Tomatoes

[Shadowgirlau]

Hi Folks,
Well our tomato bushes are not doing as well as I had hoped they would and I can only assume that I planted them out a little too late for our area. Never mind. They are slowly ripening and I have had quite a few alobeit it a couple here and there.
I did notice that I had 2 icecream bucket fulls on Saturday and so though I might have enough to make at least one batch of tomato sauce. Wrong I started reducing the tomatoes and discovered to my dismay that I had less than 990ml and to top it off I also started making it back to front so when I should have put in my vinegar last I had put it in first and so on. The end result was very vinegary and so I have popped this first lot into the fridge and when I get another tub of tomatoes I shall make more sauce with out adding the vinegar and add this first lot to it at the end to see what happens with it all. Maybe I shall then have enough sauce to bottle?

Darn it, I think I have forgotten how to preserve?

I hope you are al doing much better than I this year,.

Kathleen

[alicelt]

As usual, i have nothing growing again this year. Just no time *sigh*

However I managed to do some tomatoes. Did 40 kgs last weekend (from the fruit n veg place)

So out of that I made 12 500ml jars pasta sauce, 9 1L jars tomato sauce, 8 1L jars passata (with some red wine).

There were a few tomatoes left in the bottom of the box, and I could possibly have gotten another few jars out of it, but the weather here was kinda warm. I bought the tomatoes on a Thursday, and by the Monday had these few left - and they were mostly brown and white and furry. Rather than fiddle about pulling out the yucky ones and hoping, I popped the lot in the compost bin.

I know I haven't done anywhere near enough to last us the year. I did 110kgs I think last year, and I ran out in October. I'm just stupidly time poor at the moment which is highly annoying. If I had a freezer, I'd be loving it, because I'd buy another gazillion boxes and stew them all, freeze them, and pull out a bunch to then sauce up throughout the year.

Having said all that, financially bottling makes so much sense - my youngest is gluten, wheat and dairy intolerant and gluten-free tomato sauce is about $6 for a 300ml bottle at the supermarket. All of the above that I made cost about $60, so I've made a saving of $110 JUST on the tomato sauce - with the pasta sauce and passata thrown in for free *grin*

I'm not going to be canning any baked beans this year because I have discovered it's less hassle to buy pre-tinned cooked borlotti and red kidney beans, and just wash and drain them and add some of the home-made passata in the saucepan. The kids seem to like the beans better this way too. I think it's because they aren't all that fond of the intensity of the flavour in the home-canned ones. Shame, coz I really like it - but then, time poor again!

I'd really like to do some tomato soup this week so I may just buy another smaller box of tomatoes for that on Tuesday. Soup season is coming closer and we eat lots of that in winter too, so I really should be keeping an eye out for good deals on chicken and celery and carrots.

I'm determined to actually can the juicing carrots this year. Hell, maybe I'll make carrot soup.

Oops going OT, sorry!

Ali

[Shadowgirlau]

Now Ali since when can you go off topic when it comes to preserving?

Was out in the garden this morning and noticed there are another 12 romas almost ready. Picked about 1/2 a dozen this morning so hopefully by the middle of the week I shall have enough to put up that batch of tomatoe sauce I had started.

I made carrot soup last year and while it was good when reheated with a little sour cream added at the end, I no longer like the texture now my taste buds have changed.

Hope to make some tomato soup and pasta sauces as well in the next few weeks. Baked beans ? Gosh i could go for a batch of those about now, pity I don't have any haricot beans in the pantry.

Good luck

Kathleen

[mallee11]

yes I am waiting for my grower to have his ready he grows a new variety like roma but larger and firmer will be doing a lot more whole ones this year ran out a few weeks ago and of course that is when you need them Have my peeling machine ready for pasta sauce etc but I have to blanch the whole ones , I have helpers, whole family , we have a tomato day makes it easy with many hands we get a sought of production line happenning

[minnie]

Well I'm like Ali, time poor... oh for time and produce to preserve and make cheese.

We've decided to no bottling or brewing until after we move. At the moment we walked kms checking our boundary fences, creeks and dams but fingers crossed all going well we may have found what we want... I would love to be able to get spring veg in, in the new place but we'll see.

Ah tomato soup, I loooove homemade tomato soup and haven't put any up as yet only the mushroom, pea and ham and pumpkin which we still have some.

Vicki

[Mojojo]

Kathleen if you are up and back from Perth a bit... you probably go via Albany Highway yes?
If you were driving along South west highway by any chance, one of our neighbours grows all sorts, sells only from his farm gate and not to market, and SO very cheap and excellent quality. If I had some more time and was not working 5 days a week and building shed the other two, I'd be bottling boxes of his tomatoes this year. He grows a lot of traditional varieties. Sing out if you want directions! The gala apples harvest has just started too, oh wow, all straight from the tree and like nothing I've ever tasted.

