Tomatoes Peaking

[roony]

 

Top Row: Dester, German Pink, Gold Medal, Cherokee Purple

Bottom Row: Mortgage Lifter, Green Zebra, Black Sea Man, Amish Paste, White Tomesal, Amana Orange. 

 

Edited August 17, 2015 by roony

[pushbutton]

Wow, you have to like that. What an awesome assortment. Only grew Romaish his year and paying the price in flavor........

[Early Riser]

Hey Rooney, where do you get your seeds/plants?

This year I have san marzano, beefsteak, early girl, brandywine, and sweet 100s. Out of all of them I like the sweets and early girls for just plain old eating.

The rest, including the volunteers, are going to my sauce making. 

Out of your plants this year, what tomatoes do you like the best and would grow again? 

[roony]

I get my seeds from Seed Savers Exchange out of Decorah, Iowa. Last year the warden and I went down there to a tomato tasting fest on Saturday of Labor Day weekend. 

I like all of them but I am especially liking the Gold Medals. The White Tomesal I would say is kind of bland tasting. I use to grow one called "Great White" that I liked better for a white tomato but I haven't found seeds for that one, I should have saved some. The Amish Paste is another new one for me this year. It's a great Roma type tomato and has a nice taste for a slicer too.

There are literally hundreds of varieties I would like to plant but the warden tries her best to keep me in within  the constrains of reality. 

Edited August 17, 2015 by roony

[Dotch]

I've been to roony's and I gotta say that he really has this tomato thing figured out. The location is about as good as it gets and he works hard at it. I've had the pleasure to sample some of his wares in the past and they were nothing short of fantastic. We have tomatoes but his are the real deal. I am envious. 

[KEN W]

I grow some of the same varieties.....Gold Medal,Cherokee Purple,and Amana orange......all good.I also grow Black Krim, which I really like, Kelloggs Breakfast. There really is a tomato called that. Also Prudens Purple and Winsall. Winsall has huge pink tomatoes. Some over 2 lbs. One of my favorites is a yellow one called Taxi.The first to ripen.For a paste tomato I have grown Saucey.Loads of early paste tomatoes.It is also parthinogenic. Seedless if  isolated.I'm almost finished canning them. None of them are hybrids, so I haven't bought seeds for a few years.

[pushbutton]

Welcome "back" Ken....always enjoy your insights. How does Saucy taste? Have grown other Bagget maters....Legend and Oregon Spring....and while liked the cold tolerance, early set, and yield.....was not impressed with the flavor.

[Early Riser]

Ken, I noticed you mentioned canning your tomatoes. What recipe are you using? Anyone else willing to share what they are doing? 

So far I have put up 35 quarts of tomato sauce that we use for spaghetti, lasagna, or eat as a spicy and savory tomato soup. I will do another 10-12 quarts a week until mid September before switching to making pints of green tomato relish. I wouldn't mind another recipe to add to he repertoire for ripe tomatoes. 

For mine, I fill up a stock pot with mixed tomatoes, 4 small to medium onions, 1 habenero pepper, a handful each of fresh basil and oregano, 4 tbsp canning salt and 1/2 cup vinegar. I bring everything to a boil and then mix well in the pot with a hand blender, skins, seeds and all until smooth, simmer on a low boil another 2-3 hours, add the vinegar, then process in water bath for 20 minutes. 

[delcecchi]

I don't know why anyone uses a water bath.  A pressure canner is faster and more energy efficient and doesn't heat up the kitchen as much.  The reduction in time and aggravation alone is enough/ was enough to get me to buy one.  

[Early Riser]

My experience is that for many applications with acidic foods a water bath canner is faster (and more energy efficient) than pressure canning taking into consideration how fast you can get it to a boil and finished versus waiting for the pressure canner to boil, vent, come to pressure, and finally process. There is really no comparison in terms of time and ease, 

I am not sure how you could make a really good sauce by just plunking raw tomatoes and other blended ingredients in jars in a pressure canner that would come out right. Now if that could be done, pressure canning would be more efficient only because you would not have to simmer the sauce ahead of time. 

