The Hungry Canary

Adapted from Ideals Family Cookbook · Mrs. A. R. Bergantine

Old-Fashioned Tomato Preserves

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Ingredients

  • 4 cups ripe red tomatoes, peeled and finely cut
  • 1½ tsp pickling spices, tied in a square of cheesecloth or muslin
  • ¼ tsp powdered ginger
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 lemon, thinly sliced

Directions

  1. Place tomatoes in a stainless steel or enamel-coated kettle. Heat gently until they release liquid, then pour off approximately 1 generous cup of tomato juice. Reserve the juice for soup or sauce.
  2. Add the bag of pickling spices, powdered ginger, sugar and sliced lemon to the drained tomatoes.
  3. Simmer gently, stirring often, until the tomato pieces become translucent, approximately 20 minutes.
  4. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for 12–18 hours in the refrigerator rather than at room temperature. The original cookbook does not specify refrigeration.
  5. Return the mixture to the kettle and simmer gently for approximately 30 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent scorching.
  6. Remove and discard the pickling-spice bag. Spoon into clean, food-safe containers, cool promptly and refrigerate. This adaptation is a refrigerator preserve, not shelf-stable canned food.

Cookbook source and yield

Adapted from “Tomato Preserves,” contributed by Mrs. A. R. Bergantine to the Ideals Family Cookbook. Original yield: approximately 3 cups. The vintage recipe calls for gently cooking peeled tomatoes, draining off a generous cup of juice, simmering with pickling spices, ginger, sugar and lemon, allowing a 12–18 hour rest, and simmering a second time for 30 minutes. The author suggests serving the preserves with dark bread or graham rolls and saving the strained tomato juice for soup or spaghetti sauce.

Updated preservation method

The cookbook instructs cooks to pour the preserves into small jars and seal with paraffin wax. Paraffin seals are not a safe modern preservation method and are omitted here. This version is for refrigeration only; no shelf-stable canning claim or storage period has been established. Chill promptly after preparing, keep refrigerated and use while fresh. To make shelf-stable tomato preserves, use a separately validated tested canning recipe and processing method rather than applying an invented canning time to this vintage formula.

Dietary adaptation

The preserve itself uses no wheat flour. Instead of dark bread or graham rolls, it may be served with a suitable sorghum-based bread or another preferred wheat-free accompaniment.