Sunday, October 11, 2015

Recipe: Green Tomato Mincemeat

This weekend, the kids and I went to my mom's house with a trunk full of apples from our trees.  fresh apple cider.  We made some fresh applesauce from the peels and cores of the apples.  And ... we made Green Tomato Mincemeat.

When the cold rains of October spell the end of tender garden plants, it’s time to harvest that bounty of tomatoes that never got the opportunity to ripen. There are probably as many different ways of handling green tomatoes as there are gardeners in Vermont.

We always have a green tomato mincemeat pie at Thanksgiving, but personally, I prefer it as a condiment for meat, or even as a spread for sandwiches!

This recipe is my mother's, modified from a 1943 edition of Joy of Cooking.  It was developed, no doubt, during meat rationing in World War II, and harkens back to traditional British mincemeat, made with real meat and suet.  This is much more tempting, if you ask me!

I wish you could smell this!  Make it yourself, so that you can!

My Mom's Green Tomato Mincemeat
(Modified from Joy of Cooking, 1943 edition)

1/2 peck green tomatoes (about 6 pounds.)
1/2 peck tart apples (about 6 1/2 pounds.)
2 1/2 lb brown sugar
1 lb raisins
1 1/2 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp ground cloves
2 Tbsp cinnamon
1 1/2 Tbsp nutmeg
1 c apple cider vinegar
1/4 c butter

Chop green tomatoes and scald them with two rinsings of boiling water. Pare and chop the apples and place in very large pot and add other ingredients, except for butter. Very gently bring to a boil and simmer for about 45 minutes or until thoroughly cooked.

Spoon into jars, adding about a Tablespoon of butter per pint (the butter makes them perfect!), cover with sterilized lids, and process in a boiling water bath.

Makes about 6 quarts.

The best apples for this are probably Northern Spy - tart and flavorful. And naturally you shouldn’t throw out the peels. Add a few extra apples, if you want, and make applesauce.


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