We are at that amazing time of the year, well at least in the Midwest, when all that beautiful local summer produce is having its final hurrah. With not much happening due to Covid restrictions, cooking has been one of the only things that has brought me some joy. Grocery and farmers market shopping is the only thing getting me out of the house and as such, things are starting to pile up. Add to that the goods from my little community garden plot and the massive haul I brought home from a friends robust garden and I was drowning in produce. The clock was ticking; it was time to form a plan of attack. Here’s what I did with those key summer treats – Tomatoes, Peppers and Zucchini – and some other ideas too.
TOMATOES: everybody has tomatoes right now and with a sudden early onslaught of cold weather, there may be a little panic setting in. No question, the very first thing you should do is make pan con tomate, toasted country bread rubbed with a juicy ripe tomato. Do that while you make a plan to deal with the rest. Maybe make a tomato tarte too, before you really get into preserving mode. Everyone benefits from a tasty snack and there is no better thing to make with juicy, perfect tomatoes.
At times like these, the freezer is my best friend and if you have the space, I find this the easiest route: just freeze those suckers. I opened my friend CeCe’s freezer this summer and found a whole case of plum tomatoes in the bottom, frozen right in their box. Props to you CeCe. Not having the luxury of that much space, I made a huge dent in my tomato stockpile by cutting up the meatiest of the bunch into quarters and froze on a sheetpan. I didn’t even bother with peeling. When solid, they were transferred to a Ziploc bag for winter pastas and sauces. I love to grab a handful, throw them in a pan with some olive oil and garlic to defrost and simmer down while the pasta cooks. Quickest and easiest dinner out there.
With the rest (and realizing my freezer space isn’t a Narnia cabinet) I turned to canning. This was exactly the moment when I realized there’s a national shortage of canning supplies. Because of course there is. I should have realized this after the run on yeast and flour earlier this year and was kicking myself for not buying lids when I saw them last month. Dammit. I did, however, manage to scrounge up a box of new lids, just enough to deal with these tomatoes so I pressed onward. First up, all the plum tomatoes were roasted and canned for a batch of roasted canned tomatoes. I like the roasting method because it concentrates the flavor and the skins slip right off so I can avoid that annoying blanching/peeling step. I also made a batch of sauce, hovering over the pot like some little Italian grandmother, packed into small jars for single servings throughout the winter. I just can’t deal with full size quart jars. I’m one damn person so the small half pint jars work well for me. I sort of did my own thing (making sure to follow the strict guidelines for adding citric acid or lemon juice to each jar or food safety) but my friend Cathy Barrow will get you going in the right direction with this article in the Washington Post.
My friends also game me several pounds of unbelievably gorgeous cherry tomatoes which I added to my own little garden plot bounty. Some I washed, popped right into Ziploc bags and threw in the freezer. These are great to have on hand for a quick sauce for gloomier times. I also roasted three pans worth in this style, then froze in ziplocs for soups, stews and sauces at some point in the future.
In the past I’ve made jars of tomato chile jam and pickled fresh cherry tomatoes for an interesting and refreshing refrigerator pickle. As the season ends and I have to rip up my plants, I’ll take those unripe cherry tomatoes and make pickled green cherry tomatoes, a take on a tomolive, great on charcuterie and cheese platters and especially great in a martini. I never close out the gardening season without a jar or two. Got a lot of huge green tomatoes on the vine that won’t ripen? Make some chutney and though I haven’t tried it, I imagine green tomatoes could step in quite nicely for tomatillos in a salsa verde.
PEPPERS: for the last two years, I’ve brought home an ungodly amount of bright yellow Hungarian wax peppers from my friend’s enormous garden. Last year I created a rather deliciously spicy Southwest Peperonata that I highly recommend. This morning I decided to pickle this years haul after I saw a quick Instagram post by Marisa of Food in Jars. They’re in the fridge now and I’m looking forward to adding them to my future salads and sandwiches. I don’t care for frozen raw peppers but find if you roast, peel and then freeze, they hold up pretty well. I’ve still got a mess or serrano and jalapeños to figure out but for smaller hot peppers like the Thai chilies from my garden, I either freeze them whole or let them dry and pop them into a jar.
ZUCCHINI: ah, the bane and joy of every gardener. I have one the size of my forearm in the crisper drawer right now. There’s zucchini bread, of course, that “treat” of desperate gardeners and parents everywhere to hide/use the things. (Something I haven’t made in at least 15 years. May have to look into that.) I really enjoy them stuffed and frittered but in terms of preserving, zucchini are tricky. I’ve read that you can shred and freeze for … later? They do make a nice refrigerator pickle. I’ve been thinking of trying Meghan Markle’s horribly named zucchini pasta sauce (how is “sexy filthy mush” the least bit appetizing?) which slow cooks for 4 hours, something my mature zucchini may be well suited for.
I’ve also got a couple cucumbers that may become quick pickles. Or I may just eat them. I also have three of the most gorgeous eggplants that I haven’t even had a chance to think about. They’re decent keepers. I’ll get to them soon.
STRESS THERAPY BAKING FACTOR: A TOSS UP. When you have a lot of gorgeously ripe produce that seems to appear suddenly and all at the same time, the first instinct is to panic. That is not unusual. It’s a ticking time bomb. But breathe, make a plan and execute that plan. If you’re not sure what to do or are simply burnt out (It happens. No judgement.), throw it in the freezer. The freezer is your friend. Just make sure you label and date so in 6 months you’re not looking at a dark, blotchy plastic bag wondering what the hell you did.
eleven years ago: Confessions of a Cookbook Addict, Chilled Cavillion Melon Soup, Candied Yellow Tomatoes, Galette de Gayon – Fig Walnut & Honey Galette
ten years ago: Peach Pandowdy, Peach Sorbetto
nine years ago: Cold Melon Soup, Sweet Corn Soup
eight years ago: Figgy BBQ Sauce
seven years ago: Yunnan Pineapple & Tomato Salad, Bloody Mary Vinaigrette
six years ago: Gateau Breton, Deep Dish Plum Almond Tart
five years ago: Taking Advantage of the Last Bits of Summer, Last of the Tomatoes – Fresh Tomato Sauce with Crispy Parmesan Breadcrumbs & Roasted Tomato Vinaigrette, Blackberry Lime Pie, Grilled Zucchini with Garlic Herb Gremolata
four years ago: Borlotti Beans with Italian Sausages and Fennel-Pepper Relish, Fig & Goat Cheese Foccacia
three years ago: Homestyle Creamed Corn, Blueberry Lime Buttermilk Sherbet, Chicken Wing Friday – Tamarind Five Spice Chicken Wings
two years ago: Watermelon Jicama Salad
last year: Hatch Chile Queso Dip
STRESSCAKE 
Ah, that explains why I couldn’t find pint jars a few days ago, I didn’t realize there was an actual shortage. I had to get rid of a a lot of mine because after many years of use, it appeared as if they’d developed some hairline cracks.
Too bad we’re not back fence neighbors, I’d swap lids for some of those Thai peppers.
Those tomatoes in the pot are just unbelievably gorgeous!