If you follow my Facebook page then you know that I try to use as many local ingredients as possible in my recipes. A few weeks ago the vendor that my son works for at the farmers market had several pounds of Roma tomatoes left at the end of the day that he couldn’t sell. I am always on the lookout for a deal so I told him I would be happy to take them off his hands and he was kind enough to donate them to the cause! Now I just needed to come up with a suitable recipe… Fresh tomatoes are perfect in sauces, casseroles, soups and on sandwiches but I wanted to try something new. Roasting veggies really brings out a wonderful flavor so the tomatoes went into the oven with a roughly chopped onion and two whole garlic heads. I really had no idea what I was going to do with it all but that was ok because who doesn’t love roasted veggies, especially the garlic.
As the veggies caramelized and reduced in the oven I pondered my options. I wanted a versatile substance that could be used in a number of recipes or even on its own. Then the lightbulb went on… what about homemade ketchup. I added local honey, a few spices and ‘poof’ a new recipe was born!
I hope you guys enjoy it~
Ingredients~
3 lbs. Roma tomatoes, quartered
2 heads of garlic; leave whole but cut the tops off
1 medium onion, cut into large chunks
2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 tbsp honey
½ tbsp coriander
½ tsp. cayenne pepper
2-3 cups chicken stock or water
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions~
1. Preheat oven to 425°. Place tomatoes, onions and garlic heads on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly.
2. Place tomatoes and onions in a large saucepan or Dutch oven. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of the skins and add to the pan. Puree mixture with an immersion blender. *If you don’t have an immersion blender add the veggies to a regular blender and puree, then place the mixture in the saucepan.
3. Heat saucepan to medium-high heat and stir in 1 cup of stock/water. Add honey, coriander and cayenne pepper. Once the mixture starts to bubble lower the heat and cook for about 15 minutes stirring occasionally to keep the ketchup from burning. Add additional stock/water to reach desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Ketchup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Makes approximately 3 cups
Difficulty~ Easy
Prep time~ 10 minutes
Cook Time~ 60 minutes
The following local vendors contributed to this recipe~
What a great way to use those tomatoes!
I am going to use the ketchup in a special Father’s Day Meatloaf!
I’ve alway wanted to make homemade ketchup, can’t wait to give yours a try!