Make tomato sauce and freeze it.
I think you should be able to still can them if they've not been frosted, but the freezer is always an option.
You can also dry them. Slice thin and place in low oven or dehydrator.

Make salsa! The added vinegar, lemon or lime juice can bump the acidity up.

I have the same thing going on here. Buckets and bowls everywhere in various stages of ripening. I freeze whole tomatoes as they ripen and will make sauce from them later.
I'm also planning to try some pickled green tomatoes from those that look like they'll never ripen. Both dill and a sweet variety.

Harvest is almost over here and I think I'm ready for it to be done. Gettin' tired.

Deanna

TY Deanna, I love sweet pickled green ones and have some in lime in the fridge to work on tomorrow, never did the dill ones myself since I make so many dill pickles for the hub I consider the tomatoes mine :) We had a couple of really cool nights and I know there was a little glisten on the grass but there were still blooms on the tomatos so I wasn't sure about how much they were hit. Never made sauce but thats a great idea, I might just have to try the dried too, never used them that way before but sounds like they would be good. I just know if I dont do something with them in Dec when I start craving fresh garden ones again I will feel really guilty for not saving them!
Thank you again,
Kim

I had quite a few that were off diseased plants, finished ripening in the house so I didn't feel comfortable canning them. I already have a gallon bag of split/green shouldered ones from a month ago in the freezer.

So (after throwing out any with sunken moldy spots), I roasted them on 400 for 1 hour, then made KatieC's Tomato Garlic Soup for dinner! Used 1 can of French Onion soup instead of chicken stock. Added salt and pepper to taste. Yum!

Ooooh that sounds really good too. I have half an island full in various stages so I will have plenty for all so far and I love grown up tomato soup and grilled cheese. That sounds like an excellent Sunday brunch/lunch idea. I know thats one of my stolen ummm borrowed recipes here on my computer. I havent canned anything but pickles in years so Gardenweb is my newer (year or two lurking) best friend. Imagine my shock when I found out to use lemon juice in tomato's and to bwb jelly instead of wax lol. I think I have gone crazy this year I have enough jams and butters to make a bazillion of Linda Lou's Cereal bars and still not scratch the surface.

I would taste the tomatoes themselves before deciding what to use them for. Bitterness is a common problem with end-of-season tomatoes so you will want to use them in a recipe that provides other seasonings to off-set any bitterness you may have.

Dave

Dave's right (as usual!), that's why I discarded anything with a spot rather than just trying to cut around it. But the soup (even if you don't can it - needs to be pressure canned) is a great way to use lots of tomatoes - you'd be surprised how much they coo down after an hour in the oven and then pureeing them.

If you have any leftover soup you can always freeze it (we just had a ladleful of soup left from a 9x13 roasting pan full of tomatoes, so wasn't worth it). The pan of tomatoes, 1 onion, minced garlic (I didn't have whole), and half a dozen or so thick "baby" carrots (didn't have whole unpeeled carrots) plus 1 can of onion soup made just enough for 6 bowls of soup plus that ladle left over. Even my 13-yr old liked it (though he prefers salsa soup)!

I want to say I appreciate each of you for you hints, tips and Ideas, I feel a little more confident about what to do with them and how to get there from here :) So far none of them seem bitter but while trying to make sauce I will definately do taste tests, taking a tip from wine tasters and remember I dont have to swallow it all lol. I think I will try to do the cherry for drying, the sauce and soup from a mixture of my larger ones. Just curious, a friend of mine swears she freezes slices of them on a cookie sheet stores in a ziplock and uses on sandwiches thru the winter and that although not perfect are still way better than store bought, has anyone here tried this? Would it be safe, with careful washing?
Kim

It would defintely be safe, but I think the texture would be awful unless you're eating them frozen!

I freeze whole ones for sauce and when thawed, they're super mushy. Works good for sauce (less cooking down), but not so much on a sandwich.

Pop a slice or two in the freezer and thaw them in a day or two and see what you think. At least you can test it that way and not lose a bunch of good produce.

I have heard about people freezing GREEN tomatoes (pre-breaded) to make Fried Green Tomatoes.
They are fried or baked directly from the freezer. I have not tried it personally....but I might this year! Maybe just a few since DH doesn't care for them.

Deanna

Maybe just a few since DH doesn't care for them.

****

That is my mantra here I swear. SO many things I like and want to try but I would be the only one eating it!

Well after a visit from my DD I don't think I have to worry so much what to do with some of my tomatos :). I did make sure to keep enough for the garlic tomato soup! Since I am not canning it I bumped it with some red pepper flakes, sea salt, cracked black pepper, and a pinch of brown sugar and a couple of pats of butter, Oh My! I think its a good thing I wasn't going to can it, even tho I doubled the recipe I bet there is only about a pint if that left! for three people with grilled cheese!! I put the dab in a freezer ziploc and I caught my hub using the spatula scraping the edges and bottom for a couple more bites! Thank to all again for all the ideas (and letting me know the slices get mushy, I can buy mushy all winter so I think I will pass on that)
Kim