Sunday, January 8, 2012

Tree Tomato Preserves

 This year my tree tomato bore fruit for the first time.  I planted it last fall in my front yard in Berkeley, from a seedling bought at the Merritt College plant sale.  Tree tomatoes, also called Tamarillos, are native to South and Central America, and are in the solanaceae family, although the fruit and leaves more closely resemble eggplants than tomatoes.  My next door neighbor grew up eating them in Australia.  It's not a "true tree" as the trunk doesn't get woody, but they can reach up to 20 feet tall.  It was easy to grow, although it needs protection from frost in the winter.  This plant is about 6 feet tall now, and I plan to keep it pruned to under 10 feet.  Most fruits I've seen are red; this one is from Ecuador, and bears yellow-orange fruit.  The tree is prolific--this is my second harvest of about 15 fruits, with more green ones on the way.  They don't taste very good raw--sweeter than a tomato, but with a strong bitterness.  (My neighbor suggests letting the fruit get a bit "wrinkled"--maybe off the tree.) 

Meanwhile, I consulted good old Joy of Cooking, which had a recipe for tomato preserves, and the result was a tangy, thick preserves reminiscent of apricot, but more flavorful.  This is my adaptation:

You'll need:
  • Tree tomatoes (12 - 15)
  • sugar (the recipe said to use an "equal amount of sugar as tomatoes, but I thought that would be way too much sweetener--I used one cup of sugar to about a quart of fruit)
  • juice and grated rind of one lemon
  • one cinnamon stick or candied ginger

 First, wash the tamarillos, and blanche in hot water--I cooked them for a few minutes; they are tougher skinned than tomatoes.  About 3 minutes, and they start to split.

 Peel the tamarillos and place in a bowl.  I cut a few open to show how they resemble tomatoes, and also remind me of guavas.  Cover with sugar and let stand overnight.  I don't know how this recipe would work with other types of sweeteners like honey or maple syrup, but it would be worth trying.
 Let stand overnight.  The next morning, pour off the juice and boil in a covered saucepan.  The recipe said "until heavy drops fall off a spoon" but that was too vague for me.  I boiled it hard for 10-15 minutes, and then moved on to the next step, which is to add the fruit, lemon, cinnamon or ginger and cook on low "until soft" (about an hour--I didn't time it).  At some point, I checked it and smushed the fruit with a wooden spoon.  (Sorry, I didn't photograph the cooking part!)
 The recipe yielded about three cups. Make sure you sterilize the jar first.
 The result is a chunky, seedy spread, tangy and tart/sweet.  I find it tasty.  Next time I plan to try using the ginger instead of cinnamon, and maybe a different sweetener.
If you try this recipe, or if you have grown tamarillos and have a favorite recipe, I'd love to hear about your experience.