Salsa Recipe

Three more weeks and Summer is finished. Fall starts in September. Time to harvest and store food for the winter. These days with all the different food scares one feels more and more inclined to grow vegetables in the garden. I’ve had a garden for years. Yes, it is a lot of work but it is well worth the trouble. Vegetables taste so much better and they are safer. No pesticides and other dangers to worry about. There is nothing better than a slice of homegrown tomato on a sandwich. Mind you, you need to put a slice of ham on the sandwich and that is where the problem arises. The Listeriosis found in packaged meats and sausages which caused the deaths and illness of so many people across the country makes me think twice about that slice of ham or sausage. Now it is so much more attractive to buy fresh meat and sausage from a local butcher than packages from a grocery store.
But let’s come back to the homegrown stuff. My pepper and tomato plants have produced well this year and I made some Salsa today. There are so many recipes out there. This is my own version and it tastes great.

Chop:
5 - quarts ripe tomatoes
3 - hot peppers (Hungarian banana peppers)
7 - large sweet peppers
3 - medium sized onions
5 - tablespoons fresh parsley (finely chopped)
3 - leaves fresh basil (finely chopped)
2 - teaspoons fresh Oregano (finely chopped)
3 - cloves garlic (crushed)
1 - tablespoon salt
Juice of 1 lime


Boil tomatoes for about 15 minutes in a large pot (6 quarts minimum). Remove most of the liquid to decrease cooking time. Dip a ladle into the boiling tomato pulp and let the foam run into the ladle. Don’t discard the liquid. Save it to make tomato soup.
Add the rest of the ingredients.
Boil for 30 minutes on medium heat, then simmer on medium low until thick, stirring frequently. (Total cooking time about 60 minutes or more, depending on how much liquid is in the pot). Don’t overcook, otherwise Salsa will turn to mush.
Cool and put into freezer containers, freeze, but don’t forget to leave out one container for immediate consumption.
Enjoy.

Notes: This recipe makes a mild Salsa. If you want a hotter Salsa, add more hot peppers or add some hot sauce. All of the ingredients are approximate amounts.

Here is a recipe for Tomato soup:

Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
2 cups of liquid from the tomatoes
Salt to taste (if needed)
Preparation:
In heavy saucepan, heat oil and cook onions and garlic until tender. Add the tomato liquid, seasonings, stock, and pepper, and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain through a fine strainer.
In clean saucepan, melt butter and add flour; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the tomato soup; cook and stir until thickened. Add remaining mixture, cook and stir with wire whisk until soup is hot and slightly thickened. Stir in orange zest and serve.