Tomato Tomato Tomato

We devoted a huge portion of our garden to tomato plants this year and we are now reaping the rewards by the bowl full!

We started the season out with a tomato preserving wishlist and are on track to getting them all done.  These little tomatoes are fabulous eaten out of hand, roasted and then frozen, halved and dried or frozen whole.  We have been doing all of that and more with these gorgeous little ones.

Some of our larger tomatoes became Tomato Jam.  I think this might be the 3rd or 4th time I have made this recipe.  We can eat a batch of this each year.

I've done two huge loads of cherry tomatoes in the dehydrator.  They taste so sweet!  Sometimes the larger ones are still a bit too soft when the smaller ones have finished drying so Paul and I snack on them straight out of the dehydrator.  Such a treat!

Although, these are not tomatoes nor are they out of our garden (our peppers are still very small), Paul roasted these red peppers for a double batch of Red Pepper Ketchup.  This ketchup has become another staple in our kitchen.  So, so, so much more exciting than store bought ketchup.

Since we made both the Tomato Jam and the Red Pepper Ketchup in the same day, all of the ketchup ingredients needed to sit on standby until the jam was done.

Our efforts resulted in 16 jars of cherished tomato products.

And then, a few days later, I went back out and harvested a whole new batch of tomatoes.  I am glad to be preserving these as I know they will be appreciated all throughout the winter in a variety of dishes.  I think it is fair to say that tomatoes are my favorite food to preserve.  They are so versatile as well as a sight to behold!