Canning Cookbook- Sweet Pepper Relish

It's the time of year that I love- time to use up LOTS of stuff as our gardens all come to an end for the season. If you remember, I love going to a local you-pick farm and loading up on the beautiful vegetables they grow every year- cucumbers for pickles, tomatoes by the ton and sweet Gypsy peppers. I never had a Gypsy pepper until I tried them from the farm. They are a sweet pepper, not as big as a bell pepper, but very similar in flavor. Ripe peppers are usually yellow but if you can leave them on the plant long enough they turn into gorgeous orange and red tones. I love spending time in the fields (they really are farm fields filled with vegetables there) picking peppers and tomatoes in the sunshine. 

Last year I lugged home a good forty to fifty pounds of gypsy peppers. I spent my evenings dicing and spreading the little pepper cubes on dehydrator trays and ended up with several quarts of dried diced peppers. Throughout the winter months, when a single bell pepper can cost as much as two dollars in the grocery store, I can just rehydrate a couple tablespoons of diced pepper and continue with my recipe. No worrying about keeping fresh peppers in the veggie drawer, no cleaning, no prep- just open a jar. They are so handy! 

Another great way to preserve those beautiful garden peppers is to make relish. Sweet peppers or hot, the choice is yours. Relishes are easy to make, don't require a pressure canner, and make great gifts during the holiday season. Bell peppers, and gypsy peppers, are always available in a variety of colors and have such a delicious sweet flavor they make a great condiment for sandwiches, cold meat plates, and more.

This pepper relish recipe comes from the NCHFP website. If you aren't familiar with this website I encourage you to check it out. There is so much information housed there, from safety to basic recipes to salsas, sauces and soups plus complete and detailed instructions on how to safely can foods at home. In this recipe you will see the peppers broken down by color. You can use any combination of bell peppers or other sweet peppers as long as you do not exceed the total number of cups of peppers. Throw a hot pepper or two in there if you like a little heat. 5 cups of peppers is about 7 or 8 large bell peppers, or about 3 or 4 pounds before grinding (remove seeds and stems!!) If you use Gypsy peppers you will need......a lot more. These pictures come from the kitchen of Suzanne Ledford, a home food preserver from Canton, North Carolina, who has done a fantastic job. Her relish is made with yellow bell peppers and looks flawless and beautiful in those jars.  Let's make some relish!

Suzanne's relish looks beautiful made with yellow bells.

Sweet Pepper Relish
adapted from the NCHFP 

5 cups ground green bell peppers
5 cups ground red bell peppers
1 1/2 cups ground onion (about 3 medium)
2 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar or white vinegar-5% acidity
2 cups sugar
4 teaspoons pickling salt
4 teaspoons mustard seed

Prepare a boiling water bath canner and pint or half pint jars. NO quarts !!!

Combine relish ingredients in a large stockpot. Bring the mixture to boil over high heat. Reduce heat and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking and scorching.

Suzanne has her jars ready and heated, relish simmering away,
and look at the time- that was P.M.!! 

Ladle the hot relish into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe rims, fix lids and rings, and place in boiling water bath canner. Process for 10 minutes. Allow the jars to cool undisturbed 12 to 24 hours before checking the seals and removing the rings.

It's a little bit bittersweet to know that this year's garden will be my last garden at The Little Lake House. This year we had terrible luck with our plants so maybe it's just as well. My adventures as a small town resident are drawing to a close as I prepare and pack up and get ready to head back to the city after nearly five years as a small town girl. It had it's ups and downs for certain, but I'm glad I was able to have the experience.

Eat The World- Shannon's Take on Spicy Asian Chicken

If you're a home food preserver like I am you are well aware that canning is not cooking, and generally speaking, you can foods that are ingredients, not composed dishes, right? There are a few exceptions, like soups and some stews, but for the most part I find myself canning a lot of vegetables, pickled foods, relish type foods, and the like. The reality is I prefer this way over a cupboard full of soups and ready to eat meals- they are not as versatile as a cupboard filled with ingredients!

With so many relish and pepper things canned many people wonder what in the world to do with these foods later. Pepper jellies are often poured over a block of cream cheese and served as a spread for crackers, or melted and uses as a baste or glaze for roasting meats. Relishes are added to sandwiches, dips and cheese plates. Hot pepper sauces and salsa add fire to all kinds of foods. Cowboy Candy, or candied jalapenos, is one of those foods so many people ask "Well, what am I supposed to do with this?"

Get the recipe for Cowboy Candy by clicking HERE.

