"Blanched" Tomatoes

I learned how to blanche tomatoes this week.  Last weekend I purchased a basket of tomatoes.  Little did I know that meant I had WAY too many tomatoes to use.  I used a bunch to make home made pasta sauce, but still had a ton left over.  Mom suggested I blanche, skin, and dice them to use in receipes all winter.  Well, my first question was "what the heck is blanching?".  It is actually an easy process, but I'm warning you now that the process that follows blanching is messy, slimy, and gross.  But I'm hoping that it was all worth it as I pull out fresh, organic tomatoes during the frigid winter months. 

Boil a large saucepan full of water.  The water must be deep enough to cover the tomatoes
Dunk a tomato in the water for 30-40 seconds
Use tongs to remove tomato from the hot water

I left the tomato on the cutting board for a minute to cool while I continued blanching.  Next, use a sharp knife to cut out the place where the stem connected to the tomato.  Once this is removed you can easily grab an edge of the skin and peel it off the tomato.  This is where it gets slimy!!  After the tomato is peeled, use the knife to dice the tomato and put in a zip lock bag to freeze.  Just be prepared for all the juice and slime!  I was not, and ended up having to wash the fronts of my cabinets.