"Melba's Jammin'" wrote:
>> "Kathryn" > wrote:
>>
>> > Anyone have a good recipe and directions for canning sweet stewed
>> > tomatoes?
>> > I have only been canning for 2 years now, so the easier the better!
>> >
>> > Thanks!
>> > Kathryn
>>
>>
>> Kathryn, the two docs below are from the U of MN Extension Divn site.
>> The recipe for the Minnesota Mixture (stewed tomatoes) was developed
>> here at the U. These two recipes are still readily accessible with some
>> modest searching skills and I wonder about them because they do NOT
>> include the addition of lemon juice or other acid, which is SOP nowadays
>> when processing tomatoes in a boiling water bath. Read all the
>> information carefully.
>>
>> When I did my first search, one of the links that came up included a
>> couple phone numbers for two county offices: the Marshall Extension
>> Office at 800-745-5232 or the Kittson County Extension Office at
>> 800-770-7029. These phone numbers were provided for registration for a
>> workshop held in 2003 -- before our Extension education system was
>> decimated. I do not know if they are still valid - but worth a try,
>> certainly.
>>
>> I have concern about the recipe because it was developed before the
>> instructions to acidify tomatoes for BWB processing and I'm surprised
>> that it hasn't been updated to include it. And it's still on the
>> website as it always has been.
>>
>> Try the phone numbers and see what they have to say.
>> I'll mail a couple folks at the U with whom I'm acquainted and ask, too.
>>
>> http://www.extension.umn.edu/foodsaf.../tomatomixture
>> .pdf
>> http://www.extension.umn.edu/distrib...on/DJ1097.html
>>
>> For what it's worth.
>
> I received this response from the folks at the U of MN in response to my
> question:
>
> I wrote:
> "Is the U of MN's "Minnesota Tomato Mixture" still safe for boiling
> water bath processing? I note the absence of extra acid, which is now a
> standard in canning *plain* tomato products for boiling water bath
> processing."
>
> And received this reply:
> "Yes, we encourage home food preservers to add extra acid (e.g. lemon
> juice or vinegar) to all tomatoes and tomato products to ensure the
> product is in the "acid" range to be safe for water bath processing. To
> be on the safe side, add 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice to a pint of
> tomatoes/tomato products or 2 tablespoons vinegar to a pint OR add 2
> tablespoons lemon juice to a quart or 4 tablespoons vinegar to a quart.
> The MN Tomato Mixture was developed a number of years ago to contain
> enough acid to be safe for water bath canning. In light of today's
> tomato varieties and growing conditions, it's good to play on the safe
> side!
>
> Some folks don't like the flavor of the added lemon juice or vinegar and
> we suggest adding a little sugar to offset the flavor."
>
> Research on tomatoes and tomato mixtures has not occurred at the
> University of Minnesota recently. We are hoping to "raise the bar" on
> this issue in the future as we hear many people are canning tomatoes and
> tomato mixtures! As you talk with other preservers, do you think there
> is an interest in updating the MN Tomato Mixture or learning more about
> acidity of today's tomatoes and tomato products??
>
>
> I replied to the question in the last paragraph with a resounding 'yes'.
> Me? I live with citric acid. :-)
> --
> -Barb
> <http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 4-20-2006 with our visit
> to Kramarczuk's.
> "If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

Thanks for the follow-up, Barb!
I really appreciate the info and input!

-Kathryn