Don't let "candy" fool you- there is a sweet note but these little jewels still pack a punch, especially the leftover juice when you've fished out all the pepper slices. This leftover liquid is an unexpected bonus- you get a slightly sticky, slightly sweet and nicely hot liquid to perk up all kinds of dishes. 

Picture from Paul Quick

So where do you get the leftover syrup? Well, a couple of ways. Often when you make a recipe like this for home canning you find you have excess brine (I always have leftover- especially when making pickles). You can pour the extra liquid from Cowboy Candy into extra canning jars and process along with the other jars for shelf stability or just pop in the fridge. Because the peppers get simmered in the brine for a few minutes before packing into jars it does have some of the heat infused already. You also will have leftover, and usually hotter, liquid left after you have fished out the sliced peppers and ate them. Save this as well! The flavor is incredible.

It's so useful. You can cook it to reduce it and get a syrupy sweet and hot drizzle or dipping sauce, a great way to jazz up purchased salad dressings. It makes a great marinade, an add-in to barbeque sauce, a great way to perk up fridge pickles or store bought pickles, and turns Asian style foods into something extra wonderful.

This is where Shannon comes in. Shannon Goudy lives in Florida and enjoys home food preserving as much as I do. She is a regular contributor in a Facebook canning group we both belong to and often posts recipes, loads of pictures and great hints- including her take on a sweet hot Asian chicken dish that you are going to LOVE. Shannon came up with this recipe and called it Triple "S" Threat Chicken- sticky, spicy and sweet- and I agree!! 

Shannon's Triple "S" Threat Chicken

Sauce:

1 1/2 cups Cowboy Candy Syrup

1 teaspoon ginger

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1/4 cup cold water

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Chicken:

4 large chicken breasts

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup cornstarch

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

4 large eggs

Oil for frying (Shannon prefers peanut oil)

To make the sauce, combine the Cowboy Candy syrup, ginger and soy sauce in a medium saucepan. Mix the cold water and cornstarch together until the cornstarch is fully dissolved then add to the syrup mixture. Whisk together and cook over medium heat until thickened. Set aside.

For the chicken, start by beating the eggs in a large bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, cornstarch, ginger, garlic and salt. Set aside.

Cut the chicken into bite sized cubes. Working on small batches, dip the chicken in the egg to coat, then in the flour mixture. Fry in the hot oil until golden brown and cooked through. Drain on paper towels and keep warm until all chicken has been fried.

Toss the chicken with some of the sauce- just enough to coat, and serve over jasmine, basmati or long grain rice, and sprinkle with some Cowboy Candy. Serves 4 to 6.

Doesn't this sound KILLER? I am definitely making this as soon as I restock my Cowboy Candy stash. A side of stir fried veggies and this is better than any takeout I can imagine. 

Shannon gets her cooking chops from her hobbies- like me, she is a cookbook reader. Yep, cover to cover just like me. She, also just like me, watches cooking shows like some people watch sports, with Food Network personalities Robert Irvine, from Restaurant Impossible, Dinner Impossible, and more,  and Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman, among her favorites. She gets some professional kitchen experience working for her uncle- she prepares lunch every day for the entire staff of her uncle's business, about twenty people, including all the planning, shopping and budgeting.

The country lifestyle in northwest Florida is something Shannon really thrives in- stopping at farm stands for produce and local dairy products, and I'm sure all that beautiful produce is featured i many dishes from her kitchen. She really loves all things Asian- Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Indian, and those veggies are vital to amazing Asian foods. 

Besides cooking, Shannon is a big animal lover, and loves spending time wherever there is water, be it the beach, river, spring or pool!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

An Old Favorite Gets a New Look- Philly Cheesesteak Lasagna

It's a million degrees in Iowa today. Normally on such a hot day I'm not big on making something like lasagna, a dish that needs to spend an hour in the oven. I'm hot, crabby, just went through road rage on the commute back to the peaceful lake, and now I'm going to fire up the oven? I must be nuts.

Actually I am a little sad that it's blazing hot out there. This weekend downtown Des Moines is home to the annual Italian American Heritage Festival and as much as I'd love to go I just can't deal with the heat and humidity. Growing up on the south side of Des Moines this annual festival was one of my favorite things. Back in the early days the festival was held in Columbus Park. Carnival rides arrived, food stands were built, bocce ball courts set up, and crowds of hungry folks eating pasta and enjoying music and activities filled the park the entire weekend. As a junior high girl, this was THE spot to see and be seen, the place to meet guys, the reason for spending 2 hours in front of the mirror with a curling iron, only to have the humidity turn those curls into nothing. In those days my best friend Liz and I hung out at the festival- all three days- and rode The Scrambler, ate cavatelli usually catered by Guido's or maybe a group of Italian ladies from one of the Catholic churches, played carnival games (I never won anything) and tried to catch the eye of the guys from the other junior high school. Risque times, for sure.

