Green Tomato Mincemeat - Daring Cook's September Challenge

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The September 2010 Daring Cooks’ challenge was hosted by John whose work can be found at Eat4Fun. John asked the Daring Cooks to study and experiment with food preservation, particularly canning and freezing. Participants in the challenge were asked to make a recipe and preserve it. His post, which can be found here, contains advice and recipes so clear, that those new to food preservation would have no trouble duplicating the recipes he provides. The years when the jewel tones of tomatoes, peaches, pears and sundry condiments swayed my pantry shelves have passed, but I still dabble with canning and thought it would be fun to share something a little different as my response to John's challenge. It probably gets no different than green tomato mincemeat. This recipe is very similar to ones used at the turn of the century by farm wives preparing for the holidays. Their large gardens were laden with green tomatoes that would become pig fodder were it not for relish, mincemeat and that old Southern favorite fried green tomatoes. It has been years since mincemeat contained meat. While some recipes call for suet, they have fallen from grace and are rarely used by food preservers. I can't attribute today's recipe to an individual, but it can be found in the recipe files of most extension services throughout the country. It is very easy to do and uses the most common of canning paraphernalia. Mincemeat has become very expensive and this is an inexpensive alternative to a holiday staple that is still loved by many. I'm featuring the recipe as it was written, but I actually double the amount of spice when I make this. If you like mincemeat, I think you'll like this recipe. Here's how it's done.

Green Tomato Mincemeat

Ingredients:
3 quarts finely chopped green tomatoes
3 quarts peeled and finely chopped apples
1 cup vegetable oil or butter (a substitute for suet)
1 pound raisins
2 tablespoons grated orange rind
2 tablespoons grated lemon rind
5 cups well packed brown sugar
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 teaspoons salt

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large kettle, and bring to boiling, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer until dark and thick - about 2 1/2 hours. Stir occasionally. Pour boiling hot into pint jars, allowing 1/2 inch headroom, seal promptly and process in a boiling water bath for 25 minutes. Store in a cool dry place. To freeze, pack cold mincemeat into freezer jars or containers, leaving about an inch headroom for expansion. Seal and freeze promptly. Yield: 8 pints.

You might also enjoy these recipes:
Fried Okra and Green Tomatoes - The Teacher Cooks
Fried Green Tomatoes - Delicious Dishings
Pickled Green Tomatoes - Closet Cooking
Green Tomato Chocolate Cake - Ciao Chow Linda
Green Tomato Relish - Mommy's Kitchen
Chow Chow - Town and Country Farming

This recipe is also being linked to The Daring Kitchen.