Summer Is Winding Down

It is almost Labor Day. The kids are back to school. The days are getting shorter. I hate to say it, but summer is coming to an end. I hope every one is gorging themselves on the bounty of their gardens . . . tomatoes, corn, summer squash, cucumbers . . . these will soon give way to winter squash, pumpkins, and cabbage.

Why am I pointing this out? Well, if you like to can tomatoes or freeze corn - now is the time to do it. The tomato crop has been hit hard by the blight, but they are coming in strong now, and the time is ripe (like the pun?) to do you canning. By the way, if you don't have your own garden, you can buy tomatoes for $14/20lb box at the Market - while they last.

Don't know how to can tomatoes? Well I found a great web site that includes pictures and step by step instructions for canning tomatoes here. If, like me, you don't want to can the 'whole' tomato, by can cook your tomatoes down and run them through a food mill. Now, when I'm feeling lazy, I can the resulting juice (follow the instructions on the page for the canning part, I just toss a scant teaspoon of salt on the surface of the juice after filling the jar).

If I'm hankering for some fresh spaghetti sauce, I will go the extra mile and cook it down. Now this takes patience, and your yeild is going to go way down (tomatoes have a lot of water in them), but the result is like nothing you can buy in a grocery store. Juice the tomatoes (BTW: I never use just tomatoes; my 'tomato juice' is more like a V8, with any and all veggies that are ready at the time, including summer squash, onion, peppers, fresh basil, etc.) and put the resulting juice in an oven proof pan (I have a big roaster I've used for this, and also some big pots that work nicely). You can cook it down over LOW heat either on the stove top, or in the oven (~250F), but you have to make sure you stir it periodically. Allow it to simmer away until the sauce reaches the desired consistency (I like mine thick) - up to a couple days (yes I said days). One tip, DO NOT season the sauce until it is cooked down. Then can the sauce just as you do the juice or the whole tomatoes.

The time and labor are well worth the product. I never purchase tomato juice in the store - to me it always tastes like the can. I grew up on home canned tomato juice and sauce, and I'm hoping to pass the tradition on to my own children!

That brings me to corn, which I know I've discussed freezing before. If you want to freeze corn, there's probably only a week or so of full season left, so don't dally. If you want a full bag or two for canning (5 dozen ears in a bag), just give the Market a call and let them know so they can add it to the next order (440-599-2020). Remember, there is nothing like Ohio sweet corn that you'll be able to buy in the grocery store over the winter. This is another labor of love that is well worth the effort. Besides, corn is easy - shuck it, blanch it for 10 minutes, shock it in cold water, cut it off the cob, and put it in a freezer bag and freeze. What could be easier!

Trust me, come January you will be so glad you took the time and trouble to put up tomatoes and corn now!