I find an easy way to utilize extra tomatoes is to slice them onto a lightly oiled pan (I like olive oil) and bake at about 250 degrees for several hours. You have to keep an eye on them as they quickly go from a dehydrated stage to a burnt stage. Makes a very tasty tomato chip.
Sherwin D.
I nominate this for oxymoron of the week. I have never had an extra tomato. ;-)
You probably didn't plant enough. I have them growing all over my back yard and
am having a bumper crop. Even after giving them to neighbors and eating them like crazy, I still have an excess. I guess it's all relative. Most of my tomatoes are the heritage type, and they go bad quickly. Putting them in the frig is not a good option.
Sherw> >
Well, that just made me more jealous :-)
Maybe so, but 250 F works for me. I guess I'm in a hurry. It takes about 3 hours at that temperature. I have an electric dehydrator and it takes way too long.
By the way, read today that leaving cut tomatoes at room temperature for more than 2 hours is asking for trouble from samonella poisoning. I thought that was only a problem with meat or fish.
Sherwin
Are you trying to dry them? If so, 250f is wayyyy too high. I do mine at 140f.
I wasn't trying to brag, but putting something away for a rainy day is sometimes the best policy. I go into depression when the tomato season ends. This is one way to put off that time.
Sherwin
Why don't you can them? That is what mom always did. Tomatoes are one of the easiest fruits there is to can...
It comes from crap. Crap on the food comes from poor sanitation in the garden, or the food preparation area, or the preparer's hands. Tomatoes are an acid fruit and salmonella won't grow in it.
Can the juice. I have homemade tomato juice almost every morning. GOOG FOR YOU
From Mel & Donnie in Bluebird Valley
..or do what they do in Spain. Have a Tomato Fight in the neighborhood! LOL! Why not cook up some sauce and freeze it or make salsa? Eddie
Ever had any extra squash? ;-)
Seems like one plant would supply the needs of the US, except for shipping.
When canning, do you leave the skins on? Do you remove the hard part at the stem?
No kidding. ;-)
Skin and stems are removed.
The blanching technique for skinning makes it a piece of cake. :-) I even skin tomatoes to use in cooking a lot here.
To blanch/skin a tomato:
Fill a small pot with water Bring to a boil
Drop tomato into the boiling water.
Time for 10 to 15 seconds.
Remove tomato with a slotted spoon and immediately run under cold tap water. (Depending on the size of the fruits, I'll do 3 or 4 at a time).
The skin just slips off if you do it just right. :-)
I can't remember where I read it, but I think the best comment on squash was something to the effect of, "squash season is the only time that country people lock their cars".
They call that Zucchini season here.
Spud gun ammo when you run out of spuds. Watch them vaporize as they break Mach 1.
tagging on here, i missed the original post. you can freeze tomatoes whole as they come off the vine, well cleaned is a good idea. then use them in casseroles, chili, any tomato sauces. j.
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