Turn your tomato skins into tomato powder by baking them in the oven or food dehydrator and then grinding into a powder. This is great no waste recipe that every gardener needs to make!
Preheat your oven to a low temperature, around 150-170 degrees F. (Up to 190 degrees F is ok if that's as low as your oven goes).
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the tomato skins evenly on the baking sheet, ensuring they are not overlapping.
Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven. The drying time can vary but generally takes around 4-8 hours, depending on oven temperature and how wet the tomato skins are. After a few hours, check the tomato skins for dryness. They should be brittle and easily snap in half. If they are not completely dry, continue to bake and check at 30 minute intervals until they are ready.
Once the tomato skins are fully dried, remove them from the oven and let them cool to room temperature. This prevents condensation from forming when you store them.
Transfer the cooled, dried tomato skins to a spice or coffee grinder. Pulse until you achieve a fine powder consistency.
Transfer the tomato powder to an airtight container or spice jar. Store it in a cool, dark place away from direct sunlight and heat. Tomato powder should last up to a year (or longer) when stored properly.
To Make Tomato Powder in Food Dehydrator
Gather your tomato skins. Place on dehydrator sheets. Dehydrate at 135 degrees for 8-12 hours until brittle and no longer wet. For powder: Put dried tomato skins in coffee grinder and grind until powder. For flakes: Put dried tomato skins in food processor and pulse a few times until flakes. Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place away from direct sunlight and heat. Tomato powder should last up to a year (or longer) when stored properly.