Tomay-toh, To-MAH-to

What do you do with 50 pounds of tomatoes? EVERYTHING! Salsa, sauces, hot pack, raw pack, jams, jellies, chutneys... you name it, a tomato can do it!

Today, I had the awesome privilege of teaching a wonderful group of ladies the art of canning tomatoes. I decided that I would start off easy, and have them can something that is near and dear to all Italian Food loving individuals. Bruschetta. Some of you may not know what Bruschetta is, and for that, I apologize. Bruschetta is definitely something that should be tried at least once, and with enough Olive Oil to make you feel extremely guilty for eating it.
In our part of Italy, it is readily available as an appetizer in any restaurant and is a mainstay on dining room tables accross Naples.

Chopped tomatoes enveloped in a mixture of White Wine Vinegar, White Wine, Balsamic Vinegar, Basil, Oregano, and Garlic...spread on top of a toasted piece of rustic country bread. Oh yeah, it IS as good as it sounds. The best part about Bruschetta (pronounced Bru-SHKE-Tah) is that its good on just about anything! Lay it on top of chicken and you have a rustic chicken main dish. Or eat it as a salad...simply mix with leafy greens and enjoy! Seriously, with this stuff (especially if you LOVE tomatoes) you can't go wrong!

Today, I taught 8 lovely ladies the art of canning Bruschetta. We picked our tomatoes, washed them in a bucket of water, chopped them up, peeled and chopped garlic, and boiled our vinegar/wine mixture... all in the wonderful open air. Which, by the way, is my absolute favorite way to can!

(Kay and Alicia, washing and sorting their plum tomatoes...)









(The ladies, busy chopping away...)








(Celeste, mixing her Bruschetta marinade)



Once everyone was finished cutting, mixing, and stuffing their jars, we were all able to see that in 2 1/2 hours, 8 people were able to can a combined 16 Jars of Bruschetta....with tomatoes still left to can! I only hope that each person left my class today excited to continue the art of canning and enjoy the goodies they learned to make. Many thank you's to the ladies who came out today to take part in Can-It-Forward day! I had a blast teaching, and I hope you all had a great time as well!!