Organic Ketchup HFCS free

Tomato Ketchup

makes 4.5 pints. Use organic ingredients to avoid GMOs and pesticides

Ingredients:

Step 1

·         7.5 lbs. ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped (Heirloom are very good in this recipe!)

·         2 1/2 cup onion, diced

·         5 large garlic cloves, crushed

·         5 t black peppercorns

·         5 t mustard seeds

·         5 allspice berries

·         5 whole cloves

·         5 t celery seeds

·         two 1/2″ cinnamon sticks

·         1 tbsp. paprika

·         1 t cayenne pepper

·         3 fresh Bay leaves

Step 2

·         1 cup of Organic cane sugar

·         1 cup of apple cider vinegar

·         juice of two large lemons

·         1 tbsp sea salt

Simmer all ingredients in Step 1 in a large stock pot for about 90 minutes, until 1/3 of the juice has been evaporated, stirring often. Take off heat to cool. Once cooled enough remove bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, and peppercorns, allspice and cloves. For easy removal make a small bag with cheesecloth tied up with the spices, and peppercorns inside. Once removed, put mixture into a blender or food processor and blend on high for 1 minute. Strain the blended mixture through a sieve into a sauce pan, getting as much liquid out as possible out of the pulp.

Turn the saucepan onto medium heat, and add the Step 2 ingredients, simmering for at least half an hour, depending on what consistency of ketchup you like. Once cooked, you can store in sterilized jars in the fridge for 3 weeks, or process in a canning bath for 10 minutes for long time storage.

For spicier ketchup, leave peppercorns, cloves and allspice in and blend with mixture. For extra spicy ketchup add extra peppercorns, or spicy chipotle, jalapeño peppers to the cooking process.