Our garden this year has produced a lot of yellow/orange tomatoes...perfect for making tomato preserves because of their lower acidity, and they look pretty too.
Now, I'm not going to use the red tomatoes, but they were just sitting there after being washed.
I wash and remove all the skins from the tomatoes, and then cut them up. Drain the juice, but don't press it out. I just put mine in a colander to get most of the liquid out.
Then measure out how many tomatoes you have as you put them into a big stockpot. You will want to add about half of that amount of sugar while cooking. I do not measure mine exactly, but instead use this ratio of 2:1 (tomatoes:sugar) as a guide. I test the sweetness as I go to make sure I don't get it too sweet, but sweet enough! You may need a little more, or a little less.
Cook on medium, stirring often, and even more often as they start to thicken. The cooking takes a while, so you will want to make sure you do these when you have several hours, or are going to be home all day. You will cook until you reach your desired thickness. I add no pectin to mine. My preserves are all tomatoes and sugar, and they all reach a great thickness to spread or pour on. They will thicken, it just takes time to cook down.
When it starts cooking down, I test the thickness by putting a drop on a saucer and placing in the fridge for a couple of minutes. Then I test it! (This is a good time to sneak a bite) :)
When it reaches desired thickness, I can them in my prepared jars, just like any other jam you make, checking to make sure they all seal!
And look what we now have to enjoy all winter and next summer! My dad sure will like them!
Mmm....I had some for breakfast this morning!
-Cindy
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