When Tomato season rolls around many people just don't know what to do with "all them 'maters!"

After all how many BLT's can you eat or how many salads can you consume?

What you need to do is process those delicious Red ( or Yellow or Orange or Green) Orbs into bottled of preserved Summertime!

In other words.... Make your sauces ahead of time for those long winter months.

Yout Basic "B-flat" Tomato Sauce

What you will need:

Ripe Tomatos [Duh!]
A large pot
A small pot
A Foley Mill
A blender (Optional)
Citric Acid
A Hot water bath and/or Pressure Canner
... Lots of Jars

1. Clean up your tomatoes, quarter and remove any bad spots.

2. Put in large stew pot with a cup or two warm water.

3. Simmer till soft, stirring occasionally so they don't burn to the bottom!

4. Remove any excess liquic from the pot as you simmer the tomatos and put into the smaller pan.

5. Boil down the clear liquid - this will save the acids and minerals This will also reduce the time that you need to simmer your finished sauce to thicken it - it will also reduce your chances of burning your sauce !

6. Once the tomatos have softened your will need to run them thru your Foley Mill to remove the seeds and excess skins from your soon to be finished product.

7. Its at his point that you can use that optional blender... if you blend up the softened tomatos you will be able to salvage a bot more of the skins in a usable fashion!

8. Return your milled tomatos to the stock pot to simmer down to the desired thickness.

9. Jar up the hot sauce, add 1/4 tsp Citric acid for Pints - 1/2 tsp for quarts, install lids and rings.

10. Process in a hot water bath for 40 minutes.

HEINZ-alike KETCHUP

Yield:  1 1/2  gallon

Ingredients:

6 quarts fresh tomato puree

24 ounce Tomato Paste

4 1/2 cup Cider vinegar

(1/4 cup water, or enough to get the right consistency, if necessary)

2  cup Brown Sugar

3 Tbs Olive oil

2 Tbs Dry Mustard

4 tsp Sea Salt

2  tsp onion powder

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground Black Pepper

1 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1/2 tsp Paprika

1/2 tsp Cardamom

1/2 tsp Tumeric

1/4 tsp Mace

Method:

Mix all of the ingredients well. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Cool then chill before serving. Keep refrigerated.

Boiling water bath for 40 minutes in pints.

Basic Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

2  yellow onions, peeled and diced (about 2 cups diced)

2 Tbsp olive oil

5-6 cloves of garlic, minced (about 2 Tbsp)

2 Tbsp dried herbs (basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, etc)* mixed, total

1/2 cup red wine

12 cups peeled and seeded fresh ripe tomatoes**

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1.       In a large soup pot, heat up the olive oil. Add the onions and cook slowly, on medium heat until they start to caramelize. They should be evenly brown and soft. Cooking them this way brings out the natural sweetness in the onions.

2.       Add the garlic and dried herbs and cook for 5 minutes.

3.       Deglaze the pan with the 1/2 cup of red wine and cook for 2 minutes more.

4.       Add the tomatoes and their juice and stir to combine.

5.       Bring to a simmer and cook on low, stirring occasionally for at least 2 hours, or longer depending on the water content of the tomatoes. The sauce should be thick with much of the water evaporated to concentrate the flavor (sometimes I let it cook 4-5 hours over a very low flame).

6.       Add salt and pepper to taste.

If you wish to can this up for the future use the Boiling water bath for 40 minutes in pints.

*Dried herbs hold their flavor much longer than fresh herbs so when slow cooking. If you want to use fresh herbs, add them at then end of the cooking process, just before serving. Use  which ever of those herbs you prefer for a total of 2 Tablespoons.

 **Start with 4-5 lbs of fresh, ripe, tomatoes. If you don’t have fresh tomatoes, you can use 2 (28 oz) cans of crushed tomatoes, 1 (28 oz) can of whole tomatoes and 1 (6 oz) can of tomato paste. When I use canned tomatoes, I always add a couple tablespoons of sugar to counteract the acidity of the canned tomatoes. I find I don’t have to add any sugar with the ripe tomatoes from my garden.

 Yields about 2.5 quarts

D.T.E. Pizza Sauce

      Full Batch                    1/4 Batch                   Ingredient

   4   #10 Cans                      (4 qt)                      Tomato Paste
   2   #10 Cans                      (2 qt)                      Tomatoes + Puree
   3 Cups                            (3/4 cup)                   Oregano/Basil blend
   2 1/2 Tbs                         (1 5/8 tsp)                 Cayenne flakes   
   1 Cup                             (1/4 cup)                   Olive Oil
   1 Cup                             (1/4 cup)                   Honey
   1 Cup                             (1/4 cup)                   Romano Cheese
   3 Tbs                             (2 1/4 tsp)                 Garlic (add more if you like!)
   2 Tbs                             (1 1/2 tsp)                 Sea or Kosher Salt
   3 #10 Cans 4/5ths full            (3/5ths can)                Water

Ground White pepper can be substituted for the Cayenne Flakes.

If this is to be canned treat it like you would for canning meat.  

75 minutes in a pressure canner for Pints, 90 minutes for quarts.

The reason for this is because the added cheese must be treated as meat ie: it is protein!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups ketchup
• 2 cups tomato sauce
• 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cups red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup unsulphured molasses
• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
• 4 teaspoons hickory flavored liquid smoke
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon celery seed
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper

Directions

In a large saucepan, over medium heat, mix together all the wet ingredients and then add the seasonings.

Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer for at least 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

The sauce will thicken as it simmers (and then as it cools).

Try to plan ahead and simmer for at least an hour.

Use the sauce to brush onto meats the last ten minutes of grilling or for any other recipe where barbecue sauce is used.

Once cooled, the sauce can be frozen. Thaw in the refrigerator and use as needed.

Yield: Makes about 2 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

2 cups ketchup

1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup minced onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons water
3 cloves garlic crushed
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions

Blend onion and water into a puree.
Heat a medium sauce pan over a medium heat.
Add olive oil.
When oil is warm, pour in onion puree.
Simmer until slightly browned.
Add remaining ingredients.
Mix thoroughly and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Yield: Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients:

 1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cayenne

Directions

Heat oil in a saucepan.
Add garlic and sauté until brown.
Add remaining ingredients and reduce heat.
Simmer for 15 minutes until thickened.

Yield: Makes about 3 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

 2 cups ketchup
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over a low heat.
Simmer for 20 minutes, Stirring occasionally.
Sauce should be thin, but not watery.
Allow to cool.
Store in an airtight container and refrigerate.
Sauce is better if allowed to sit for a day.

Yield: Makes about 3 cups

Ingredients:

 1 cup Jack Daniel's Whiskey
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste
Red Pepper to taste (optional)
Liquid Smoke to taste (optional)

Directions

Combine ingredients in a saucepan and mix well.
Simmer for 20 minutes then allow to cool.
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
If you make it a few days in advance the flavors will have more time to blend together.