Spicy Tomato Jam

I originally found this recipe on a gorgeous food blog: http://www.acozykitchen.com

It is a great way to use up the tomato ‘uglies’ and has the most tomato-y flavor ever! It is also a super simple recipe that keeps for a while in the fridge. I have made pizzas with it, had it on toast with parmasan, eaten it with a spoon straight out of the fridge (don’t judge!)

It is such a nice, versatile recipe since you can basically flavor the jam with anything you like. For my first batch I flavored the jam with Thyme and that was awesome. The next batch was oregano…again awesome. I decided to kick this latest batch up a notch with red pepper flakes and cloves. I made a double batch because I had a ton of tomatoes. The flavor is great and super autumnal with a kick.

Roughly Chop your tomatoes (remove stems and hard brown bits)

Place in a big wide saucepan

Pour in approx 1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar per 6lbs of tomatoes

Add 2tbsp Brown Sugar per 6lbs of tomatoes (you can up the level of sugar or leave the sugar out as long as you are not planning on canning it)

A generous pinch of salt

Whatever spice/flavor you want

I used 1 tsp ground cloves/6 lbs of tomatoes

1 tsp red pepper flakes/6lbs of tomatoes

Set the pan on medium heat and let the tomatoes reduce. Depending on the amount of tomatoes you have, this could take anywhere from 1-2 hrs. I add the spices about half way through. You don’t have to be vigilant about stirring but give it a little push every 10 mins or so, just to make sure you don’t get burned spots. Reduce until you have the consistency of tomato paste.

The only problem I have with this recipe is that it doesn’t make enough! I get sad every time I am on my last bite 😦 About 6lbs of tomatoes fills 1 14 oz jar. It lasts in the fridge for about 2 weeks. I am experimenting with canning this next time so I will let you know how that goes. I hadn’t tried canning before since I easily eat 1 jar in two weeks but maybe I should TRY to save some for someone else!

Here it is on toast alongside potato leek soup…delicious!

With Love and tomatoes, SW and Sweet P