Tomato Soup

When we have tomatoes ripening by the dozen it is sometimes hard to think of the cold days when the snow will be up to our knees and our toes will be numb from our time outside. That is when we want a hot cup of tomato comfort soup. When the tomatoes are abundant is the time to make the soup.

TOOLS

Paring knife

Cutting board

Compost bucket

Food chopper

Measuring cups

Large kettle

Stove

Large bowls

Bread Pans

Bowl scraper

Squeezo or other food mill

Pressure canner

Canning jars, lids and rings

Sauce pan

Blender

Hot pads

Wire cooling rack

Cardboard (for the hot jars of canned soup)

Sharpie pen

INGREDIENTS

Ripe tomatoes

Onion

Sweet red pepper

Celery

Parsley (optional)

Butter

Flour

Pepper

Salt

The original recipe is shown above but we have slightly modified it.

Wash, core and quarter 16-17# of whole tomatoes. Add them to the kettle and start them cooking. Peel and chop an onion, a sweet red pepper, and two cups of celery (two cups after chopping) and add them and any parsley you want to the kettle. Add two Tbsp salt and pepper to taste.

As the vegetables cook, sterilize the canning jars by heating them in the oven at 275° for 20 minutes. Place the canning lids to warm in an inch of water in a pan on the stove at low heat. This step will help to insure a tight seal.

Stir the veg mix every few minutes. In a saucepan, make a roux of 1/2 cup butter and a cup of flour. Melt the butter and stir the flour until it is all mixed in and then set it aside to cool.

Once the vegetables are cooked, put two cups of the mix into the blender with about 1/4 of the roux and blend. Return the mix to the kettle and repeat the process until all of the roux is incorporated and mixed throughout the kettle. Heat the mix for another few minutes until it starts to thicken slightly.

Add water to the pressure canner to the manufacturer's instructions and put is on the stove to heat.

Remove the kettle from the heat and process the cooked vegetables through the food mill. Notice in the photo that the mill crank has been replaced by a cordless drill. I screwed a 1/2" nut onto the shaft where the crank would attach and used a 1/2" socket on the drill to slowly turn the mill drive shaft. The Squeezo squeezes the juice and pulp out the holes in the screen and down the chute while the skin and seeds are ejected out the end of the strainer. Run the skins and seeds through the mill again to get a little more juice and pulp.

Reheat the soup and then fill the hot, sterilized jars. Wipe the jar rims before adding the hot lids and the rings. Tighten the rings and add the jars to the canner. With the jars all filled and in the canner, install the lid and process for 15 minutes once the pressure reaches 11#. After 15 minutes, remove the canner from the heat and set it on a wire rack or wooden cutting board to cool. DO NOT release the pressure. It will go down on its own. This may take an hour or more but you probably won't break any jars.

With the pressure to zero, remove the canner lid, turning it away from you to avoid a steam burn. Remove the jars and place them on a piece of cardboard to fully cool. Once the jars are fully cool, perhaps the next day, remove the rings, mark the year on the lid with a Sharpie, and carefully wash the jars to remove any sticky residue. Store the jars in a cool, dark location until cold weather comes. Share the soup with friends when they come to visit and pass on the recipe.