With all the tomatoes we had from the gardens this summer, I have a lot of work to do in the kitchen to keep me occupied in the evenings! The great thing about tomatoes is that there are so many recipes and dishes to make that call for tomatoes. There’s homemade salsa, tomato sauce, tomato juice, stewed tomatoes, chili sauces, casseroles, stir fries, Ratatouille…The list goes on!
One of my favourite things to eat in the Fall and Winter is tomato soup. There’s nothing like a hot bowl of soup to warm you up on a cool evening.
This recipe makes tomato juice, which serves as the base for your tomato soup.
Ingredients:
- Tomatoes
- Salt, pepper and spices to taste
Preparation:
1. Wash tomatoes. Then, remove cores, blossom ends and any spots.
2. Cut the tomatoes into quarters. I didn’t use huge tomatoes, so I left mine whole.
3. Simmer for a few minutes until tender, but not mushy.
4. Press through a food mill, strainer or sieve. My husband got mine for me at an estate sale. It’s one of my favourite kitchen tools! I use it to make juices, soups and apple sauce!
5. Return the resulting juice to the stove, and bring to a boil.
6. Pour the finished juice into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch of headspace.
7. Wipe the tops and threads of the jars, and seal.
8. Place the jars in a water bath canner. Process 10 minutes for pints; 15 minutes for quarts.
9. Remove, and let cool on the counter overnight.
10. Check the jars for a good seal in the morning, and reprocess any that aren’t sealed well.
Tips:
- After you’ve run the tomatoes through the food mill and returned the juice to the stove, salt, pepper and other spices can be added according to your tastes. I use a little salt, black pepper and celery seed in my recipe.
- If you prefer not to can, the tomato juice can also be frozen, which is what I usually do. When I need the tomato juice, I just take out a bottle from the freezer and leave it in the sink to thaw until I’m ready to use it.
- For the tomato soup, you can also add a bit of cream or milk if you like creamy tomato soup. Just make sure you cook it gently and do not boil it…otherwise, it will cause the milk to curdle.
Tonight, I think I’ll make a few more batches of apple sauce and a few batches of beets.
ah chris! you kill me with all this healthy food- no wonder you;ve only gained two freaking lbs in your pregnancny so far ! eat some good stuff like oreo double stuff cookies; that’s what had me gaining lbs that and tater tots; i couldn’t get enough of those!
Jeanna:
HAHAHA! Oh, girlfriend! You always crack me up! 😉 XOXO
Jan:
Thank you 🙂 You always know how to make me feel better!
Food mill? Stove? What are these alien things you speak of?
OH C, THANK YOU!
I have been banging my head trying to come up with things to do with all the tomatoes that my dad has grown for us (we still don’t have any dirt of our own). He plants them for us because we love them, but we can’t keep up with them.
I learned to can this summer, so I’m totally going to can up some tomato juice/soup!
I never get tired of reading about babies, present or impending, or finding new tomato recipes. Thanks for both.
First of all, congrats on Rocky Balboa making their presence known! Secondly, where does your talent end?