I did manage to find time to knock up some peach and lime jam from his peaches though.

We have just 3 rouge de marmande tomato plants and 5 or so cherry tomatoes, in our courtyard backyard, managed to freeze a half a dozen batches of tomato sauce with the last two weeks pickings. Did not think it worth the hassle of bottling such small quantities.

[BJTJ]

Hi Mojo
would you mind telling me where as we are heading down that way this weekend. BJ

[Shadowgirlau]

Hi Jo,

Yes you are right, I go up and down via Albany Highway. When I go over to visit mum though who lives in Cookernup I drive through Boyup Brook. I stopped in Donnybrook last year around March and bought pears and apples by the case. Haven't been over that way this year as yet though.

Oh dear, it is a shame when work gets in the way or more "fun" things

Peach and Lime jam? now have you posted that recipe?

Kathleen

[Mojojo]

Yep, sure.
Loui's place is on the Donnybrook-Boyup Brook road, if coming from Donnybrook its about 15kms, driveway on the left about 400metres past the Lowden shop. He normally has a handwritten blackboard sign up listing the produce he has in season. I like it there cos he grows different kinds of vegies, not just one crop.

The next neighbour along also has a cart at his driveway loaded with apples and plums etc, beautiful plums last week were $5 a box.

I love all the roadside fruit stalls... Hopefully in a few years we will be adding our grape stall to them as well.

hmm, the peach 'n' lime jam, I shall post the recipe, I think I wrote down what I did somewhere. It was quite by accident, did not have any lemons, so I put some limes in, too much in fact, but it turned out quite well, and not overly sweet.

BJ/Kathleen if you are driving through, Morrissey Road is on the south side of the main road, near the Yabberup hall, we are the first gate on the left - the place with a half built shed, feel free to stop in and say hi! I am working down there by myself this weekend.

[Shadowgirlau]

Will have to write down these directions Jo as we are planning on driving over to Manjimup this weekend.

Kathleen

[Shadowgirlau]

Well I finished the tomato sauce that was initially begun over last weekend. It came out a little tarter than I like but never the less it looks good. Maybe it will mellow a little over time?

Not sure which way we are going when we go to Manjimup this weekend Jo as hubby said we might be better off going over on the Muir Highway.

Kathleen

[BJTJ]

HI JO
Thanks for the invite - Doesn't look like we are going to get there this weekend now but friends of ours are just up the road from you. Karen and Ray - we visit frequently so will catch with you on one of our trips. Just did some pickling with zuccinis, jalepenos, cucumber, capsicums and onions. One of those foods - can't think of the word - that you have on cheese and crackers and that glass of wine!! BJ

[Shadowgirlau]

Sounds like you put up a salsa yum

Kathleen

[BJTJ]

HI
well not quite a salsa - I used a pickled zuccini recipe then chopped up chillis, onions, cucumber,zuccini and jalepenos,(chunky sizes) mixed together with salt for ten minutes then added the pickling mixture and cooked as per the recipe, so veges are quite separate. Had a sample last night on the back verandah with our cheese (not our wine) and was lovely. BJ

[alicelt]

Antipasto???

[Heidi]

I just know that there are tomatoes in the middle of my veggie garden. Unfortunately I'm unprepared to wade through the 5 foot high weeds to get to them!
H

[Shadowgirlau]

We are a bit copncerned about our tomatoes as there are still plenty on the vines but we think we may have planted them out too late to get the full benefit of the crop. Next year we hope to be more prepared and therefor ready to plant out as soon as the weathe starts to warm up so we get the benefit of the full season. If it looks like it may suddenly start getting cold here then we shall pull the bushes up and hang them to finish off.

Have collected another kilo and a half so I rendered these down in a pan with spices, onions and capsicum popping it in the fridge to wait until we get another kilo or so to add it this. May get another batch of tomatoe sauce after all.

Kathleen

[BJTJ]

yes Antipasto sounds right - anyway tastes good on Pizza too!!
BJ

[BJTJ]

HI all
we have taken the shadecloth off our vege patch as weather has cooled at last , and heaps of tomatoes are now flowering again (I was about to pull them up as I thought they were finished) not sure whether to wait and see what happens or pull them up, even new tomato plants have sprung up in the last week!! What should I do? BJ

[Shadowgirlau]

Well Bj I am not sure what you should do though for myself we took the shadecloth off our tomatoes a week ago as well. They are doing okay but I am still going to pull them up by the end ot he month as I want to use the bed for other things. If there are any tomatoes still on the vines when I do so (and there are heaps on them at the moment) then I shall hang them in the shed until they are finished.

Kathleen