These days the festival is held downtown in Western Gateway Park. The event had grown tremendously and has moved several times. The rides are no longer around but plenty of activities keep festival goers entertained. Old guys still play bocce and lots of live music still entertains the crowd. The food has improved, with lots more food options and some very upscale vendors are really bringing the goods.

Learn more about the Italian American Heritage Festival by clicking HERE. 

In the spirit of that great Italian classic, lasagna, we are also having a little bit of pasta at the Little Lake House tonight but we are switching things up and bringing a whole new look to an old friend. Instead of the usual meat and red sauce and ricotta cheese lasagna we're having an All-American version- straight from Philadelphia. Yep, you got it- Philly Cheesesteak Lasagna. It's super easy to put together- savory ground beef with grilled peppers, onions and mushrooms layered with melty cheese, tender noodles and Alfredo sauce. Use your favorite brand of sauce in this dish- we're cheating a little with bottled sauce and you'll never know! Definitely not your Nona's lasagna, but it's gooooood.

Philly Cheesesteak Lasagna

1 package no boil lasagna noodles

2 lbs lean ground beef

1 large onion

1 cup sliced mushrooms

2 medium green bell peppers

salt, pepper or favorite meat seasoning

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon beef soup base

2 jars Alfredo sauce

1 lb shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

cooking oil

Prepare the vegetables: I use a very large onion. Cut the onion into small julienne strips. Remove the seeds from the peppers, cut into similar sized pieces. 

Heat a couple tablespoons of cooking oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the vegetables and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables begin to brown. Don't let them get too soft. Season the veggies with the meat seasoning. Remove to a large bowl and set aside.

Crumble the ground beef into the same skillet; break up with a wooden spoon. Sprinkle with the Worcestershire sauce, some of the meat seasoning and add the beef base, mixing it into the meat drippings. Cook meat until browned and cooked through. Add to vegetables in the bowl and mix.

Using a large baking pan spoon about 1/2 cup of the Alfredo sauce in the bottom and spread it around. Arrange 4 noodles on top, breaking them to fit. Spoon half of the meat mixture over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cheese. Pour the remaining Alfredo sauce in the first jar over evenly. Top with another four noodles. Spread the remaining meat mixture over, including any juices in the bowl, another 1/3 of the cheese. Layer another 4 noodles on top and pour the second jar of sauce over all.

Add about 1/2 cup of water to the jar, cover, shake, and add water to the pan. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 cheese, bake another 15-25 minutes until hot and bubbly, noddles are tender, and cheese is starting to brown. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Yes, I did use some pre-made sauce in this recipe because, let's be honest, who wants to make homemade Alfredo sauce just to turn around and make lasagna? Not me! Probably not a lot of busy families either, when kids are hungry, laundry needs to be done, the dog needs a walk and you just want to get something on the table with a minimum of fuss. Toss together some crispy salad greens and pop some garlic bread in the oven, or breadsticks, and you have a whole new take on lasagna.

Canning Cookbook- Relish Roundup

Summer garden season is in full swing in Iowa and we have the garden bounty to prove it. Tomatoes, corn, greens of all kinds, zucchini and peppers, glorious peppers. Hot, sweet and super hot- if you're like me you have an abundance of peppers and need some creative ways to preserve them. As much as we love salsa, seriously, you can only make so much before you start thinking you've lost your mind so I often make up a few relishes every year. It's a great way to use up some odd peppers I have sitting around and relish recipes are super easy to adapt to what you have on hand. They are a pickled food, so there is a little more room for varying the ingredients without worrying about having a product that shouldn't be canned. The vinegar provides the acidity you need.

This first relish recipe is a great way to use up peppers. I often reach the end of the season and have a pile of different peppers of several varieties. In this recipe you need 3 quarts of chopped peppers- the type is up to you. Bell peppers have no heat so start with them and add hot peppers to the heat level you like. A mix of colors in your peppers makes a very pretty relish in the jar too.

Go easy on the super hots!! 

NOTE: These recipes have not been tested by the NCHFP. If you are not comfortable canning untested recipes, please do not use them.

