declaring my war on tomatoes last night on Instagram (follow me: thetinytwig)
Yesterday I got a call from my grandpa begging me to take more tomatoes off his hands. They live about a mile away and have a rather large backyard garden that produces tons of fruits and veggies every summer. We slowly enjoy most of it until…BAM…the tomatoes come in. Then, it is a race to see how quickly Grandpa can unload them on anyone (everyone!) who will take them. A person can only eat so many warm, ripe, off the vine tomatoes a day…and then what?
Grandpa had tried in years past to make sauce out of his bounty. However, he claims it is not possible. His attempts have only ever yielded very Italiany tasting warm tomato juice. He hasn't been able to maintain any body to the sauce.
Well, I love all things Italian. I could drink marinara sauce by the gallon…you know…if that wasn't totally weird. So, all summer I've been telling Grandpa that I was going to perfect a marinara recipe and freeze a ton for the winter months. He scoffed at me and told me to get back to him when I'd figured it out.
Folks, today is the day. I've got my abundance of tomatoes. I've got my stockpot for blanching. I've got my dutch oven for cooking the sauce down. I've got my garden grown onions. I'm armed with a this recipe and this one, too. I'm crossing my fingers that this works out.
I'm hoping for this adventure to turn into one of those serendipitous moments where a new family recipe and tradition is born. Maybe August will become the month of overflowing marinara, each tomato accounted for rather than resented.
Does your family have any growing or cooking traditions? Any awesome recipes to share? Phew, wish me luck! It could get soupy around here!!