The Best Salsa

Fall is my favorite time of year! In the mountains, days are warm and the nights are cool. The tomatoes that we waited all summer for are finally ripe. The kids are back to school, so parents have a little free time during the day. Fall sports have started, and we have no time on weeknights and weekends. Holidays are upon us, I don’t know if that’s my favorite part just because it can get stressful, but it gives the kids something to look forward to.

It is now time for harvesting the fruits and vegetables that you worked so hard all summer to keep alive! The recipe this week is Salsa! I can/ bottle the salsa so that we can enjoy it all year. I try to do one batch a month from August to October, or until the tomato and pepper plants freeze.

This salsa is so addicting, and really so easy once you get the skins off of the tomatoes. I used to blanch them, but that was just a mess and really took a lot of time and effort. Now I oven roast the tomatoes. Move the rack to the highest position and turn your broiler on to high, wash the tomatoes and slice them in half length wise. I usually cut off the stem end too so that the skins slip off easily. Lay the cut tomatoes face down on a sheet pan and slide the pan onto the rack. It takes a few minutes, maybe 5-8, but the tomatoes will start to sizzle and you’ll see the skins start to blacken and kind of lift off of the fruit.

Next you’ll take them out and allow them to cool slightly, they will be very hot! When they are cool enough to handle, you can either peel the skins off with your fingers or use a fork. It’s crazy easy.

The rest is a cake walk. Get out your trusty blender, and a big pot. I use a Ninja blender, it’s awesome.

Veggies:

3 big bowls of tomatoes, slicing tomatoes will take longer to cook down, but I had a plethora this year so I used them. Roma tomatoes are my preferred variety for salsa when I have a choice

If you have an abundance of cherry or grape tomatoes you can blend them up with skins on. I add them to the salsa most years and I like the combination of flavors.

1 bunch celery – crazy, I know, but it adds body to the cooked salsa.

4 medium onions

5 green bell peppers

5 cloves garlic

5 pablano peppers, or whatever you have access to

10-20 Jalapenos or other spicy pepper

1/2 c. Kosher salt

1 Tbsp. Paprika

1 Tbsp. Cumin

1 Tbsp. Black Pepper

2 c. Apple Cider Vinegar

These will all be blended to your desired consistency and added to the pot to cook down to your perfect thickness. Basically plan on this being your activity for the day. It is a labor of love, but you’ll thank yourself in January!

Taste the salsa as you go to get the salt and spices just right. There are a lot of years that I end up adding more peppers than tomatoes just because we like a lot of heat.

Follow your local extension service instructions for safely bottling your salsa.