Spicy Pepper Relish

3 quarts finely chopped peppers*

2 large onions, finely chopped

2 cups apple cider vinegar

1 cup red wine vinegar

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

*Start with bell peppers and add hot peppers to taste. I usually use about 2 1/2 quarts bell peppers and then add the hot peppers. We grow so many super hots a recipe can get out of control hot very easily if I'm not careful.

A colorful mix of peppers makes a beautiful relish

Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the peppers and onions; return to boil and cook about 5 minutes.

Spoon the relish into half pint jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe rims; fix lids and rims, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 10 minutes. Allow to cool overnight before testing seals and removing rings.

I wasn't always a relish lover, in fact I have spent most of my adult life convinced I hated it. Maybe it was the bizarre neon green sweet pickle relish you see at concession stands. Something turned me off, that's for sure. It wasn't until a few years ago that I bravely made radish relish and became a convert. Likewise, I started wanting relish all the time. I started coming up with reasons to make hot dogs and brats- just so I could have relish. This relish recipe was shared with me by my friend Shelly, who says this is a copycat of the famous Coney Island hot dog stand recipe.

Coney Island Relish

5 cups finely minced cucumber

3 cups finely minced onion

2 bell peppers, finely minced

1 or 2 jalapeno peppers, finely minced

1 cup finely minced celery

4 cups apple cider vinegar

3 cups sugar

2 teaspoons mustard seed

2 teaspoons celery seed

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Heat the vinegar, sugar, seeds and pepper to boiling. Add the vegetables and simmer 20 minutes.

You can reduce the heat by removing the seeds and membranes

Pack the relish into half pint jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe rims; fix lids and rings, and process in a boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes. Allow to cool overnight before checking seals and removing rings.

Everyone knows I love cookbooks. I have.......many. Church cookbooks especially. Many of the canning recipes in those old books are questionable by today's standards but a lot of pickle and relish recipes are great, including this Piccalilli- peppers and green tomatoes, the ultimate end-of-the-garden relish and I think you're going to love it.

Mom's Old Fashioned Piccalilli

5 cups finely chopped peppers (sweet and hot)

3 medium green tomatoes, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

3 cups apple cider vinegar

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons mustard seed

pinch of cayenne pepper

In a large stockpot combine the vinegar, sugar and spices. Bring to a boil, then add the chopped vegetables and bring back to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Spoon the relish into half pint jars. Wipe rims; fix lids and rings and process in boiling water bath canner for 15 minutes. Allow to cool overnight before checking seals and removing rings.

Now that ought to keep you well stocked with relish until next summer, and have a few jars to give away as gifts too. Give these a try and let me know what you think!

Springtime at The Little Lake House

Seems like winter took forever to go away, and it wasn't all that BAD really! Maybe I'm just getting old and grumpy. Maybe I'm turning into one of "those" people- you know the ones, they live in a winter climate state but complain all winter long about snow. Guess what guys- Arizona has vacancies.......

So spring has finally arrived, and with that the start of gardening season. I have been a gardener for many many years. I have had all sorts of gardens- patio gardens, little gardens, huge gardens, raised beds, water gardens, container gardens. I'm always trying something new it seems. Container gardening seems to fit my lifestyle the best right now. Our big wraparound deck has lots of space and I manage to fill it with containers every year.

What do I grow? Everything! If it grows in the dirt it can be grown in a container. I have grown every vegetable you can think of from lettuce to carrots to ghost peppers. Every year I have the requisite tomatoes. This year I am growing six different kinds of cherry tomatoes- Husky Red, Gold Nugget, Yellow Pearberries, Chocolate Cherry, Indigo Blue Berry and Indigo Rose. I have one regular tomato plant just for hamburgers and BLTs and such. 

I can't have a garden without peppers. Hot peppers. The hottest of the hot. This year is no exception. Basking in the sun this season are ghost peppers, scorpion peppers, Kraken, Infinity Naga, Morango, Black Congo and Fatalii chilies. I have grown ghosts and scorpions before, but the others are all new to us. I don't grow bell peppers most years because they are so readily available at the farmers market in town or at the Amish farm we visit every year. 

Every kitchen garden needs herbs, and ours always has plenty. I have a big pot that is home to a chive clump that is over 30 years old and still producing. It came from my mother's garden many years ago and I have no idea how long it lived in her garden. It has moved with me numerous times, to California and back, and finally here at The Little Lake House. 

The 30 year old chive clump has been in that pot for more
than 20 years.

