Rainbow Tomato Sauce

I had so many ripe tomatoes, and hadalready consigned so many overripe ones to the compost pile, that I was determined to make some tomato sauce today. None of my tomatoes are the traditional sauce type, typically Romas, which are meaty and less juicy than slicers, but I figured I could still make a passable sauce.

Here are maybe two-thirds of the tomatoes after being dunked in boiling water to loosen their skins.

When full, this bowl holds 24 cups. It got full. Here are most of the peeled and coarsely chopped tomatoes before going into the stock pot. It almost looks like a fruit salad. I really wasn't sure what color the sauce would end up being with so much yellow and some green tomato in the mix, though I knew it wasn't going to be a rich, dark red.

Here's a glimpse into the tall pot while the sauce was cooking; you can see that the sauce was a reddish orange with chunks of distinct red and yellow tomatoes and green and dark purple flecks of basil. I first sauteed a large yellow onion, finely chopped, and several cloves' worth of garlic paste in some olive oil. Then I added the tomatoes and several tablespoons of chopped basil (three kinds) and lemon thyme from my garden and some dried oregano, bay leaves, sea salt, and freshly ground pepper. Later I decided to add a small can of tomato paste to help it thicken up. The sauce simmered all afternoon, making Dave comment that the house smelled like his (Italian) Aunt Frances's house did in his youth -- high praise. I tried smashing all the chunks of tomato with my potato masher, but that wasn't as effective as I wanted it to be, so I later resorted to the blender to even out the texture somewhat. I pureed several batches of the sauce in the blender and returned them to the pot, thus making a thin but chunky sauce into a somewhat thicker and less chunky (but still kind of chunky) sauce. I was careful to search for and remove the large bay leaves before running the blender so shredded pieces of the tough but aromatic leaves wouldn't catch in anyone's throat.

Here was the result - more than a gallon of sauce to eat on pasta with meatballs tonight and to put away in the freezer for several more meals. Nice!

Using Up Tomatoes

I hadn't gone out to pick tomatoes in several days, so today there were most of a colander's worth of cherry tomatoes and several full-size ones of several varieties that were ready to be picked. Quite a few were overripe on the vine, in fact, and went straight into the compost pile. Also I was surprised to find this large summer squash hiding under the leaves. My zucchini plants wilted suddenly a couple of weeks ago and now you can hardly even see where they were, but the yellow squash plant is still vigorous and is suddenly churning out new babies like crazy. Maybe it's this warm weather we've been having lately. The huge pink-and-yellow tomato stem-side down next to the squash is one of the Striped Germans that are so pretty to look at.

The Striped German, a Tasty Evergreen, a Green Zebra and a couple of more generic red tomatoes got chopped up and mixed with chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, a small jalapeno pepper finely diced while wearing rubber gloves, lime juice, salt, and pepper to make a large batch of fresh salsa that will make a nice topping for quesadillas or grilled meat.

I decided to try to preserve more of the cherry tomatoes for later eating (I recently dried some in the oven). I followed a simple recipe for sauteed cherry tomatoes which was meant to be eaten immediately as a side dish, but decided I would freeze it in several batches.

After weeding out a few I had picked that looked a bit too mushy, I nearly filled a souffle dish with halved cherry tomatoes. I also picked some basil, thyme and parsley from the garden.

Into a large frying pan went 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil and when it was hot the tomatoes followed. After just a few minutes of sauteeing, I added some garlic puree and when that had become fragrant I added the chopped herbs, salt and pepper and took the mixture off the heat.

When the sauteed tomatoes had cooled, I filled 3 small containers with the fruit (or vegetables, if you prefer) and their copious liquid and put them into the freezer to enjoy on a fall or winter day. I'll try to remember to report on how they are when we get around to eating them.

I still have several more tomatoes ready to eat, and plenty more on the vine. Maybe nine tomato plants was a bit too much, but it's a wonderful situation to be in!

Oven-dried Cherry Tomatoes

I've so enjoyed the amazing Sun Gold cherry tomatoes from my garden this summer that I thought I'd try saving some for later in the year. On Saturday I dried some in the oven in the simplest way: washed them (here is a mix of the Sun Golds with some good-but-not-as-wonderful red grape tomatoes), cut them in half, and set them cut side up on a baking tray I'd brushed with olive oil. I didn't salt them or sprinkle them with herbs, though one can do that.

