Please pardon my rewriting of that famous children’s rhyme but I thought it fitting since your gardens are probably over run with juicy ripe tomatoes of all kinds. I have a friend who has a very green thumb who now has a plethora of various types of tomatoes from the exotic Cherokee purple to the mundane Beefsteak. What to do with this bounty sometimes becomes a headache. Just how many BLTs can you eat anyway?
I’ve got some unique and traditional ways to enjoy and preserve your hard earned gardening rewards, but first a little history.
Tomatoes as we know them now did not resemble their early ancestors which were small red berries grown on vines in the Incan highlands of Andean Peru. From there they traveled to Central America, then to Mexican Highlands where Cortez was introduced to the tomatl in the early 1500s. The Spanish spread the seeds throughout their empire and discovered it thrived in the Mediterranean climate of Spain, Italy and Southern France where it was embraced as used liberally in sauces and salads. (Although it was also brought to Asia it never became a common part of their cuisines.) In England and Colonial America tomatoes were thought to be poisonous as they are part of the nightshade family which includes belladonna, henbane and tobacco and were grown for medicinal uses such as dressings for skin inflammation. It is not clear when the “love apple” as it was called for many years come to America but chances are it was brought by the Spaniards, African slaves, the Portuguese or immigrants from the Caribbean or a combination of ethnicities. Tomatoes became popular to eat in America in the early 1800s which was helped by Thomas Jefferson who grew them at his Monticello plantation and became common in Southern gardens. Today it is estimated that there are more than forty- five million gardens in America alone that include at least one variety of this fruit/vegetable. Even though it is technically a fruit it was officially labeled a vegetable when in 1890 congress levied a 10 percent tariff on vegetables to protect American farmers from the influx of imported vegetables. A West Indian farmer, trying to avoid the tariff, called it a fruit and finally the Supreme Court judged that it was a vegetable because it was savory, not sweet like a fruit. But the debate goes on and is still a subject in school debate classes as it was eons ago when I was in school.
If you find yourself with a mass of ripe tomatoes, there are lots of ways to use and preserve them from super simple to the more complicated. The easiest is to make a fresh salsa or a simple chopped tomato and red onion salad over lettuce. For a delicious 15 minute meal take seeded and chopped ripe tomatoes, toss with some sautéed garlic, a good olive oil and some grated cheese in your favorite pasta. Add some peas or your favorite cooked summer vegetable and you’ve got dinner. Sauces are a little more complicated or you can make your own catsup/ketchup which makes a great hostess gift and tastes far better that the bottled store bought. This time of year, with basil and tomatoes both in proliferation, a Caprese salad is almost a requirement for a summer dinner side dish or a light lunch. Just stack slices of fresh mozzarella, ripe tomatoes and chopped basil, sprinkle with some balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and you’ve got a summer Italian classic. And there is nothing more delicious and satisfying on a winter evening than a creamy roasted tomato soup put up in the freezer. Or if you are looking for a goofy group activity to use those extra tomatoes you can do what the Spanish do in Bunol Spain every Aug. 28. They have a Tomato Battle where the locals as well as tourists throw tons of ripe tomatoes at each other for fun. Bring on the Tide!
Some varieties work better in some recipes than others. If you want to dehydrate some it is better to use cherry or another small tomato. For sauces the Roma or another meaty tomato with less seeds is ideal but you can use almost any tomato for sauce if you are willing to peel and seed them. For fresh recipes I think almost any tomato other than a sauce tomato works well. One of my favorite recipes is homemade catsup which takes a little time but is well worth the effort and can be cooked in a slow cooker. You can adapt this recipe many ways by adding the flavors you like. How about some chipotle chili powder, curry powder, freshly grated ginger more garlic or your favorite hot sauce? Consider this recipe a basic template then experiment and make it your own

Basic Homemade Catsup
Makes about 4 cups

* 5 lbs. fresh tomatoes or 2 -28oz cans of peeled whole tomatoes
* ½ Cup apple cider vinegar
* 1 medium onion diced
* 2 cloves garlic, diced
* 1 tablespoon mustard, stoneground or Dijon preferred
* ¼ cup brown sugar, packed
* 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
* ½ teaspoon ground pepper
* ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
* ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
* 1 tablespoon paprika

1. Throw everything in the slow cooker and cook for 30 minutes.
2. Puree until smooth with an immersion blender or transfer to a regular blender and puree.
3. If using a stand up blender transfer back to the slow cooker and cook uncovered for 10-12 hours.
4. Adjust seasonings, according to your own taste and pour into hot sterilized jars or bottles and seal with tight sterile lids. If you don’t want to do the canning process of immersing in a hot bath for 20 minutes, simply cool and store in the refrigerator for 10 days or in the freezer for 3 months.
The easiest way to sterilize jars or bottles is to fill them half way with water and put them in the microwave for 3 minutes or until the water comes to a boil. Place them upside down on a paper towel covered cookie sheet and put them in a preheated (250 degrees) oven. Sterilize the lids in a pot of boiling water for 10 minutes.
As I said earlier, you can adjust seasonings to your taste; if you like sweeter catsup, add a couple of teaspoons of honey or increase the brown sugar. If you like it spicier, Tabasco, sriracha or your favorite hot sauce, added sparingly, will do the trick. Remember with hot sauces it’s always easier to add than it is to subtract!

Easy Sundried Tomatoes
Preheat oven to 200
1. Cut tomatoes in half and gently squeeze to remove seeds.
2. Place on a nonstick cookie sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Bake until the tomatoes are dried and look leathery.
This will take at least 10-12 hours depending on the water content of the tomatoes.
You can do this overnight to keep the house cool. You can store the sundried tomatoes in olive oil but be sure to dip them in vinegar first to discourage any bacteria. They can be stored in the refrigerator or easier still, simply cool them and place them in a zip lock freezer bag and freeze them for up to 6 months.
The great thing about tomatoes is that they are so versatile. In sauces, long cooked or just sautéed they can be served over chicken, fish, pork, beef or almost any vegetable, rice or pasta and when fresh, the salad ideas are nearly limitless. Ways to use your homegrown or farmer’s market tomato bounty is only limited by your own imagination or your ability to use the internet. So go for it and create a new family recipe.

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