Big pots of parsley sit next to this old chive, and all around the deck we have different kinds of basil, different kinds of thyme, sage, oregano, marjoram, rosemary and mint. Mint is a great container herb because you can control it. Plant it in the ground and you have just unleashed the beast. It spreads like wildfire. 

Before long little baby herb plants will fill all these pots
and will flavor our food

Some of the more uncommon vegetables I grow in containers include lettuces and kale, radishes, carrots (the Parisian Market carrots are round like golf balls), eggplant and even sweet corn. Cabbage grows well in containers and so do Brussels sprouts as long as you have a secure place for them - out of the wind so they don't blow over. 

What are some of your favorites to grow in your own garden? What kind of gardens do you prefer?

It's March and I'm Obsessing Over Garden Season

Tomorrow it's going to be 80 degrees outside. I can hardly believe it. The snow around my house is gone, the geese are back in residence at the thawing lake honking up a storm every night. Signs of spring are all around from buds on the trees to a few green blades of grass peeking up. Good bye Old Man Winter, you were no friend of mine this past season!

You might remember, the majority of my gardening consists of containers on my deck. It's easier for me to manage that way. No real weeding to worry about. No animals digging and rooting around in the garden. Super easy to manage any potential pests. Easy to plant and clear up at the end of the season too. 

Indigo Blue Berries- photo from Territorial Seeds

I'm already planning my tomato choices. Starting from seed this year I am growing Indigo Blue Berry tomatoes- darling dark blue cherry tomatoes; Chocolate Cherries- an heirloom brown cherry tomato; and Gold Nugget cherries- a yellow round cherry tomato. I'm sure I'll pick up a few transplants from the greenhouse too. Every year I say I won't But I can't help myself!

Chocolate Cherry tomatoes- photo from Territorial Seeds

I will have to make a decision about peppers this year too. I didn't get any hot pepper seeds started in time, so I will have to buy transplants. That means I may have to stick to the common peppers like habanero or jalapeno, or the less fearsome poblanos or hot bananas. I love all kinds of peppers so it doesn't matter what I end up planting. I'll find a great way to utilize it.

Gold Nugget tomatoes- photo from Territorial Seeds

I have also started a few pots of herbs this year. Usually I wait until I can direct-sow them but this year I decided to get a head start on some of the herbs I always run out of over the winter, and use a lot more of during the summer. I love herbs in tossed salads so I always use loads of basil, parsley and chives. We make a lot of Italian dishes and use a lot of basil all year long, both dried and fresh, and that's one tender herb I can't direct sow until it's really warm out. I figure this year I'll try starting some inside and see if I can jump start my crop.

Brazilian Starfish from Chileplants.com.
I've been seriously thinking about trying them.

Every spring I have a fierce internal debate about flowers. I love flowers, and I have a few perennials in the garden- several beautiful Asian lilies and hosta, but as far as other flowers go I generally don't plant very many. I love flowers though, and love having butterflies and hummingbirds and bees visit my garden but...... like my dad always said... you can't eat flowers. Later in the season when its hot and dry and I have to water those containers every day I find myself not wanting to water the flowers, but I feel guilty for letting a living plant die......

My patio furniture has taken a beating over the winter. New cushions are in order for one thing, and the outdoor kitchen needs to be completed. The deck has a shabby red finish, but some of the wood has held fast to the finish and never adopted the shabby look, so...... the whole thing will need to be restained so it looks the same. That's ok. I just can't wait til I can sit out there in the warm breeze, listening to the geese across the street in the lake. Birds chirping. Cats winding around my feet, meowing. The smell of fresh cut grass........

Hurry up Spring!!

Easy Summer Pasta Salad

Pasta salad. It's just about everyone's favorite. It's easy to make, easy to transport, and is one of the easiest recipes to switch up and add or take out things you don't like. It can be mayo-based or vinaigrette dressed. Almost any shape of pasta works, it's all up to you.

Myself, I prefer penne pasta when making pasta salad, and I always make a homemade vinaigrette. Lots of people use Italian dressing and that's great too, I just prefer to make my own. I love adding as many vegetables as I have on hand, fresh and colorful, and that can change the way my salad tastes. It can go from herby and fresh with lots of bell pepper, Italian parsley and carrots to spicy and Asian-influenced with edamame, sliced radish and cucumber.

Let's start with the dressing. Everyone should have a basic vinaigrette dressing they can whip up without thinking about it. This is my personal favorite, using Dijon mustard, and it's super delicious.

