admin Posted on 6:20 pm

Tomatoes: how to use them as they ripen

You can obviously can your tomatoes, but that means lugging around pans, jars, and lids for maybe a jar or two of tomatoes. Consider making casseroles and spaghetti with all your tomatoes. You can freeze and label smaller portions of your stew and spaghetti and make it last all winter. It’s a great “emergency” meal, when you don’t feel like cooking or you’re home late and everyone is hungry.

Although you may lose some of the nutrients by removing the skin, fresh skinless tomatoes are better than buying canned. Simply place several in a metal strainer, plunge them into boiling water for thirty seconds, then rinse under cold water. They should peel easily.

Cut them up and place them in a clay pot to stew. I like to add a half pound of spicy Italian sausage and lean pork or chicken to the pot, along with a couple of cans of Great Northern beans. If you’re in a hurry, brown and slice sausages and other meats before adding them to the pot. If you use canned beans, just read the label to make sure the contents don’t have a lot of sugar, fructose, or other things.

Add a whole sliced ​​red onion if desired. Sauté the onion in a little olive oil to speed up cooking. What really makes this a special stew is the addition of 3-4 sliced ​​parsnips. Its nutty flavor complements navy beans and lean white meat. Use Italian spices, a bit of fennel, and a bit of molasses for a smoky flavor. Bring to a simmer over low or high heat, depending on how quickly you want results. You can place the slow cooker in the fridge and let the flavors soak into the meats and then cook it over low heat the next day. Allow to cool, then place in freezer containers. Adjust the recipe for your own needs. Beans have protein and make a great filling, so you can easily add another can or two.

The spaghetti sauce is just as good, although the sauce can taste too sweet with fresh tomatoes from the garden. Italian sausage helps here too or you can sprinkle them with some cayenne pepper if you dare. Again, you can sauté the ground beef, add sliced ​​tomatoes, a small can of tomato paste, and the Italian spices. Add extra oregano. The sauce may seem thick, so you can easily expand it by adding more tomato or spaghetti sauce. That works great when you underestimate what you might need or find you have a few neighboring kids staying over. It also helps if you think the sauce might be too spicy for the younger ones.

Freezing can strengthen the cayenne flavor and diminish the Italian herbs. To combat the acidic nature of the tomatoes and cayenne, add just a pinch or two of sugar. Liven up the Italian spices by adding more to your batch of thawed sauce or stew.

If you hate wasting food, using garden tomatoes in a stew or spaghetti sauce is a great way to put them to immediate use and make you feel better. You might even get an extra hug at bedtime.

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