Salsa

   

When faced with oodles of tomatoes and peppers from my garden, my favorite use of the bountiful harvest is to make up big pots of spicy salsa.  This year I made two batches of salsa and now have many pints of the delectable condiment in my storage.

 

Most salsa recipes are similar – tomatoes, peppers, onions, vinegar or lemon juice (extra acid necessary for safe canning), salt, garlic, spices, etc. I’ve tried a few different variations and my absolute favorite recipe goes like this:

57 tomatoes (1/2 blended 1/2 chopped)

4 chopped onions

4 chopped green peppers

2 1/2 jars sweet yellow peppers (drained)

3/4 jars hot yellow peppers

4 jalapeno peppers (finely chopped or blended)

4 cloves of minced garlic

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 c. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 20 oz. cans tomato sauce

Cook for two hours.

Pour into pint jars, wipe tops of jars, place hot lids and rings.

Process in canner.

Notes:  I know it seems strange to count the tomatoes, but that is what the recipe says, so I just do it! I do adjust for size of tomatoes however – some of mine were pretty small, so I added extra.  I basically chop and blend until I have two big pots about 2/3 full of tomatoes. While the tomatoes are cooking away I start chopping the onions and peppers in my little food chopper.  I generally chop all my veggies with just my big cutting board and my awesome Cutco knives, but this is a job for an electrical gadget. I don’t usually use the bottled peppers since I generally have an abundance of various types of peppers from my garden.  I purposely plant peppers with a variety of heat just for my salsa. Don’t skimp on the sugar and salt – I’ve actually decreased by half the amounts in the original recipe and this amount is perfect!

 

After all that hard work, I take great satisfaction in admiring jars of beautiful salsa.  I serve this salsa year round with fajitas, taco salad, burritos, omelets, fried potatoes – the list could go on and on.

Green Beans

 

I planted Stringless Blue Lake pole beans this year and have been rewarded with amazing production despite repeated attacks by the nefarious Mexican bean beetle.  Resembling a lady bug with an orange-red body and black spots, this beetle lays numerous eggs on the back of the bean leaves and the yellow larvae proceed to eat up the bean leaves until they look like this.

 

Upon returning home from a summer vacation, I was appalled to find nearly all the bean leaves skeletonized.  I immediately started hand picking the pests - squashing bugs, eggs, and larva indiscriminately.  I was rewarded with nice fresh leaves in the fall and a burst of new beans! 

 

 

 

I much prefer growing pole beans to bush beans for the simple reason that they take up less space growing up a trellis, not to mention that they continue to grow new leaves and produce beans all season long.  My last picking was October 25th, just before eight inches of snowfall. The snow didn’t come with a frost though, and I’m hoping to harvest a few more yummy beans.  .  . in November!

Canning Pears

Easiest way ever to can a beautiful jar of pears:

Start with the largest, sweetest, fresh pears possible - yellowish green, not too ripe.

Cut the pear in half, peel carefully, remove the stem and core.

Arrange peeled halves aesthetically in wide mouth quart jar.

Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon “Fruit Fresh” (contains ascorbic and citric acid) to keep pears white.

Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar to enhance flavor.

Pour boiling water over the pears, filling the jar to within 1/2 inch of the top.

Wipe the rim, place lid and band, process in canner for 45 minutes.

 

 

Over the course of a week, I canned two 35 pound boxes of pears and yielded  30 quarts of pears.

Listening to Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” made the time peeling many, many pears zip by!

I love the way beautiful jars of pears look on the shelves.