Frozen Green Tomatoes on Vine

9 years ago

We had a disaster here last night, with a freeze instead of a frost. Temps dipped down to 21 degrees. Had a frost the night before down to 28, and with covering all tomatoes survived fine. However last night with temps down to 21, all tomatoes froze on vine. This was not in the forecast at all (it was supposed to be around 30). Soo... now I have a huge cooler full of green tomatoes that froze on the vine. I am just so sad as I was anticipating a great harvest of ripe tomatoes over the next 2 weeks as most of them were about to ripen.

Any ideas on how to salvage, or use these green tomatoes? My family doesn't really like pickles or chutneys.

The local extension office doesn't think the green tomatoes are safe to ripen and can (because of lowered acidity after freezing), but that they can be ripened and frozen. So I was wondering if anyone had any experience with this, and any suggestions to offer.

Thanks in advance!

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Comments (4)

lilyd74 (5b sw MI)
9 years ago
I just made a green tomato pasta sauce (post not far below you) that came highly recommended, and tastes pretty good. I linked for you the same page, with the sauce recipe.

Here is a link that might be useful: sauce page - yum
malna
9 years ago
That's a tough one, as they've already been frozen, so the cellular structure has already started breaking down.

About the only thing I can think of doing is cook and puree them, then freeze the puree. You could try dicing them and freeze that - not sure how good the texture would be after thawing, though.

You could then make the green pasta sauce from frozen puree, or something like green tomato bread (Deanna's recipe on the Green Tomato thread from a few years back).

GREEN TOMATO BREAD FROM ANDREA++****

3 eggs
1 C. oil
2 C. sugar
2 C. Green Tomato Puree (small amount of water if needed, can be frozen for use later)
1 T Vanilla
3 C. Flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 C. chopped walnuts (optional)
1 C. raisins (optional)
Mix eggs, oil, and sugar. Add green tomato puree and vanilla. Sift dry ingredients together and add to other ingredients. Add nuts and /or raisins if desired. Grease and Flour two 9x5 loaf pans. Divide batter evenly and pour into pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes.

SOME MIX-IN IDEAS FROM JOY FOR GREEN TOMATO BREAD:
Mini choc. chips= a sweet dessert cake
Pecans= very nutty flavored
Raisins = chewy, great if you like raisins
Lime zest = wow, my favorite! I used 1/2 tsp. for a small loaf.

Note: I've made this a few times - I cut the oil down to 1/3 cup and use 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce. I thought the full one cup of oil made it too greasy. I add some apple pie or pumpkin pie spice, or just cinnamon. Pretty much like zucchini bread, but a little different. Grandkids liked it with cinnamon chips and raisins, then toasted for breakfast.
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zizania
9 years ago
First, sympathies for your unfortunate situation. It's been a terrible year here for tomatoes too. Normally I'm too busy dealing with ripe ones to worry about the green ones, but this year I'm trying to make the most out of those too.

I made a green southwest sauce that might work with your frosted green tomatoes. I ****froze**** it in wide-mouth pints instead of canning it so I wouldn't have to worry about ratios. I pulsed it until minced in the food processor. Honestly a blender would probably work too. I plan to use it on chicken and fish.

FREEZER Green Tomato SW Sauce
- 5-6 cups green tomatoes
- 2 large red onions
- 5-6 jalapenos (I didn't seed mine but that's preference)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 6 garlic cloves (I like garlic)
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried pepper (cayenne, black or chipotle)
- 3 tablespoons lime juice (for flavor)
- "Tropical" tasting fruit (optional - I threw in a handful of ground cherries that I had. A little bit of pineapple or something would also add a nice sweetness)

Finely chop in food processor (just a little rougher than puree). Bring to boil and simmer 10 mins. Add to freezer-safe containers, allow to cool and freeze. Like I said, I froze mine in pint jars for a serving. I think the fine chop of this might work for your frozen green tomatoes.
klem1
9 years ago
I would prepare a few for emediate consumption so you know how they taste before preserving them. My experience has been that if frost kiils the vine,fruit taste's horrible. Never had any freeze before frost killed them.

Frozen Green Tomatoes on Vine

Comments (4)

lilyd74 (5b sw MI)

malna

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zizania

klem1

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