After about four hours at 210 F. the tomatoes above had turned into the tomatoes below. That wasn't a scientically determined length of time, and was too long for some of the smaller tomatoes. While most were still somewhat soft and leathery, some had actually turned brown and crispy -- tomato chips!


Here (below) is a closer view of tomatoes after drying. I let them cool, scooped them into a one-quart zip-lock bag, and popped them into the freezer. It seemed a remarkably small amount of dried tomatoes for such a large tray, but it's certainly several recipes' worth. They can be rehydrated in hot water, broth or wine, and then soaked in olive oil if desired.

I'd never tried drying anything before, so please don't consider me an expert in this! Next time, I think I'll pack the tray fuller, start checking them sooner, and remove ones that are done while leaving others in to get more drying time. Or maybe I should invest in a food dehydrator, which is probably more energy-efficient and operates at a lower temperature than my electric oven.

Tomato Jungle

My late-summer garden is a tangle of tomato plants. I've been picking the cherry varieties for several weeks, but the big slicers, especially the heirloom varieties, are just ripening now. Below are some of the red grape variety, which are not as wonderful-tasting as the hybrid Sun Golds (some are visible at the back), but which have proved much more resistant to splitting after the heavy rains we've had lately. I've had to put dozens of the delicious Sun Golds into the compost pile, but I have also resolved to save some of their seeds since I have so many otherwise going to "waste" (not that contributing to compost can be considered a total waste). When I can tell that they have very recently split and still look fresh I still sometimes try to use them, but if the split has dried or the fruit looks as if it is starting to rot, I consign them to the pile.

I've never dried tomatoes before, but the sweet Sun Golds are so prolific and proved so wonderful on pizza recently that I think I will dry a freezer-bagful. To do this, you wash them and cut them in half, spread them cut-side up (some sources say cut-side down) on a baking sheet, and place in a very slow oven (200 F.) for several hours, until leathery but still pliable. Some recipes call for salting the tomatoes and/or seasoning with Italian herbs before drying them. When properly dried they can be kept in the cupboard in a glass jar, but since this is a judgment call probably best made after some trial and error, I will keep mine in the freezer to avoid any risk of mold that could grow if they are not sufficiently dry. I'd hate to lose any.

Above is a mammoth Striped German heirloom tomato. I picked a similar one already, wrestling it out from between the supports; it more than filled my entire hand and probably weighed more than a pound. Unfortunately, it was so tightly wedged against the tomato behind it and the metal cage wires that it emerged sadly bruised. These have a old-fashioned appearance and are rather ribbed from the outside; they are marvelous to look at when sliced, as their flesh is a lovely yellow with red streaks. I have grown these before, and I think their flavor and texture make them a decent rival for the classic "best-tasting" Brandywines.

Above are Tasty Evergreens, a new variety for me this year, which are also getting quite large. The tag says to pick these when green with a yellow tinge, so after taking this photo I picked the closer one, but I haven't sliced it yet.

And here is the Green Zebra variety, another kind I've not grown before. I couldn't find the planting tag and was wondering how to tell when to pick these, but Johnny's Selected Seeds says they are ripe just as the green fruit develops a yellow blush, as the closer fruit above is starting to do. The photo on Seed Savers Exchange (first link above) seems to show that the main portion of the skin will turn considerably yellower than this, with distinctive green stripes remaining. Either way, these are very attractive. Johnny's notes that these are "not technically an heirloom" but lists them with its other heirlooms.

I bought all my tomato plants at Just Food Co-op's Mother's Day plant sale this year; most of the large, vigorous seedlings were raised by the nice folks at Big Woods Farm.

I've done no fertilizing this year other than digging some purchased compost into the soil before planting. I put down straw mulch, and except where it wasn't thick enough, I've needed to do very little weeding. (Whether I've actually weeded where I needed to is a story better left untold.)

Happy tomato season, everyone.

Morning in the Garden After Rains

The harvest is really coming in well now. I have four good-sized zucchinis in my kitchen right now, including these two, and I picked my first cucumber today. I hadn't picked cherry tomatoes for a couple of days, and at least a pintful were ripe and ready for my helper and me this morning.

Yesterday morning's and last night's heavy rainfalls, much needed this year, caused about some of the ripest Sun Golds to split. The delicious Sun Golds have a thin skin, which probably accounts for it. I also have a red grape variety, which doesn't seem as susceptible. I'll wash the split ones well and use them quickly so they don't start to rot. (We're thinking of gazpacho.) The usual advice for avoiding split tomatoes is to water evenly, but some varieties are more vulnerable to splitting than others.

