Last weekend

JohnT · Aug 25, 2014

Well folks, It can not be said that I did not make the most of last weekend... Here is how it went..

Friday
- until midnight - had dinner with my Aunt and Uncle.

Saturday
- 7am till 1pm - Helped a friend process 10 bushels of tomatoes

- 3:30pm till 11pm - Partied at the Beneduce winery. The Fat Daddies were playing and I had brought assorted cheeses, fruit, olives (basically everything that they serve in Italian Heaven). We sipped, We ate, and We danced!

Sunday -
- did chores, canned some hot peppers, then went over to my parent's house for our once-a-year tradition of bacon bread (aka Hungarian BLTs). It was also my Father's 79th birthday.

Had no problem sleeping last night! Here are some pictures from Saturday..

ibglowin · Aug 25, 2014

Your supposed to take it easy on the weekends John! Looks fantastic!

JohnT · Aug 25, 2014

I spend all week stuck in a cubicle. By Friday, I am just about ready to bust loose!

BernardSmith · Aug 25, 2014

Not sure I can imagine how you might have made more of the weekend. Looks like you packed 96 hours into the 48.

GreginND · Aug 25, 2014

Looks like a great weekend! I definitely need one of those tomato mills. Can you tell me more about how you do your tomatoes? Cook first then mill? Mill then cook? How thick? Water bath canning? Thanks.

JohnT · Aug 25, 2014

GreginND said:
Looks like a great weekend! I definitely need one of those tomato mills. Can you tell me more about how you do your tomatoes? Cook first then mill? Mill then cook? How thick? Water bath canning? Thanks.

Actually, this was my first time processing tomatoes. I was simply helping out a friend of mine, but here is how they did it...

1) We boiled the tomatoes in very large pots (1/4 full of water) until the skins break.

2) using a strainer with very large slots, we scooped out the tomatoes into a laundry basket and then let them sit for 20 minutes to cool and drain.

3) Once cooled, we processed the tomatoes through the machine, filling these HUGH pots as we went.

4) When all tomatoes have been processed, the skins/seeds were ran through the processor a second time.

5) We then simmered the processed tomatoes for an hour or so. when the paddle we used for stirring could stand straight up in the pot (by itself) then the tomatoes are ready. He added a good amount of basil and some salt. The aroma was to die for.

6) We had a bit of an assembly line process for canning. One guy boiled the jars 6 at a time for 5 minutes, I then filled the jars, then another lidded them, another screwed on the rings, and another stacked them out of the way.

There was no water bath. The lids and jars were boiled, and the tomatoes were also boiling hot. I doubt that a water bath would have made any difference.