ROASTED TOMATOES

 I gave up on a having a garden several years ago. We have just too many trees that prevents an adequate enough space with the amount of sunshine a garden needs and should have. The good news though is Son Patrick lives on two acres and has had a garden for several years now. This year is the first time we have gotten much from it.

They mainly grow tomatoes and peppers and some onions. He likes to make salsa. They didn't grow many cucumbers this year. One year he put up pickles from his cucumbers. With COVID-19 this year and the shortage of canning jars, he ran out of jars. Fortunately Lori's mother found a bunch and bought them for him. Usually I would be going to estate sales and could have bought him plenty. (I did go up in the attic and got down all my jars I wasn't using, but I brought them back home after I saw how many Carol had bought.)

This summer was the first time that we got a tomato or two whenever we would go up and see them. Finally a couple of weeks ago when we were up there, he said he was done with the tomatoes and I could have what I wanted. I took two plastic grocery bags home that day with ripe and still green ones. Then last week when we were there, I went to look at his garden and he said I could take all I wanted again. It was forecasted for a possible frost several days later. I basically gleaned the plants that time with more green tomatoes than ripe one.

Now I know you are wondering "what is that crazy woman going to do with so many tomatoes?" Well, that's what I am sharing with you today.

My friend Jean had shared a recipe a while back for roasting tomatoes to make soup, salsa, stewed tomatoes, marinara sauce, etc. She said she had tried it and it worked out pretty good. So far I have made and frozen 6 cups of pureed roasted tomatoes. Wayne likes to eat them roasted right from the oven.

ROASTED TOMATOES

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Set out a non-stick cookie sheet.

Wash and quarter ripe tomatoes. Place on cookie sheet.

Drizzle with olive oil and

season with salt and pepper.

Bake for 45 to 60 minutes.

Remove from pan and

place in a deep bowl if

you are going to puree with a hand-held immersion blender. You can also use your food processor.

Allow to cool and

then measure amounts (I measured 2 cups) into freezer bags. I reuse my freezer bags (this would not surprise my sons since they know I wash aluminum foil and reuse it.) so I use storage bags to put food in and then put them in gallon freezer bags.

Lay flat on plate or smaller cookie sheet and freeze.

Then fill a gallon bag with the smaller bags. (The top bag is missing the tomato quarters my husband enjoyed with dinner last night.)

I love to make homemade soup especially when temperatures drop and I can't wait to make some using my homemade tomato sauce.