I can a lot of heirloom tomatoes. Heirlooms are know for being a bit watery, so after canning the tomato flesh, I am left with loads of juice. What’s a girl to do? Make Bloody Mary Mix, of course. The mix is super easy. Just combine juice with seasonings Read more ›
(Repost from a few years go. Fall seems right around the corner, so it feels fitting.) Tomatoes, corn, potatoes, sweet onions and smoked bacon create a delicious seasonal soup. Fall arrived last night with strong winds and a big cold front. Read more ›
My good friend recently threw an end-of-summer hurrah, complete with a giant slip-and-slide, bonfire and an endless spread of picnic eats and drinks. No one at the party wished to cook, what with the slip-and-slide and all, so easy finger food was the order of the day. Since my kitchen countertops are overflowing with tomatoes, Read more ›
Tomatoes keep straggling into my kitchen from my fall garden, rather scarred, cracked and water-logged. A week of rain and cool temps have left them a little worse for wear, but they gallantly keep right on producing. In my book, the best way to work with these late season tomatoes is to concentrate their flavors by cooking them down into something thick and rich, like Smoky Tomato Jam. Read more ›
Oh, salsa verde, how I love thee. Classic sweet, tangy, spicy green goodness all trapped in a jar. When planning my garden last winter I completely forgot to start a tomatillo plant. Silly me. I won’t make the same mistake next year. Luckily my farmer’s market has these in abundance. Read more ›
The tomatoes just keep coming. Minnesota is having a very delayed summer with the heat moving well into September, so my garden is still going strong. At the moment, I have put up about 36 quarts of tomatoes, 16 pints of salsa, two gallons of dried tomatoes, and more tomatoes are on the way. I think we’re set for the winter, don’t you?
I am swimming in tomatoes. There are crates of tomatoes stacked like condominiums in my kitchen, boxes and boxes of tomatoes on the floors and counters, fruit lining every surface. Just when I think I’ve processed my last lug, my partner shows up with a new crate from the garden. Damn my tomato obsession! I know I’ll be happy about it in February, but right now, I’m just treading tomato juice. Read more ›
It’s official. I may have gone over the edge with this whole tomato thing. As you might have gathered from this site, I love all things tomato. But wine? It makes my feet tingle just thinking of the possibilities! For anyone who has canned or made fermented things like sauerkraut, home winemaking is totally within your reach. The real difference? Read more ›
Tomato season is over for Minneapolis with two nights of hard frosts under out belts (three weeks early, I might add). To celebrate the last of my harvest I made tomato broth and tomato paste from the same batch of tomatoes. Read more ›
Salsa is a staple in my house. I use it in burritos, rice, as a base for chili, chicken and pork dishes and over eggs. It’s just a great condiment to have on hand, particularly the homemade variety. And it’s a life-saver in the middle of winter. I like Mexican-style salsas with dried red chilies and tomatoes blended smooth. Read more ›
I learned to can tomatoes beside my mother in our farm pump house every summer as a kid. She had a big pressure cooker, a series of propane burners and lots of ball canning jars. Read more ›