National Can-it-Forward Day

It's only one week away, and yours truly is going to be leading the "Canned  Fresh Tomatoes, packed in their own juice" demonstration.

I get to be a STAR for a day (or maybe just for an hour, but I'll take it.)

Hope you can join us!

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Update on Sunday, August 14, 2011 at 10:16AM by Brook Hurst Stephens

Leslie and I had so much fun at our demo yesterday.

Thanks to everyone who cheered us on at Pike Place Market in Seattle, and who watched it via Livestream.

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My friend Lisa made me this adorable photo album of my demo and sent it to me a week later, for my birthday!

Comments

[Amy]

Attended your tomato smooshing demo today and you with Leslie made a great team. Definately agree Leslie needed a mic and I didn't get the part about what to do from peeling tomatoes to smooshing them. do you boil the peeled tomatoes and if so, how long? Maybe the recipe is on here. I haven't looked around fully yet after a busy day at the market followed by garden work. (yawn). I enjoyed your demo though and am very interested in your local foraging info as well. I have lived here for ten yrs but just recently became interested in the natural options all around us. (other than the most abundant and obvious blackberries).
I'd love to look for the huckleberries you showed , etc. Great job and you guys were really fun to watch! Have a good sleep and good luck tomorrow if you're at it again!
Amy

[Brook Hurst Stephens]

Hi Amy!

Sorry I didn't see your post sooner. I WAS at Pike Place the next day, and I've been kinda' busy ever since. 'Tis the season you know. Lots of beautiful produce in the fridge (and garage) just begging to be preserved.

(Also, I've been trying to post a reply to your comment for days and there's been a strange glitch in the system. Giving it another try now.)

Yes, Leslie should have had a mic. She had some great points that were deserving of being heard. Next time!

As for your question about the tomatoes, they don't need to be boiled.
1.) Wash tomatoes to prepare them for blanching.
2.) Place in boiling water for 30-60 seconds...just until the skins start to crack. (Make an "X" in the bottom of the tomato to give them a starting point.)
3.) Lift tomatoes out of boiling water, either with a slotted spoon -- one at a time -- or even easier, by lifting them all out at once like I did, using the basket from the Ball Discovery Kit.
4.) Place the tomatoes into a bowl of ice cold water, so you can handle them easier and to stop the cooking process.
5.) Cut out stems and slip off skins.
6.) Either cut them in halves, quarters, or just leave them whole. (The ones in the demo were mostly halved, and Leslie did a fine job of smooshing them. They were pretty much pureed when she was finished smooshing; perfect for most of the recipes I use them in.)

Then just follow the recipe, adding 2 TBS bottled lemon juice to the warmed quart jar, tomatoes -- using a wide mouth funnel, salt if desired.
Wipe rims clean.
Place seal on jar.
Screw on band finger tight.
Process in Boiling Water Bath kettle for 1 hr 25 minutes, being sure the jars are covered with at least one inch of water at all times.

IF you ever want to go foraging I would love to join you. We foragers like to stick together. Leslie and I are always game. Maybe we should pick some fall berries?
Email me by using the "Contact Me" portion of my blog.

Thank you for the kind words. I will pass them along to Leslie :)

[Brook Hurst Stephens]

Yay! "Posting a reply" worked. Finally.