, sauces.  There is no better feeling than having your own organic, homegrown tomatoes on the pantry shelf, and it really requires very little work to can tomatoes!  Here's a quick tutorial...

First go out and pick your tomatoes...wash off all the dirt.  Use whatever you have on hand and try to guestimate the number of mason jars you will need.  I usually use 500ml sized jars myself.

This mornings batch, with about 16 tomatoes yielded 5-500ml jars of crushed tomatoes.

First you need to take your washed tomatoes and immerse them in a pot of boiling water.  You can put a little notch into each one with a knife before putting them in the water, or not.  I find the peels come off pretty much no matter what you do.

When you see the skins starting to come off the tomatoes, (in about 30 seconds or so), put them into a bowl of cold water and peel the skins off...they should come off very easily.

Then take your tomatoes and quarter them...put them into a large bowl or measuring cup.

(this is the point at which I sterilize my jars, to have them at the ready)

Take your quartered tomatoes, (2 cups worth at a time), and crush them in your large stainless steel pot using a potato masher.  Keep adding and crushing until all of your tomatoes are in the pot.  Now put on the heat and get that tomato mixture boiling on high heat for 5 minutes.

Get your mason jars out and at the ready.  Put into each 500ml jar 1 Tbsp of lemon juice and 1/2 tsp of salt, (the salt is optional, but the lemon juice is NOT...you MUST use lemon juice...unless of course you actually want to get botulism)!  Add the crushed tomatoes to within 1/2 inch of the rim.  Wipe your rims clean, put on the lid and place in a water bath canner for 35 minutes.  You must make sure your jars are covered with water...I find that with crushed tomatoes I have to add water to the canner several times.  Have your kettle on the go and top up your canner with boiling water.

That's it....get them out after 35 min...place them on a level surface for 12-24 hours and label.

Don't they look beautiful!!!

xo maureen