tomatoes. the exciting conclusion!

This is it. The end of the line on the 40 lbs. of organic tomatoes. Crushed/whole tomatoes. Cut them up, cook them down. Simple as that!

We did quarts for these instead of pints. I can't wait to dump a jar into a pot of chili this winter!

I've been talking for awhile now about running out of room to store our ever-expanding collection of preserved foods. The day after the tomato extravaganza, a caravan of family from up north arrived here at Starbase 107, and my grandpa brought down two cabinets which my grandma used to store her jars of food. I'm really excited to store food I canned in her jars in her cabinets, especially with the one cabinet's dark doors (cool and dark are the optimal conditions for storage). We had to move quickly to get jars into the cabinet to make room for 10 people to sit down to dinner in our dining room, so I didn't get to take photos of each tomato product as it filled up the first shelf. 

But full the first shelf is.

I wonder if we can get this cabinet full by the end of the season! We've still got a lot of good canning season left. I'd like to do more whole fruit, and make applesauce when it gets to be fall. 

Coming up in the next week, Stone garden-related adventures (i.e. planting some fall seeds, creating a backyard compost pile, and drying herbs in a closet with coat hangers...)