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Featured

 Tomato Paste

• 14 pounds Roma- or paste-type tomatoes  
• 1 teaspoon citric acid
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon canning or pickling salt
• 1 clove garlic (optional)

Yield: About 9 half-pint jars

Procedure: 

Rinse tomatoes. I ran my tomatoes through my Omega Cold Press Juicer. If you did the same, go to step #4.

If you don’t have a juicer, do the following.  Rinse tomatoes thoroughly under running water and remove cores; do not peel. Chop tomatoes into ½- to ¾-inch pieces.  Place in stockpot; cover and bring tomatoes to a boil.  Stir as needed to prevent burning. Reduce heat, remove lid and cook slowly (simmer) for about 1 hour until volume is reduced by half.  Stir frequently to prevent sticking and burning. 

Press cooked tomatoes through a fine sieve (or food mill with fine blade).  (Do not use a blender or food processor, as these will incorporate undesired air into the tomatoes.)

Return tomatoes to stockpot. Stir in 1 teaspoon citric acid, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 bay leaves, and 1 garlic clove.  Continue cooking slowly on medium heat, uncovered, until thick enough to round up on a spoon and volume is reduced again by half, about 2-½ – 3 hours. Stir frequently to prevent sticking and burning, especially for the last half hour, stir every few minutes.

Wash and rinse half-pint canning jars; I place them on the rack of my canner that I have added water too. Bring the water to boiling and keep the jars hot until ready to fill.  Place lids and rings in a bowl. Pour boiling hot water over the lids and ring bands.

Remove bay leaves and garlic clove if used.  Fill hot paste into clean, hot half-pint jars, leaving ½-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed. Wipe rims of jars with a dampened, clean paper towel. Place the lid and rings on the jars. Remember to just finger tighten, not to to tight or you could break the seal.

Process jars in a boiling water canner for 45 minutes.  Turn off the canner, remove lid and let jars sit in canner for 5 minutes. Remove from canner and let cool, undisturbed, 12 to 24 hours and check for seals.