Tomato, Toma'to, Potato, Pota'to

Tomato, toma'to, potato, pota'to, 

no matter how you say it, it tastes good and

if you grow them, they need to be tended.

That, my friends, is tons of work.

 We have been eating tomatoes on sandwiches, in soups, as a quick snack, as a bruchetta topping, fresh and thinly sliced on homemade pizza, in stews and sauces until our mouths suffer from their acidic sting.  It has been heaven.  We love tomatoes. 

This late morning, I started a batch of homemade spaghetti sauce.  I started out with 15 lbs. of tomatoes, stems gutted, peelings left on, and quartered.  These were blended a batch at a time, with garlic, basil, oregano and parsley, until it filled a large, heavy kettle.  I started out with 25 cups of base.  Salt and lemon juice were added just at the end before jarring.

 The above picture is when the sauce was cooked down about a quarter of the way....at least 4 hrs., whereas, the next photo is the sauce at the half-way point, now into  8 hour  of slow simmering until, finally, by 10 p.m., ( that's ll hrs. total cooking time ) to accomplish~~~~   

 This beautiful, rich, thick, tomato based, heavily herbed
                                        Spaghetti Sauce.  I, of course, will use it just about, .............everywhere from pasta to soups to 
                           Pigs In A Blankets.  Yummmmm

 You're seeing correct, only 3 1/2 quarts of this treat.  Now I remember why I don't do this anymore.  
Note to self:  Do NOT make Catsup!  It takes again as long and again as many tomatoes to yield the same amount.    I'm just saying.  Along with good tastes comes great effort.  Hmmm, I wonder if I could get paid for all the ' domestic engineering ' I do around here.  Aw shucks, a thank you for a good meal in the bellies around here, has worked for years.

Now, about those pota'toes.  They are growing nicely, finally catching up with the warm week we have had.  The yellows are Yukon Gems and the purple are the Viking Purples.  Both are mighty tasty.  Buttery gems and snow white vikings.  Quick to cook and gone in a flash once they hit the table.  What more do I want.

Not one, but two batches of Basil were dehydrated today.  The herb jars are filling up.  We do use a lot of basil and we aren't even Italian.  That is an Italian herb, isn't it.  Ever since I first tasted it when I lived on the east coast many moons ago, I have been hooked.   I'm sure glad the family loves it, as well.

That's it for tonight.  It's way past this queen's bedtime.  
Now, to check under the mattress for peas....oh, that was the princess.  She gets everything perfectly served...

Thanks for stopping by.
BlessYa and Sleeeeeep, My Sweet Prince, ooooo aaaaaa