farmersmarket365

Tomato day in my house started early but now the kitchen has been reclaimed; the freezer if filled with bags of soon to be sauces. Those red, juicy, yummy orbs are at their best warmed by the sun, picked and eaten before I even leave the garden. Freezing them is never the same and when I finish the last of the bags I know I just have to wait until the next crop comes in. Getting tomatoes out of season is just not the same and I have come to refer to them as pink plastic things. Most recently I fell victim when I bought some tomatoes with a beautiful red color and they were even still on the stems. Alas they were tasteless- What was I thinking, if a tomato is indeed at its peak of ripeness it would not stand for being kept attached to its umbilical cord. So I want to share with you how I make use of this goodness when it is real and get as much flavor as possible until the next crop. Word of caution, the processing of these veggies can only bring you so close and the best you can do while eating them is have fond memories of your garden experience.

In a previous posting I talked about how I froze chopped tomatoes; these were mostly red early girl and beef steak. For this freezing I am using all heirloom tomatoes. The varieties seem endless these days each with its own claims of a better taste or being meatier just to name a few. I am still exploring and have found that though the heirlooms look cool some don’t live up to their claims. One important note, because they are local and picked at the height of ripeness they are fragile and won’t last long. If you live in R.I. you will want to make sure you plan to attend Tomato day- Height of the Harvest at the Coastal Growers market (www.coastalmarket.org ) On this day hundreds of people descend on the market tent to taste the different types of tomatoes, which can then be purchased from several market stalls. If you don’t live in this area for the tasting, no worries, many markets across the country have similar celebrations, seek out one near you. Of course you can always buy one of each and have your own tasting. The different colors and textures do make for one amazing tomato salad. Freezing lots of heirloom tomatoes is not my favorite because they often have funny shapes and it is a bit more tedious to remove the skins, but this year I got a great deal at the end of the market, one that was just too good to turn them away- and so bring them on.

When I got home with my two large bags I laid the tomatoes in a single layer on trays in the garage. I did this for two reasons, one I don’t have space in the house but two I knew that I would lose a few before I could get to them. Sure enough in the morning when I started my work, there were a few that were only good for worm food.
There isn’t much I don’t use in the tomato. At this point I have plenty of chopped and roasted tomatoes in the freezer. On this day I focused on making puree which means I have to peal the tomatoes. I also dry the skins and save the juice for stock.

Preparation: Get prepped with lots of bowls, a strainer, a big pot like one used for steaming lobsters, for boiling water and a bowl with ice water. The bowls will hold compost, skins, and juice.

• Peeling the tomatoes: I do this in stages but you will get the idea. Take a tray of tomatoes and remove the stem end. You can do this with a knife but with so many a melon-baller works much better. Using a paring knife cut a small X on the bottom of the tomato. This is done to help the skin separate from the meat more easily. If you don’t do this it is no big deal.
  o If the tomato is misshapen, you can cut it to get the center out. Also if there are spots on the skin don’t worry, you are removing them. Cut out any part that is not good.
  o Sometimes tomatoes have this unripe top to them, this isn’t going to be any good so I just cut it off.
•  Once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium high and place the tomatoes into the water. Don’t over load the pot.
•  In about 3 min. or when I see the skins begin to split, I remove the tomatoes and plunge into the ice water. A slotted spoon is best for this as I want to transfer as little hot water to my ice bath as possible.
•  It doesn’t take long for the fruit to cool, as soon as I can handle it with my hands, I take the skin off and place the skin in the bowl designated for them. Skin that is not good is sent to the compost. Cut the tomato in half or smaller sections and squeeze into the bowl for juice, the seeds and some pulp gets caught. Don’t overdo it as we just want to reduce some of the water.
•  The meat of the tomato is then placed in yet another designated bowl.

I continued this process until I was covered with tomato juice, and had three bowls: one with juice and seeds, one with tomato meat and one with a pile of skins. This year I enjoyed a bit of breakfast and put the laundry on the line; then back to work.
Processing:

•  Tomato meat: I puree this meat so it is ready for sauces. So in small bunches I place the meat in a food processor and as my hero Jamie Oliver would say, give them a wiz. I pour the puree into yet another bowl. When finished I ladle the red soupy deliciousness into freezer bags in 4 C and 2 C portions. To freeze, I lay the bags on a sheet pan and then place the pan in the freezer. Once solid they can be stored separately. How you freeze and what quantity is up to you.*
•  Tomato juice and seeds: Using a colander or sieve I separate the liquid from the seeds and any pulp. This year I am not going to save any seeds, so once drained of liquid, the seeds and pulp go into the compost and are enjoyed by the worms. Not wasted. The liquid I put in containers for tomato stock. I save in 2, 4 and 6 cup portions and use for soups, risotto liquid, and braising liquid to name a few.
• Tomato skins: I place cooling racks on sheet pans and then lay the larger skins out on the racks. I try to get them as flat as possible but don’t try for perfection. Unless you have a helper who would love something mindless to do, don’t try to save all the skins, you will go nuts. I place the pans in a warm oven to dry, this will take some time for sure so I make sure I don’t need my oven. When dry, the skins are crumbled, placed in a jar and stored in the fridge. I use the crumble on pasta, and on salads. I have read that the skins have good nutrients in them but recent publications dispute earlier claims. I am not too worried, they taste good that’s all that matter.

The end: The tomatoes in my garage this morning are now in my freezer and compost. Bowls, and pots have been put away and the kitchen is clean. One thing is for sure, I now have enough tomatoes to get me through the winter.
*NOTES
You may ask why I don’t make the sauce now. There are two reasons, the first- I don’t want to. This processing takes a fair amount of time and I have had enough for one day. The second reason is that there are so many different yummy sauces, that I would rather wait until I know what I want. It really is a personal preference.
Take home information
• Get tomatoes you like for processing. Heirlooms sound cool but may not be the best to work with. Experiment and you will find what you like.
• Try to get deals on over ripe but not rotten tomatoes.
• You need a lot of bowls and one big pot for this process
• Make sure you have a good chunk of time because once started you will have to finish. I planned my day around a NCIS marathon on t.v.
• Lastly: when you enjoy your processed tomatoes the taste come only so close to that memory of the summer day, sitting in the garden enjoying the warm just picked tomato. Ahhhhhhhhhh.