It didn't help that I set the basket down on the grass while examining the cucumbers, and then stepped backward onto it. Squelch! Only a couple got really squashed, though.

I haven't yet picked a yellow squash, but maybe tomorrow. What a profusion of blossoms.


We noticed a couple of bumblebees, an unidentified creature that gave the impression of a large bee with very long legs, an ant with wings (my son saw that one; I didn't), a Monarch butterfly on the joe-pye weed (above) , and a soldier beetle on my sage plant (below).

I looked up the soldier beetle in Rodale's Color Handbook of Garden Insects, as I didn't recognize it. It's also known as Pennsylvania leather-wing (Chauliognathus pennsylvanicus). This beneficial garden insect feeds on grasshopper eggs, cucumber beetles, and various caterpillars. One writer in the New York Times said it "annoys me with its habit of mating and then dying in the flowers. It seems to prefer the everlastings, and I find its sere remains (the color holds beautifully) when I arrange the statice for winter bouquets."

July Garden

I'll start with herbs. The truth? I like them for their color and scent in the garden and am usually happy to just let them flower and go to seed. I will pick and slice some basil leaves onto a pizza or pasta dish occasionally, but otherwise, I never really grow enough of anything to do much with, such as make pesto. I do have a perennial sage plant, which we have picked and dried at the end of the season; in fact I still have most of last year's harvest. Above is a cilantro plant going wildly into flower. It's lacy and pretty and I imagine the bees and butterflies like it. Good enough.

This purple basil has been a very pretty and hardy addition this year. Note the tiny volunteer tomato plant in front of it; these are springing up everywhere from the seeds of last year's fruits left to drop and rot in the garden. We had a lot of split tomatoes last year, resulting in fewer eaten and more left to reseed themselves. I pull most of the volunteers up, but occasionally I let one see what it can make of itself.

Above is a low-growing lemon thyme, which I almost lost track of when I put down the straw mulch. A few days later I remembered it and had to dig around to find it again. I don't know that I've ever used fresh thyme in anything; I'll have to look for recipes.

Above: Wall o' tomato plants in the background, herbs and perennial, grow-like-a-weed daisies in front. I don't like to mow them, so they just pop up out of the lawn; we often also have yarrow doing the same as summer goes on. June's slow start was followed by a burst of growth at the end of the month, as a week of heat and humidity gave the tomatoes exactly what they had been waiting for. The plants seemed to grow an inch a day, if not more, and the two-foot-tall plants of June 23 are now well over four feet tall and lush with foliage, flowers, and at least on some plants, small green tomatoes.

Above: Sungold cherry tomatoes developing. This plant is the most advanced of my nine tomato plants (seven varieties) in terms of fruit production; it probably gets the best early-day sun of any of them, being on the east end of the row. One on the far western end barely seems even to have any flowers yet, though the plant is big and bushy. I think the cherry varieties do tend to be earlier producers than the large-fruit types.

Above: a kneeling view looking up at the tomatoes for Dramatic Effect; in the foreground are two kale plants (out of four originally) that survived early rabbit depredation to come back with some vigor. I haven't grown kale before, but I suspect I should harvest it fairly soon.

Above: the kale plants again.

Above: tomato flower (neighbor's garden with bean plants peeking through beyond my tomatoes).

Above: A couple of squash plants gaining some size, but no flowers yet. I forget if these are the zucchini or the yellow squash. I also have some cucumbers that I should provide supports for - they have always grown well for me when trained up a tomato tower or other staking/trellising system. The cucumbers hang down which helps them say straight and avoid picking up insects or rot from contact with the ground.

So, it's getting to the really fun time of year, where soon I will be able to go out and pick dinner. Or at least bits of dinner. Can't wait to be eating cherry tomatoes like candy!

Another Toad - and, Finally, a Garden

On Saturday, while I was clearing the weeded area where we saw a largish toad last week, a smaller, rather dirt-encrusted toad suddenly appeared and took small hops away from where I had been digging. I understand they bury themselves in the soil to regulate their temperature. This one took shelter nearby in the shade of some tall grass next to a bag of composted manure.

Chives are in full flower now, and I love them for their reliable gift of color to the early garden each year.

