Canning Tomato Juice

With Caroline Craig

Some people will want to can the fresh juice of the tomato as well as the tomatoes themselves. Not only can you drink it all winter, but it is a good base for your sauce. The same instructions are good for canning sauce.

Ingredients

3 lb whole, halved or quartered tomatoes per quart jar
Bottled lemon juice or citric acid
Salt, optional
(32 oz) quart or (16 oz) pint glass preserving jars with lids and bands

Instructions

1.) PREPARE boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.
2.) WASH tomatoes. Dip in boiling water 30 to 60 seconds or until skins start to loosen and crack. Immediately dip in cold water. Slip off skins. Remove cores and any bruised or discolored portions. Leave whole, halve or quarter.
3.) ADD 2 Tbsp bottled lemon juice or 1/2 tsp citric acid to each hot quart jar. Add 1 Tbsp bottled lemon juice or 1/4 tsp citric acid to each hot pint jar.
4.) PACK raw tomatoes into hot jars leaving 1/2 inch head-space. Press tomatoes into the jar until the spaces between them fill with juice leaving 1/2 inch head-space. Add 1 teaspoon salt to each quart jar, 1/2 teaspoon to each pint jar, if desired. Remove air bubbles and adjust head-space, if necessary, by adding tomatoes. Wipe rim. Center hot lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fit is fingertip tight.
5.) PROCESS filled jars in a boiling water canner for 85 minutes for both pints and quarts, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

Caretaker for Cogswell's Grant
Caroline grew up on a farm in New Hampshire and has been growing, preserving and preparing farm fresh food her whole life. She currently does the same at Cogswell's Grant Farm in Essex, MA where she also gives canning and other lessons in farm living.
If you love antiques, Cogswell's Grant should be on your itinerary. This 18th century farmhouse overlooking the Essex River was the summer home of collectors Bertram and Nina Fletcher Little, and is now a museum which houses their celebrated collection of American folk art.