Blanching Tomatoes

 

Look what has been growing and ripening while I have been busy with a million other things. I remember planting the seedlings and putting wire cages around them when they got a little larger, but not much else. I didn’t have to water a whole lot since Neighbor Tony’s flower bed is back to back with my tomato bed and his automatic sprinklers come on almost every night. The spray doesn’t reach my tomatoes since there is a fence in between, but the water seeps under the fence in just the right amount. Tomato plants set more fruit when they are not overwatered.

These are the large Early Girls.

These are the smaller ones, although I wonder if a cherry tomato plant somehow got mixed in with the Early Girls. There were quite a few clusters of these draped over the top of one of the tomato cages, which is not typical of that variety.

In order to beat the heat, I got up while it was still dark this morning and heated a good-sized pot of water in preparation for blanching the tomatoes. All 16 pounds of them. When the water was boiling nicely, I dropped in as many tomatoes that would fit without the water running over the side of the pot. Within minutes, their skins had popped open. Perfect!

As soon as the skins pop, I scooped the tomatoes out with a slotted spoon. I set them aside in large bowls to cool for awhile before I will slip the skins completely off the fruits, core and quarter them, then finally, place the wedges in freezer bags for storage. Come winter, I will have lots of home grown tomatoes for soups and stews.