Ketchup

Not as thick as traditional ketchup, but more flavorful and better for you!

I thought I'd take a break from making a meal to share my well-tested and honed personal ketchup recipe. Why, do you ask, am I making ketchup at home? Well, Michael goes through the stuff like water. A typical-sized ketchup bottle is considered two servings in our house. It's not that that is a problem except for the sugar content - geez! High fructose corn syrup all over the bottom of the Mississippi! I hated to see him consume such great amounts of sugar and I thought I could probably make a cheaper, more flavorful version. So after years of researching online, testing and adjusting, I give you my personal ketchup recipe. Michael calls it "tomato chutney," but really it's just plain 'ole ketchup with some spiced-up kick. I make this stuff in bulk and it may last 3-4 weeks.

Ketchup

Servings: for a normal person, 24 1/2 cup servings

Time: 10 minutes active; up to 2 1/2 hours total

Price: ~$6.00 total; <$0.25 cents per serving

Nutrition (per serving compared with Heinz ketchup in ()):

Calories: 40 (120)

Protein: 1g (0g)

Fat: 1g (0g)

Saturated Fat: 0g (0g)

Carbohydrates: 8g (32g) - that's all sugar!

Fiber: 2g (og)

Sodium: 199mg (1520mg) - wow, sodium!

Cholesterol: omg (omg)

2-28oz canned tomatoes, either buy pureed/crushed or whirl them up in your own food processor

1 1/2 cup pureed onions

2 Tbsp mustard

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/2 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp cloves

2 Tbsp dry mustard

1 tsp SnP, each

1 tsp celery seed

2 tsp garlic powder

1. Add all the ingredients to a large pot and mix well.

Heat over medium until boiling. Reduce heat to low and simmer for at least two hours or until desired consistency is obtained.

Before simmering, the liquid measures up to the 2" line on the ruler.

2. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Funnel into ketchup bottles or other tall container for easy serving.

After simmering, the liquid had reduced to about 1 3/4".