Preserving Tomatoes for Winter Use

~ By Lady Kat ~

I don't actually grow my own tomatoes anymore. I go to our local Farmers Market early on Saturday mornings so I know that whatever produce I choose has been handpicked fresh that morning.

The tomatoes I used in the Fruit preserve below is the big red Beefeater variety and for the Green Tomato Relish preserve I used medium size under-ripened green tomatoes also from the Beefeater variety.

The reason I preserve tomatoes, zucchinis, etc., is so we can eat vegetables and some fruits that still have a new freshness to them all during the hard cold winter months we experience up here in Québec Canada.


FRUIT RELISH

3 Quarts of Red Tomatoes
1/2 Stalk of Celery
3 Apples
3 Pears
3 Peaches
1/2 cup of Pickling Spices tied up in a piece of Cheese cloth
2 1/2 Cups of sugar
2 tablespoons of Coarse Salt
1 Cup Chopped Onion
2 Cups of White Vinegar
1 Small Cauliflower (cut into bite-size pieces)

Peel the tomatoes and remove the seeds. Boil the tomatoes and the peaches for approximately 3 minutes, then plunge into ice cold water. This is to remove the skins more easily.

Cut the celery, onions and the rest of the fruit into chunks (not too big)

Put every thing into a huge pan. Add the salt, sugar and vinegar. Place the pickling spices into a piece of cheese cloth and tie up into a bundle with string, and put it in the middle of your mix.

Cook for approximately 1 and 1/2 hours on medium heat, stirring frequently.

Remember to sterilize your mason jars. Once your fruit mixture is cooked, pour into the mason jars leaving about 1/2 inch space for expansion. Put on the lids for mason jars, ensuring that when screwing on the lids to stop as soon as you feel a bit of resistance.

Put jars 2-3 at a time, into a hot water bath (in another large pot) and boil for approximately 10 minutes. Once you remove the jars from the boiling water keep them on your counter or table until you hear them start to make a small pop sound. You can verify if they are ready to be put away, when you press the middle of the lid with your finger. If it makes a popping sound when you press on it, it's not ready to be refrigerated.


GREEN TOMATO RELISH

10 lbs of medium size green tomatoes
1/2 cup of coarse salt
4 large red onions, chopped
1 whole celery, diced
3 cups of green cabbage, sliced thinly
2 to 3 cups of sugar (amount will depend on your taste)
1 tablespoon of ground ginger
1 tablespoon of cinnamon
1 tablespoon of 4-spices (coriander, parsley, cumin and saffron)
3 Cups of white vinegar
1 tablespoon of pepper
1 tablespoon of ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

Cut tomatoes into slices. Place in a glass bowl. Shake coarse salt over the tomatoes and let them site at room temperature over night.

The next day, turn the tomatoes into a colander and let them drip for 2 to 3 hours. Place the tomatoes into a large stove-top casserole along with the onions, diced celery, cabbage and the rest of the ingredients.

Bring to a hard boil, stirring everything together. Boil fairly vigorously for 30 to 60 minutes until it has a nice consistency.

Remember to sterilize your mason jars. Once your tomato mixture is cooked, pour into the mason jars leaving about 1/2 inch space for expansion. Put on the lids for mason jars, ensuring that when screwing on the lids to stop as soon as you feel a bit of resistance.

Put jars 2-3 at a time, into a hot water bath (in another large pot) and boil for approximately 10 minutes. Once you remove the jars from the boiling water keep them on your counter or table until you hear them start to make a small pop sound. You can verify if they are ready to be put away, when you press the middle of the lid with your finger. If it makes a popping sound when you press on it, it's not ready to be refrigerated.

Good Eating!

         

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