Fresh Tomato Pasta Sauce

 

Grape tomatoes ripen on the vine.

Oh what plans I had for posting lots of recipes using fresh garden produce this summer. As Robert Burns said:

The best laid schemes o' mice and men 

Gang aft a-gley . (often go awry)

The spring planting turned into an early summer planting because the weather stayed so cool so late. Then there were the squash bugs .... a veritable invasion. The poor squash, aside from being totally 'bugged out' (despite daily attention with insecticidal soap), for some reason did not produce female flowers which produce the squash. They were loaded with blooms .... all male. Hmmmm. This has been a good year for peppers and I've got a lot starting to mature and there are three eggplant blossoms .... the harvest to date has been only one eggplant so hopefully, the blooms will develop.

Tomatoes, along with the peppers have done quite well. There were three kinds (one of each) planted in this year's 'square foot garden' experiment. For those not familiar with 'square foot' gardening, it boils down to a few, very well cared for plants as opposed to a large garden full of plants that quickly declines into a weed bed. I am not good with weeds .... hate 'em, don't like spending time weeding, and all my previous large gardens have been over-planted, over-crowded, and quickly become weedy jungles. So far, the smaller garden is working for me .... there's just not enough produce between the few plants and the weather/insect/disease issues.

Back to the tomatoes .... there are too many for me to eat right now. As much as I love tomato sandwiches, I've hit my limit. What to do with all these tomatoes? There are not enough to can ... something I definitely want to learn to do. Then I saw this recipe for a fresh tomato pasta sauce online. What interests me is the technique of freezing tomatoes whole, then using them later for the sauce. Evidently, the skins slip right off when the tomatoes are thawed ..... I'm liking that a lot!  You can take this tomato preservation/sauce idea and do lots with it - it doesn't have to be just for a spaghetti sauce.

Here is the link to the sauce:

Homegrown, Homemade Pasta Sauce

My first bag of tomatoes went into the freezer this morning ..... we'll see how it all works out, but I expect good success. What makes me really happy is that a lot of beautiful tomatoes will not be going to waste.

Cranberry Sauce (Chunky with Ginger)

I was house-sitting for my friend Claudia in 2010 and looking through a magazine on her coffee table when I spied this recipe. What struck me, besides the fact it had ginger in it (I love ginger), was the short list of ingredients and the simplicity of the directions. I scribbled down the bare essentials on a tiny scrap piece of paper in my pocketbook and somehow managed not to lose it. I made it for Thanksgiving that year and this past Thanksgiving as well. The cloves give off the most wonderful spicy smell so I like to make this before I start cooking any other holiday dishes - it's definitely a holiday mood enhancer.

Ingredients:

• 2 bags cranberries
• 2 cups apple cider
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1/4 cup finely chopped crystalized ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Directions:

1. Put the cranberries, apple cider and brown sugar in a pot and bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes or until the cranberries pop.
2. Add the ginger, cloves and cider vinegar to the cranberries off heat.

This is a good make-ahead sauce .... one less thing to do while preparing a big holiday meal. It also freezes well - just thaw, give it a stir, and it's ready to go.