Cherry Tomato Vanilla Bean Preserves

You might not need this recipe with the first sweet, sweet cherry tomatoes of the season, but if you end up with a bounty of cherry tomatoes – this is a great way to use them up.

I cannot remember where I got this recipe but it’s delicious with goat cheese. Or over ice cream. Yes!

Pectin is sold with canning supplies in small Jello-size boxes with brand names like Sure-Jell, but also in store brands. I think Ball maybe is now also selling a small “bulk” container so you can just spoon out a teaspoon or so rather than using a whole box to make a batch of jams. Great for small batch preserving.

Pasta with Fresh NoCook Tomato Sauce

So many tomatoes! And in their travels from farm to us, a few of them got bruised along the way.

Here’s my general plan of attack for tomatoes. I sort through them and set aside the ones that are perfect and will live to be enjoyed another day.

For the ones with bruises and the occasional very soft spot, I rinse them and then cut out all the bad spots. Chop the remainder with olive oil, garlic and herbs of my choice, and then season with salt and pepper. Now I have a no-cook pasta sauce that can sit in the refrigerator getting better and better for a couple of days. Here’s a more formal recipe.