Many gardeners pick tomato season as their favorite time of the year. For some of us, our prized tomatoes are the primary reason we go out day after day and work so hard in our gardens. But the bitter end of every tomato season must eventually arrive. And when it does, there’s a fair chance that you’ll find yourself holding a big basket full of green tomatoes – the last few fruits of the year.

At first glance, these green tomatoes are more than a little bit disappointing. As a tomato gardener, you’ve grown accustomed to plump and juicy tomatoes that ooze flavor when you slice into them. But these little green tomatoes are firm – almost hard – to the touch. The flavor ranges from bland to sour to inedibly astringent. After a long summer of sweet and delicious red tomatoes, you might be tempted to toss these last few into the compost pile.

Wait! Tossing these little green beauties aside would be a major mistake. Check out the collection of wonderful seasonal recipes below. Try your hand at a few of these dishes, and you just might find that the end of tomato season is actually something that you will look forward to each and every year.

Pickling and Canning Your Green Tomatoes

Before we get to the main event, let’s take a look at some lesser-known ways to put those green tomatoes to use. Everyone knows about fried green tomatoes, but there are some much easier methods that produce results just as delicious as the frying pan. (And they’re a little healthier, too!)

One great way to make use of unripe green tomatoes is to use them in canning recipes that help to soften their flesh and bring out their tangy flavor.

If you’re not an expert at home canning, don’t worry. These green tomato “quick pickles” don’t require a lot of special canning equipment. These pickles will remain refrigerated until you eat them, so they won’t ever be “put up” in dry storage.

These easy pickles are a fast way to preserve some of your green tomatoes. If you’re an experienced canner and you’re comfortable with putting up jars for long-term storage, you will have many more options available.

Recipes are available and easy to find for green tomato chutney, green tomato relish, dilled green tomatoes and more. You can also can green tomato slices in a simple saltwater brine so that you can make fried green tomatoes all year round.

Oven Options for Green Tomatoes

Baked green tomatoes? Yes, it’s a thing. There are several popular recipes for baked green tomatoes, which follow the same approach as the traditional fried green tomatoes but use the oven instead of a frying pan. The result is a healthier, lighter green tomato which boasts a similar flavor to the original recipe. If you’re interested, you can follow the recipe for fried green tomatoes below. Instead of dropping the slices in the frying pan after breading, bake them on a lightly greased baking sheet for 45 minutes at 325 degrees F.

But that’s not the only way to work your green tomatoes in the oven. Chopped tomatoes make an excellent addition to baked cakes and muffins. If you like zucchini bread, this one is right up your alley.

Two cups of chopped green tomatoes is a good amount to start with. Salt the tomatoes and let them sit for 10 or 15 minutes before rinsing them in a strainer and draining all of the liquid.

Prepare a simple cake batter with cinnamon and nutmeg. For additional flavor add raisins, walnuts, dried dates or dried cranberries. Add your drained tomatoes last – the batter will be thick, much like zucchini bread batter. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. You can use the same technique to add chopped green tomatoes to your favorite muffin recipe.

The Obvious Solution – Fried Green Tomatoes

Last, but not least, the infamous fried green tomato. Many of us think of fried green tomatoes as a Southern delicacy, but evidence suggests that this dish actually originated in Ohio. Regardless of the location where the first green tomato was battered up and dropped in to a pan to sizzle – the result was undoubtedly delicious.

At their worst, fried green tomatoes can be heavy and bready – a poor treatment for your precious homegrown fruits. But with a few tricks, any home cook can whip up a plate full of wonderful fried green tomatoes that will please even the most spoiled tomato aficionado.

The secret is in the breading. You’ll find many recipes that specify a traditional egg wash and a flour batter. But you’ll get much better results if you incorporate buttermilk into your egg wash and also add cornmeal to your flour batter. Don’t hold back on the salt and pepper on this recipe – those hard green tomatoes can use all the help they can get. Add in a pinch of cayenne for that authentic flavor, and you’ll crank out fried tomatoes that would make Kathy Bates turn green with envy.

And as you’ll see below, this is one dish that you can take in several different directions. So don’t despair if you end up with a boatload of unripe tomatoes this season – after you share these recipes with your friends and family – you’ll be out in the garden looking for a few more green tomatoes!

Fried green tomatoes are a crowd-pleasing dish all on their own, so no embellishment is necessary. This traditional comfort food is always welcome as a side item or as the main dish. If you decide to serve them as a side dish, common pairings include pork ribs, barbecued brisket, and catfish.

Dipping sauces flavored with seasonally available herbsare a great compliment. Dressings and sauces based on mayonnaise or buttermilk, or both, are popular. Common flavorings include basil, dill, goat cheese, and garlic.

Some years you may end up with more green tomatoes than you know what to do with. Check out the creative variations below for a way to mix up your menu and keep the whole family fired up about eating fried green tomatoes.

Creative Uses for Fried Green Tomatoes

If you love fried green tomatoes, but you’ve already had your fill for the season, don’t despair. There are several ways that you can incorporate these tasty tomatoes into different dishes where they make a great ingredient.

Here are three different sandwiches to get your creative juices flowing. Each of these uses the fried green tomato recipe above. And these are only the tip of the iceberg. With a little creativity, you’ll find that there are limitless possibilities to work fried green tomatoes into other dishes where they make a great fit.

And the List Goes On…

These recipes should be enough to keep you busy for a while, but there are even more green tomato recipes that you can look forward to in the future. There’s a green tomato and basil salad that many people love. There are some green tomato sauces that you can experiment with. There are even some recipes for green tomato tarts and puff pastries if you want to work them into your plans for dessert.

You can also work on the other end of the spectrum and experiment with green tomato appetizers. They work great in many guacamole recipes, and many people rave about their favorite recipes for green tomato salsa verde.

The end of tomato season is always a sad time. But, with a little creativity, you can make the most out of every little green tomato your garden has to offer.