Tomato canning and Homemade Sauce

We have been picking most of the tomatoes before they are ripe and letting them finish ripening on the back porch.  This is because it has been so hot that the tomatoes that are exposed are cooking on the vine.  I have made two large batches of salsa so now it is time to can some tomatoes.  I used to make sauce and can it but now I can the tomatoes and make the sauce in the cooler months when we are going to use it for spaghetti or lasagna. But I may make a batch of sauce if there are a lot of tomatoes.   It  may be nice to have some to open on the days I am needing a quick meal and I don't have time to cook the tomatoes down.

We used the Cherokee Purple, Heirloom Yellow, Heirloom Beefsteak, and Roma tomatoes in the jars.  Not all the jars were as colorful as this but they still looked yummy.  When the jar is opened and cooked down for sauce you won't see the yellow color at all.

Here is a "run"  all sealed and ready for the pantry.    By the way a "run" is the number of jars that will fit in your canner at a time.  Another helpful hint when you are canning is to put a little vinegar in the water the jars sit in.  This makes it so that your jars come out of the water sparkling instead of with a film on them.

Here is a rough recipe of my spaghetti sauce I like to start it in a crock pot the night before and let the tomatoes cook down.

Raisin' Acres Tomato Sauce

4-5 qts tomatoes
1 large onion chopped
1-2 green peppers chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
2 tsp salt
Italian Seasoning (basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme) Heavier on the basil than the other three ingredients.
**1 tsp fennel seeds~these are very important since they give it a nice, rich flavor
Olive oil
nice size bay leaf

Place tomatoes, salt, fennel, bay leaf,  and olive oil in crock pot.

Saute onion, garlic, and peppers until start to brown then add seasoning, stir and let sit for a few  minutes (sometimes at this point I will add a touch of burgundy to the pan to de-glaze) then put in crock with the tomatoes.  

Cook down, use a hand blended to smooth out and incorporate everything into the sauce.  If I am in a hurry and the sauce isn't thick enough at this time I will add a can or two of tomato paste and adjust seasoning to taste.

Enjoy!