Does your garden runneth over with tomatoes? For many of us, the hot August heat is just enough to send our garden into overload – so what should you do with all the extra tomatoes when you are low on time, but you don’t want to waste them? Freeze them!
We bought some very inexpensive reusable (and stackable) plastic containers online, and used them to store, label and freeze our garden bounty.
The best part is, you can mix your tomatoes with other things you have in the garden to create flavorful purees ready to use in soups, stews and sauces this winter!
Step 1: Wash your tomatoes, and pick out the stems
Step 2: Boil the tomatoes in salted water (the salt will help the flavor of the tomatoes pop, you can leave this out if you want).
Step 3: Place the tomatoes in a blender, blend until smooth. And, voila! Tomato puree!
Step 4 (Optional): Add your choice of garden additions, including green peppers, basil, parsley or jalapenos. We did one with chili powder as well to get ready for our winter chilis!
Step 5: Pour puree into containers, label the lid, and let them cool before freezing.
Extra tip! Looking for something to do with your cherry tomatoes? Did you know you can freeze them on a sheet tray and one frozen, store them in your plastic containers to use over the winter for fresh additions to your favorite dishes.
At the Machine Shed, we use garden fresh vegetables from our garden and the farmer’s around us whenever possible – stop in to see what we are featuring this week!
