Preserved Tomato Halves Recipes

TOMATO PRESERVES

Steps:

• Slice an x in the top of each tomato. Place in a pot of boiling water until skin begins to peel off. Immediately place in a bowl of ice water. Slough off skin and remove stem button.
• Weigh tomatoes and place in a non reactive bowl (plastic or glass). Gently squeeze tomatoes by hand or with a wooden spoon to release juice. Add an equal weight of sugar. Let stand for 12 hours.
• When ready to cook, place two metal teaspoons in the freezer.
• Drain juice into a large sauce pan. Boil until the syrup thickens and falls of a spoon in heavy drops. Approximately 20 minutes.
• Rough chop the tomatoes and add to the thickened syrup. Grate the lemon zest and add to the syrup. Cut lemon in half and squeeze juice into the syrup. Add the ginger or cinnamon.
• Boil mixture until thick for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• To test for doneness, remove one spoon from the freezer. With the spoon you used to stir the preserves remove a small amount of jam and pour into the frozen spoon. Tilt the frozen spoon over the pot, if the preserves pour off in large thick drops it is done. If it pours off quickly, boil for another few minutes and retest with the other frozen spoon.
• Remove ginger or cinnamon. Put preserves in sterilized jars and boil in a water bath canner for 20 minutes.

PRESERVED TOMATOES WITH LEMON THYME

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add tomatoes, and cook 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer tomatoes to the ice-water bath to stop the cooking; let cool completely in ice-water bath. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels, and let drain.
• Slit tomatoes lengthwise, leaving halves attached along 1 edge. Open each tomato like a book, and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast until edges have shriveled slightly, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely.
• Meanwhile, stir together garlic, red pepper flakes, lemon thyme, and salt in a small bowl. Sprinkle one side of each tomato with about 1 teaspoon of the seasoning mixture; fold over other side.
• Layer tomatoes in a sterilized, dry 1-quart jar. Pour in enough oil to cover tomatoes. Place a round of waxed paper on surface to keep them submerged. Refrigerate at least 24 hours; let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.

PRESERVED TOMATO HALVES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil; meanwhile, prepare an ice-water bath. With a paring knife, core tomatoes, and score an X on the bottoms. Working in batches, carefully lower tomatoes into boiling water; when skins begin to split (30 to 60 seconds), use a slotted spoon to transfer tomatoes to ice water.
• When tomatoes are cool, peel and halve lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop out seeds and discard. Place tomatoes on prepared baking sheets and season with salt, sugar, red pepper flakes, and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and transfer to oven. Cook until tomatoes are bright red and sweet, 4 to 5 hours.

PRESERVED CRUSHED TOMATOES

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut an X in the base of each tomato. Gently drop tomatoes into water. When they bob to the surface, remove and place in an ice bath.
• Put a rack in a large stockpot or line pot with a folded kitchen towel, then fill it with water and bring to a boil. Add quart or pint jars and boil for 10 minutes. Jars may be left in warm water until ready to fill. Alternatively, sterilize jars by running them through a dishwasher cycle, keeping them warm in the machine.
• Place canning rings in a small saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and add flat lids to soften their rubber gaskets. Rings and lids may be left in water until jars are filled.
• Peel and core tomatoes and scoop out gel and seeds. With your hands, tear and crush tomatoes into a large nonreactive pot. After adding a few tomatoes, bring them to a brisk boil, crushing further with a potato masher or the back of a large spoon. (This will keep tomatoes and juice from separating in the jar.) Continue to add crushed tomatoes, maintaining a bubbling, brisk boil. When they are all added, boil for 5 minutes.
• Ladle hot tomatoes into warm jars, leaving a little more than 1/2 inch head space to accommodate lemon juice. If using citric acid, fill to 1/2 inch head space. Into every quart jar, add 2 tablespoons lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon citric acid. For pints, use 1 tablespoon lemon juice or 1/4 teaspoon citric acid. If using salt, add 1 teaspoon to each quart or 1/2 teaspoon to each pint.
• Wipe jar rims clean with a damp towel. Place lids on jars, screw on rings and lower jars upright into the pot of boiling water. Return to a full boil and process for 45 minutes for quarts or 35 minutes for pints. If there are both in the pot, process for the longer time. Transfer jars to a folded towel and cool for 12 hours. Jars will ping as they seal.
• Once cool, test seals by removing rings and lifting jars by their flat lids. If a seal has formed, lids will stay tight. Unsealed jars should be refrigerated and used within a week or reprocessed. Rings and jars may be reused, but a new flat lid must be used each time.

BAKED TOMATO HALVES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 - 400°.
• Prepare a baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
• Cut tomatoes in half. Gently scoop out any seeds (optional), leaving the sections/ walls in tact.
• Lightly sprinkle on the garlic powder, salt and pepper. Amount to your liking.
• Sprinkle on the seasoned bread crumbs, drizzle with olive oil.
• Bake for 20-30 minutes until the tomato is collapsing and soft. Baking time will depend on the size of your tomato halves. If making smaller tomatoes, shorten the time.
• EDIT to add: You may wish to watch closely and remove while they are still semi-soft and before they begin to collapse.

TOMATO PRESERVES

Steps:

• Wash and drain tomatoes.
• Do not core tomatoes.
• Tie spices and gingerroot in a spice bag.
• Combine spice bag, sugar, lemon and water in a large saucepot.
• Simmer 15 minutes.
• Add tomatoes; cook gently until tomatoes become transparent, stirring frequently to prevent sticking.
• Remove from heat.
• Cover and let stand 12 to 18 hours in a cool place.
• Remove spice bag.
• Remove tomatoes and lemon from syrup.
• Boil syrup 2 to 3 minutes or longer to thicken.
• Return tomatoes and lemon to syrup; boil 1 minute.
• Remove from heat.
• Skim foam if necessary.
• Ladle hot preserves into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
• Adjust two-piece caps.
• Process 20 minutes in a boiling-water canner.
• Yield: about 6 half-pints.