Canning tomatoes.....

It's that time of year again...time to can some "maters"! I love canning and I especially love having these tomatoes in the winter to put in my soups and chilli. And these are so much better for you than those canned ones you buy in the store...and taste better too!

here's how I can tomatoes...

1. I wash the jars and then dip them in boiling water to sterlize. You can use your dishwasher but mine was running and I didn't want to wait for it.

2. Next put your lids and rims in a pot of water, bring to a boil and then reduce to simmer.

3. Wash your tomatoes up good.....have a pot of hot water and a large bowl of cold water. I put 3 tomatoes at a time into the hot water, wait about a minute, then ladle out and put them in the cold water. Wait just a minute and then they are ready to peal. The skin will slide right off!

4. Core them and then quarter them, drop into a large pot.

5. As you can see from the pic above, I just use my roasting pan set across 2 burners. Put your sterlized jars in there and add water to the pan, turn burners to low. You want to keep your jars hot.

6. Put your big pot of tomatoes on, bring to a low boil and let boil for 5 minutes.

7. Using a funnel, ladle the tomatoes into your hot jars. You want to fill to within 1/2 inch of the top. This is important as you do not want to leave a lot of air space.

8. Next take a wood spoon or spatula (no metal) and slide it around the inside of the jars in case you have any air pockets. Add 1 tsp of salt to each quart jar, 1/2 tsp for pint jars. Just put it in the top, no need to stir.

9. Take a clean cloth or paper towel and wipe the rims of the jars to make sure they are clear of tomatoes or juice. Using tongs, put the lids on, then the rings.

10. I do not use my canner for tomatoes as they are so high in acid, the jars will seal fine without the 30 min hot water bath.

11. Next set your jars on towels, not touching, and then cover. I use my beach towels as they are heavy and will hold in the heat. You do not want them to be in a draft. So wrap them babies up good!

12. Keep them covered......it takes anywhere from 1 to 2 hours for them to seal. You will hear the "pop" sound as each jar seals and you can check the seal by pressing down on the lid....if sealed, you should not be able to press it down.

I know it seems like a lot of work but I actually enjoy it. To me, it's just another part of cooking that I love. I canned 3 boxes which gave me 24 quarts and 4 pints. These are so yummy in your soups and chilli in the winter time. My kids can even tell the difference once I run out and have to use the store bought tomatoes. I'm going to can some more this Saturday and that should be enough for this winter.

Let me know if you can.......I would love to hear your stories and methods.

later.......