I have made tomato sauce in my pressure canner when I have added kale, zucchini and/or mushrooms. Personally I like the water bath canned sauce a lot better in terms of taste as the pressure canning heat tends to take a little away in terms of flavor. 

In terms of heating up the kitchen, all my vegetable canning is done outside in the fresh air near my home garden. I use my fish fryer base which heats up my water in no time at all.

Almost all my venison and fish canning these days is done in my bunkhouse/workshop up north in a pressure canner, as the biggest disadvantage of pressure canning almost anything in the home is the odor which doesn't bother me at all, but can be quite notable to others in the house. 

 

[delcecchi]

Sounds like you have a good setup.  I agree you would have to make the sauce first.  But I canned  on the kitchen stove in the kitchen with no AC.  That great big pot of water took a long time to get to a boil, and heated up the kitchen something awful.

[RebelSS]

Thats what a proper outside vented range hood is for. 

[delcecchi]

Thats what a proper outside vented range hood is for. 

Didn't have that either.  And it take a pretty hefty one to do any good.

[KEN W]

Welcome "back" Ken....always enjoy your insights. How does Saucy taste? Have grown other Bagget maters....Legend and Oregon Spring....and while liked the cold tolerance, early set, and yield.....was not impressed with the flavor.

Yes.....I have grown most of Jim Bagget's varieties also. I agree they are OK taste wise. Saucy is good sized and earlier than any other paste tomatoes I have grown. Am finished canning for this year. All my saucey tomatoes are done.That is one of the reasons I grow it. Not dragging it out all fall. Another plus is that these were bred to grow in the NW where cool summers happen a lot. So when we have a cool summer, I still get lots of ripe tomatoes instead of pails full of green ones when frost happens.

Ken, I noticed you mentioned canning your tomatoes. What recipe are you using? Anyone else willing to share what they are doing? 

So far I have put up 35 quarts of tomato sauce that we use for spaghetti, lasagna, or eat as a spicy and savory tomato soup. I will do another 10-12 quarts a week until mid September before switching to making pints of green tomato relish. I wouldn't mind another recipe to add to he repertoire for ripe tomatoes. 

For mine, I fill up a stock pot with mixed tomatoes, 4 small to medium onions, 1 habenero pepper, a handful each of fresh basil and oregano, 4 tbsp canning salt and 1/2 cup vinegar. I bring everything to a boil and then mix well in the pot with a hand blender, skins, seeds and all until smooth, simmer on a low boil another 2-3 hours, add the vinegar, then process in water bath for 20 minutes. 

I  mainly make a lot salsa and tomatoes with peppers, onions, and celery that I can later add to chili and  hot dishes.  I also make Bloody Mary mix and just plain tomato  sauce.

Ken, I noticed you mentioned canning your tomatoes. What recipe are you using? Anyone else willing to share what they are doing? 

So far I have put up 35 quarts of tomato sauce that we use for spaghetti, lasagna, or eat as a spicy and savory tomato soup. I will do another 10-12 quarts a week until mid September before switching to making pints of green tomato relish. I wouldn't mind another recipe to add to he repertoire for ripe tomatoes. 

For mine, I fill up a stock pot with mixed tomatoes, 4 small to medium onions, 1 habenero pepper, a handful each of fresh basil and oregano, 4 tbsp canning salt and 1/2 cup vinegar. I bring everything to a boil and then mix well in the pot with a hand blender, skins, seeds and all until smooth, simmer on a low boil another 2-3 hours, add the vinegar, then process in water bath for 20 minutes. 

I  mainly make a lot salsa and tomatoes with peppers, onions, and celery that I can later add to chili and  hot dishes.  I also make Bloody Mary mix and just plain tomato  sauce.

[pushbutton]

As previously mentioned just grew paste tomatoes this year. Just started getting around to dealing with them this weekend. This is about 15 to 20 percent of the crop......around 7 gallons. Freezing most and making a lot of sun dried. Have about equal to process today. Not many green ones left and will probably  be done within a few weeks......with a few stragglers for fresh till the frost.

 

[RebelSS]

Wow!   Great looking crop!