I am worrying about the fact that so many of them are ripening at the same time that the quantity far outstrips my ability to consume them, never mind my desire to eat yet another tomato salad. At the same time, I am worrying that so many others are so green that the frosts will kill them off before they turn red.
Those of us with this problem seldom make it public, because sniveling about too many tomatoes is likely to result in more tomatoes — these being the ones thrown at you for having the nerve to see this as a problem.
I don’t want to say I am an expert at things to do with ripe or unripe tomatoes, but I have more experience than most home gardeners, and not just because I am old.
One year, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden offered me the chance to do a chapter on raising certain tomato varieties in the arctic and have it published in one of their books, so that summer my extensive garden was devoted entirely to tomatoes. The last week of August, I ended up with — and though I am prone to exaggeration this is not one of those times — more than 1,000 ripe tomatoes and more than 3,000 green ones.
For about a week, while I processed like crazy, the only way to get through the kitchen and living room was to step between sheets of newsprint covered with tomatoes. I learned a lot about using and preserving tomatoes that fall, and all the falls that have followed.
If I have green tomatoes, I often pull the entire plant up, trim off the roots and hang it upside down in the garage. Sometimes I put green tomatoes, blossom end down, on a sunny windowsill — at least until it gets so cold at night that the fruits freeze. Don’t bother doing this or any ripening technique with solid green, hard tomatoes, as they will just wrinkle and rot; you need tomatoes that are starting to lighten at the blossom end and are softer to the touch.
For a lot of tomatoes, I have found the best method to be this one: wrap each green tomato in a piece of newspaper and put them single layer in a cut down beer box. Store on a shelf in a dark closet and unwrap each weekly to check for ripe or rotting ones.
The best thing I have found in terms of preserving ripe tomatoes is to freeze them. When I am out of time, I just pop washed whole unprocessed tomatoes into a suitable bag and stick them in the freezer; some folks recommend freezing them on cookie sheets first and then bagging them, but I don’t bother and have had no problems. Months later I can pull out as many as I want, easily core and slide the skins off as the tomatoes start to thaw, and use them in soup or to add a bit of color and flavor to the drippings when roasting a chicken.
You can freeze green tomatoes, too. Wash, core and cut into slices no smaller than 1/4-inch wide and no larger than 1/2-inch. Layer in sturdy containers, with parchment or wax paper between each slice, and freeze. When you are ready, dip the still-frozen slices in beaten egg and your chosen breading and fry. If you have the time, you can do all the slicing and dipping first, and then freeze the coated slices; when you want to eat, pull out and fry while they are still frozen.
Whether freezing green or ripe tomatoes, be sure to use the best ones so that the slight degrading that comes from freezing is not as noticeable.
Tomatoes as juice freeze well, and there is a huge difference in the space required to freeze 4 pounds of whole tomatoes (about 18 large ones) and that same 4 pounds as juice. Wash and core whatever amount you chose and cut into quarters. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 10 minutes. When things have cooled sufficiently to handle, use a blender or hand wand to puree the results. Then strain to remove the skins and seeds. Pour the clean juice into containers and freeze; some folks like to add salt and pepper at the very end, before freezing.
Tomatoes dry well, either in a dehydrator or in your oven; sun drying doesn’t work well up here. To oven dry, wash, dry, core and cut the tomatoes into 1/8 inch thick slices. Put them single layer on cookies sheets and dry at 145 degree for 12 to 14 hours. You should turn the slices over after about six hours, and if you are drying more than one cookie sheet at a time, rotate the trays at least once. You can store the slices, which should be a combination of leathery and crisp, in airtight containers, but I usually freeze them out of fear they are really not dry enough and so will develop mold.
If you are burdened with a surfeit of tomatoes, whether bursting with ripeness or hard and green, take a look at the recipe sidebar. I have included a few options for using fresh tomatoes, as well as some ways to process them for a little taste of summer later.
