Tomatoes, Tomatoes, Tomatoes!

 This time of year, we eat a lot of tomatoes.  We look forward to our garden producing lots of homegrown, delicious tomatoes.  Again this year, we didn't get as many from our garden as we wanted.  So we went to two local fruit stands at two different times and bought tomatoes to make the summer foods we love the most.

1.  Summer tomatoes.  I found this recipe on a Susan Branch calendar years ago and make it every year.  We love it.

For the recipe, click here.  It is unique in that you put the tomatoes and other ingredients in a 1/2 gallon canning jar and let it "bake" in the sun all afternoon.  Our favorite way to eat it is to dip crusty bread in it.

2. Nectar of the Gods  aka Tomato Basil Soup

One batch makes about 6 quarts without adding the milk or cream.

I wanted more in the freezer, so we went to a different fruit stand and bought a box of tomatoes.  It made about 10 more quarts.

We like to prepare the base of the soup without adding the cream.  We put it in quart jars.  We make sure they are good and cold by keeping them in the fridge overnight before freezing them (otherwise they may break.)  You can find the recipe here.  Last year, I just made the 6 quarts.  One evening, I went out for a quart of soup and found they were all gone.  I would often grab a quart on my way out to give away to people in need and I had given them all away.  We didn't get any!  So this year, we did a lot more.  We are ready for giving and eating!

Ken is always willing to help with cooking and bottling.  He does all of the hard stuff like getting the bottles from our downstairs storage room and cleaning up.

3. Restaurant-Style Salsa

I like to make salsa with fresh tomatoes, though this recipe can be made year-round with canned tomatoes just as well.  I make this as a base salsa.  I often serve it just like this, but sometimes add chopped green onion, green pepper, chopped fresh tomato, more cilantro, and finely diced cucumber as I serve it.  Either way, it's a great addition to Mexican night.

The recipe can be found here:  http://hungryhintons.blogspot.com/2020/08/mexican-restaurant-style-salsa.html  I like to freeze the base for later use.  

We have enjoyed tomatoes now, and have some stored away in the freezer for the upcoming year.

Oh, one more way we love tomatoes:

Oh, Baby Sandwiches!  http://hungryhintons.blogspot.com/2011/07/oh-baby.html

Dubbed the best sandwich in the world, this is a delicious way to eat a slice of fresh tomato!