Salsa Season….YES!

My tomatoes are FINALLY ripe.  Here is Iowa, we have had a VERY mild summer and all of the produce, including the field crops are not maturing at their usual rate.  I was beginning to wonder if I would ever have tomatoes but Wednesday night I went to the garden and there they were…RIPE TOMATOES!!!

Last night while I was off teaching class, my husband was at the stove skinning the tomatoes and this morning it was my turn in the kitchen chopping onions and peppers.  It took no time at all because I was using my chopper.

Look…aren’t they pretty!  I ended up with 14 quarts…now if I can eventually get enough tomatoes to make four more batches I would be SO happy.  I have had a couple people write and request my recipe…I will give you a recipe to work with…I change it a little each batch.

5 ice cream buckets of tomatoes (mostly romas) skinned and chopped
6 big white onions chopped
6 big green peppers chopped
3 big yellow peppers chopped
3 big red peppers chopped
18 Jalapeno peppers chopped

4 T wet minced garlic
2 T Dry minced garlic
2 T canning salt
1 1/2 c sugar
1 T cumin
4 T dark vinegar
2 T lemon juice
3 T dry cilantro

Mix that all in a huge pot and warm all the way through but don’t cook.  Fill your sterile canning jars and seal.  I water bath for 30 minutes for quarts.

This time around…I didn’t have dark vinegar so I used white vinegar.  I didn’t have cumin so I used red pepper.  The salsa wasn’t as hot as my hubby likes it so I added a little tabasco.  I added two cans of corn and two cans of black beans because I like salsa with corn and black beans.  I didn’t have yellow peppers ripe so I just added equal amounts of red and green.  Normally if the salsa isn’t as thick as I like, I add tomato paste…I didn’t have tomato paste so  this time so I added a can of tomato soup.  The recipe is easily adjustable.  I would classify the base recipe as mild to medium.  I taste as I go….If I want it hotter…I add more tabasco.

While I’ve been writing this post, I’ve heard three little pops…music to my ears…the jars are sealing!  Check back in my next post and I will give you a WONDERFUL recipe for chicken tortilla soup made with SALSA.  I was so excited to have it again that I made some and had it for breakfast!   oh…there goes another pop!