You will need-

• 1/4 vinegar- I like Champagne vinegar or red wine vinegar, and sometimes I use half vinegar/half lemon juice
• 1 TB Dijon mustard
• pinch of salt, fresh ground black pepper
• pinch of thyme, minced finely
• 2/3 cup olive oil

Combine everything in a jar, cover and shake well until completely blended.

Now cook your pasta. Like I said, I prefer penne, but you can use anything, even spaghetti if you break it into smaller lengths. Farfalle is nice also and looks pretty with the vegetables. Always cook pasta in lots of salty water- and salty like sea water. This is the only way to season the pasta itself, so make sure you always use salt in the water. Cook to al dente and drain well. Rinse the pasta with plenty of cold water to stop the cooking process. 

In a large bowl toss the pasta with your choice of chopped vegetables. I like to use olives; chopped onion; chopped bell pepper or banana pepper; shredded carrots; chopped cucumber; sliced radishes; chopped fresh herbs; fresh green peas or snow peas; drained canned garbanzo beans; halved grape tomatoes- of course not all at the same time, but whatever I have on hand. Toss the mixture with enough dressing to moisten, cover and refrigerate until cold. Toss again before serving, adding more dressing if you need to. 

Some people like to add cubed cheese, if that sounds good to you, go for it. I like to make BIG batches of it so I can snack and lunch on it for a few days, so I leave cheese out. You can also add cut up Italian meats like salami or pepperoni too. Grilled chicken or shrimp makes it a whole meal, but I think it's just fine alongside a grilled burger, steak or chicken. Simple, and delicious.

Canning Cookbook- The Salsa Verde Project

Salsa verde. One thing I have often seen in stores but never have had the nerve to try. Is it HOT or mild? Green anything, including tomatillos, are something I just have zero experience with. Green tomatoes, the hallmark of southern cooking, were always something I just did not have a taste for. Last year I pickled green tomatoes, hoping to try something different. But...... I still don't LIKE the taste, and the texture leaves something to be desired.

But in a salsa..... that I could get behind. The texture would be like any regular salsa with chunks of tomato, onions, flecks of herbs....definitely something I could try. I've said year after year I was going to make it and always had the tomatoes ripen before I had a chance to work with them green. But on my agenda for this year was a batch of salsa verde and darnit, I am NOT going to miss out this year!

I already have several recipes to work out using salsa verde, so I HAD TO get with the program and get busy. Vegetables purchased, jars ready, I'm prepared to get going on this project!

Salsa verde was a new cooking experience for me. I've never made it before. I pored over cookbooks and recipes and asked friends and came up with recipe I used today. Not having any experience with green tomatoes or tomatillos, I took my time cooking this salsa- the green tomatoes were very crunchy and did not break down like ripe tomatoes do. I also had that weird phenomenon happen when you have vinegar and garlic together- blue garlic. I wish I had taken a picture- it was a beautiful vibrant turquoise. So weird. Once the garlic was cooked though, it was back to normal.

Salsa Verde, Rockin' the Kitchen Style

10-11 cups chopped green tomatoes (I left the skin on, you CAN peel if desired)

2 cups chopped onion

2 cups chopped pepper (I used a mix of green bell pepper and only 6 jalapenos but you can go as hot as you dare)

1 cup apple cider vinegar

10 garlic cloves, cut up

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup  finely chopped cilantro

Combine everything except cilantro in large pot. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer until peppers are just tender. Remove from heat, CAREFULLY transfer small amounts to blender or food processor and blend til fairly smooth. I made my salsa and refrigerated it before the blending, I just ran out of time!! If you are lucky and have an immersion blender that would be great too. I do not have one, sadly....... Since I left the skin on the tomatoes, I thought I'd mention- once it's been cooking and pureed, the skin is undetectable, so it's worth skipping that step.

You're looking for a semi chunky, not quite smooth consistency-  just enough to break up the chunks and make sure no big garlic hunks are hiding in there. 

Return to boil. Add finely chopped cilantro. Pour into prepared jars and:

If you are a canner, fix lids and rings and process in boiling water bath 35 minutes for pints or half pints.

If you are not a canner, you can pour into freezer containers and freeze.

Now.........what to do with salsa verde ?  White chili, pork dishes- some slow roasted pork, pulled, mixed with salsa and made into all kinds of tasty things, chicken dishes such as enchiladas.  I have lots of experimenting to do!!

What have I learned from my first salsa verde? Next batch is definitely going to include some lime. Lime juice, some fresh lime zest. I know when I open these jars to use them I'll be sure and add some lime to punch it up.