Tomatoes and Pasta
(Use now, serves 6 to 8)
Ingredients
2/3 cup chopped green onion
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 tablespoon roasted garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 1/2 pounds tomatoes, cut in half and wedges (depending on size)
1 pound package angel hair pasta, prepared according to package directions
Preparation
In a large bowl, whisk together green onion, oil, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper. Add tomatoes and pasta, and toss to evenly coat. Serve warm or cold.
To make roasted garlic:
1 garlic bulb
1 tablespoon olive oil
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut off pointed end of garlic; place garlic on a piece of aluminum foil and drizzle with olive oil. Fold foil to seal. Bake for 30 minutes, let cool for five minutes. Squeeze pulp from garlic cloves into a bowl. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator.
{Reprinted with permission from Hoffman Media and Phyllis Hoffman Celebrate magazine. www.hoffmanmedia.com}
Tomato Torte
(Use now)
Ingredients
1 sheet puff pastry
8 ounces of jarred or homemade pesto
5 very large ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the puff pastry on a cookie sheet and prick all over with a fork, leaving a one-inch edge all the way around the square. Spread the pesto on the pastry, up to the one-inch border. Put the tomatoes on the pesto, overlapping slightly. Season with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the pastry is golden. Allow to cool slightly and serve.
Tomato Gazpacho
(Use now or later, makes about 3 _ quarts)
Ingredients
6 cups seeded and chopped tomatoes
1 English cucumber, chopped
1 cup finely chopped yellow onion
1 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1-46 ounce container tomato vegetable juice cocktail
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper ( I just use more black pepper)
Preparation
In a food processor, combine tomatoes, cucumber, onion, bell pepper, and celery. Process until pureed or to desired consistency. In a large bowl, combine tomato mixture, tomato-vegetable juice, vinegar, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper and whisk to combine well.
Cover and refrigerate for four hours or overnight. (I have also eaten this hot, and have frozen it for later use, both with good results.)
{Reprinted with permission from Hoffman Media and Phyllis Hoffman Celebrate magazine. www.hoffmanmedia.com}
Pasta Sauce
(Use now or later)
Ingredients
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3/4 cup onions, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3/4 cup dry red wine
8 tomatoes (about 2 pounds) finely chopped and put into a coarse strainer so that the excess seeds and water drain out
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons finely chopped oregano
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground pepper
Preparation
In a large thick-bottomed sauce pan, sauté onion in olive oil until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for about two more minutes, taking care not to let it burn. If it does burn, discard and start again or the sauce will be ruined. Add the drained tomatoes, wine, herbs, sugar, salt and pepper to the garlic and bring to a boil.
Immediately reduce heat to a low simmer for an hour, or until the sauce has thickened (do not cover the pan).
Use an immersion hand blender to puree things even more — this will pulverize any remaining seeds. Allow to cool, put in freezer containers, leaving an inch of head room for expansion as the sauce freezes.
Note: This is not an exact recipe and I frequently put in other things, like shredded carrots, mushrooms that have seen better days, leeks ... whatever sounds good at the time. Sometimes I use more basil, sometimes less; ditto for the oregano and garlic.
If the tomatoes are acidic, you may need to add more sugar.
Tomato Leather
(Use now or later)
Ingredients
2 lbs. very ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into pieces and left to drain so excess water and seeds run out
Salt
Preparation
Cook the tomatoes over low heat in a covered saucepan for about 20 minutes. Purée or force through a sieve or food mill. Pour the pulp into a frying pan and add salt to taste. Cook on a low heat until the sauce is quite thick. Scoop it out onto a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper, and use the back of a spoon to spread it out in an even layer on the cookie sheet.
Dry in an oven set at 140 degrees, for about 12 hours.
The leather should be completely dry and peel easily off the parchment paper. Store in an airtight container and use within a few months.
I had a British version of this, made with 1 pound of ripe tomatoes, 1 pound of chopped apples, the juice of one lemon and honey and cinnamon to taste. Cook as above.
Linden Staciokas is a freelance writer who also writes a weekly gardening column for the Sundays section. Contact her at dorking@orcasonline.com.
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