Tomato Jam

Tomato jam - the perfect blend of sweet and savory. Eat it on crackers with cheese, on a toasted baguette, as a spread for sandwiches, or over grilled fish or chicken. I bought a whole box of end-of-the-season tomatoes at the farmers market and this jam was the perfect use for them. 

We wait all year for fresh tomatoes. And when they're ripe, there are so many, it's impossible to eat them all. Enter tomato jam and the water bath canning method. (Don't be intimidated, it's not that hard. Just a big pot of boiling water.)

There are some fun surprises in this tomato jam. Like, green apples and vinegar, cumin and coriander! I didn't create the recipe, but I'm pretty sure they're the key. I can't wait to taste it.

First, though, there is a lot of chopping to do! I had to sit down for this part. Chopping 7-8 lbs of tomatoes plus apples and onions takes a bit of time, so why not pull up a chair?

Here are all my ingredients after I finally got all the chopping done. Let the cooking process begin. You're going to want to be home all day for this. A rainy Sunday in Iowa is perfect. There's nothing else going on.  

Full disclosure: This needs to be stirred every half hour or so. I figured that out because the first time I made it, I completely ignored it for 2 1/2 hours, and it was burned, big time. With a very thick crust of char stuck to the bottom of my pan. So, stir. You don't want all the chopping to go to waste!

This has been simmering for about 3-4 hours. Not quite there yet. But, check out the change in color from the first picture. It's getting to be a rich, deep red. And that is the exact color we're going for. 

Here's the set-up on my stove. Once the jam is just about there, start the boiling water for the water bath. I put the glass jars right in the water. This serves 2 purposes. First, the jars need to be sterilized so you don't have any bacteria growing in there while you leave this jam on your shelf for 6 months. Second, you want the jars to be warm, so after you fill them and put them in the boiling water, you don't want the jars to shatter or crack because of a temperature difference. 

I also have a small pot in the very back that is boiling the lids for the jars. These need to be sterile too.

Once the water is boiling, it's time to fill the jars. Make sure to leave 1/4 inch "headspace" at the top. This prevents the jars from spilling over as the jam heats up in the boiling water.  Then, the lids go one, along with the rims and into the boiling water they go!  (In canning terminology, this is called "processing.")

I ended up with 9 1/2 pints of tomato jam! It tastes great on triscuits with some blue cheese on top!

Tomato Jam

Adapted from In Jennie's Kitchen. Please see her blog for more details. The original recipe makes a smaller amount, so if you're hesitant to try this start small and see what you think!

7-ish lbs of fresh tomatoes, chopped in large pieces

2 small onions, chopped

3 small green apples, chopped

1 c brown sugar

3 c white sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 c cider vinegar

Juice of 2 lemons (or use bottled lemon juice)

Mix all the ingredients in a big pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. This is going to need to simmer for a long time, about 6 hours. Make sure to stir every half hour or so to prevent burning.

Once the jam is thickened and of a spreadable consistency, transfer into sterilized jars (that you had waiting in boiling water). Put sterilized lids on and tighten the rims slightly. Put back into water bath canner for 15 minutes. Then remove and leave untouched for 24 hrs. After 24 hrs check to make sure the jars have sealed. To do this, press in the center of the lid. If it moves, the jar is not sealed and must be refrigerated and used within a few weeks. Otherwise, the sealed jars can be stored long-term.