Canning Tomatoes

About 2 years ago, my husband and I started growing a garden so hopefully we could save money plus eat healthier.  Thanks to my Mom, my husband's parents and Grandma Gladis, we've learned a lot about gardening and canning.  So when my Mom told me how to can tomatoes, I had to write it down because there are so many steps to be done.  Now I make homemade spaghetti sauce, chili and vegetable soup with the tomatoes that I've canned.  So here it goes...

I use a stock pot, fill with water and bring the water to a boil.  Once it starts boiling, I turn down the heat.  I put the tomatoes in the scalding hot water.  I let the tomatoes sit in the water for about 5 minutes or until the skin starts to loosen.  While the tomatoes are in the stock pot, I put ice in the sink and then carefully remove the tomatoes and place them in the ice.  Once the tomatoes have cooled, the skin peels right off and then I start cutting the tomatoes in a large pot.  Once I have them cut, I put one teaspoon of salt in the bottom of the mason jars.  Cook the cut-up tomatoes for fives minutes.

Pour the tomatoes into the mason jars with lids and place in a canner.  Cook 30 to 35 minutes.  When I hear the lids popping, that means that the jars have sealed and my job is finished, whew!  :)

*Make sure to boil the jars, lids and rings before adding the tomatoes to them.  You can also substitute the salt with lemon juice or white vinegar.  This will assure the acidity of the tomatoes is high enough to keep them bacteria-free.

Organic food is healthy but can be expensive since we're on a budget.  By having a garden and controlling what fertilizer we use and not using pesticides, I can say that we're eating organically grown food.