I sowed some lettuce seeds several weeks ago, and some of those have made an appearance, but the really noticeable lettuces came up on their own, having self-seeded from last year's mixed-salad garden. The red oak-leaf variety is large and striking looking against the bright green of the curly-edged variety. (Yes, I know the ground is weedy and needs mulch. I'm working on it.)

Here's a decent look at about half the length of the garden bed. The area on the right - the whole north side of the long, east/west-oriented bed - was filled with daylilies and other perennials as well as a lot of tall grass until the past couple of weeks, when we moved most of that out to make more room for edibles. My digging muscles got a good workout. Now I've got nine tomato plants in the ground and some squash seeds planted along that side. It will be great to have so much room to work with.

In the foreground, above, are cilantro (just planted and not quite perked up yet), a pepper plant, sage (a perennial) and parsley. Beyond that is basil, lettuce and kale. Behind the viewer, from this photo's perspective, will be zucchini and cucumbers.

Here's a close-up of one of the strong, sturdy tomato plants from Big Woods Farm that I bought at Just Food Co-op's plant sale three weeks ago. This one is a new variety to me: Tasty Evergreen, which is supposed to produce large fruits that stay green when ripe. I kept the plants under a grow-light indoors until recently, since it has been so cool. Tomatoes like warmth, and of course they really go wild when we got those hot and humid mid-summer days. Until then, the growth should be steady but sedate. I can't wait until it's time to start picking.

Split Tomatoes

Most of the tomatoes in my garden, both cherry and slicing varieties, have split recently due to rapid swelling following the much-needed rain. This week I made a decent fresh-tomato-and-Italian-sausage pasta sauce, using up a lot of split tomatoes. I hate to refrigerate tomatoes, which causes them to lose a good deal of their prized home-grown texture and flavor, but if you leave them sitting around in the kitchen after they've burst they'll deteriorate quickly anyway and one can easily develop a fruit-fly problem. Having lived through a fairly serious infestation in the past, that's something I take steps to avoid. So after deciding I was going to cook them rather than eat them fresh anyway, I stuck them in the fridge until I could make the sauce.

Most sauce recipes ask you to peel the tomatoes, but with my thin-skinned varieties and a recipe that called for lengthy simmering, I didn't bother; it made very little difference to the end product and saved some time, not to mention the energy required to boil water into which to dip the tomatoes to aid peeling. I've never grown enough tomatoes to make big batches of sauce for canning, but I can see the attraction. Maybe next year!

Tomato Season

I returned from my vacation a week ago to find the tomatoes ripening quickly in my larger garden. I've not been a solicitous caretaker of this garden this year. Since I don't live onsite, I have not watered since the first couple of weeks after planting, nor did I ever get around to putting down any straw mulch to keep weeds down and help maintain moisture in the soil (my close plantings may have helped here, shading the ground around the plants quite well), nor did I do much weeding. But the tomatoes are coming in like gangbusters.

My cherry tomatoes this year came in a tricolor combination from Renee's Garden Seeds (Garden Candy: A mixture of Sweet Gold F-1, Supersweet 100 F-1, and Sungold F-1). My favorites are the smaller red and orange-yellow ones, just the right size to pop into one's mouth, but I love having the variety of colors and sizes in the garden and in the bowl, as above.

I like how big the stem "stars" are on these. The one above makes me think of a leaping dancer.

The Garden Takes Off

From this...

To this!

Three months after starting some seeds, six weeks after planting them outside, and after surviving four weeks without my camera (which went with my daughter to camp), I'm delighted to present my burgeoning, bordering on jungly, early July garden. The Raggedy Anne Zinnias which were the first seeds to germinate are coming into bloom now - tall, sturdy plants with big, showy blossoms that blend well with the day lilies behind them.
The tomato plants have seemed to grow six inches a week, and suddenly, almost before I realized they had any flowers, they already have fruit growing. A thickly planted salad mix is ready for small leaves to be harvested, a first cucumber is forming, and two pumpkin plants are developing nicely. My beans never came to anything; they succumbed to hungry rabbits, but nothing else has really been touched. My other garden, the one in pots on my patio, is also growing nicely, but it hasn't taken off the way this one has. I planted rather closely, since my space is limited, but I try to train upward anything that has a tendency to climb rather than sprawl if encouraged, like tomatoes and cucumbers. Now is a good time to add some organic fertilizer, while the plants are flowering and setting fruit.