Who doesn't love a bowl of fresh homemade salsa with chips on a cool fall day?! My 8 year old daughter eats salsa like it's dessert, lol. I made this recipe with only two changes, I'll post them at the end. I didn't have enough paste (I really didn't want to run to the store, again!) and none of the stores had fresh chili peppers. But this recipe is definitely a keeper, it's not sweet but not too vinegary either.



10 lbs tomatoes, chopped


6 medium onions, chopped

3 cups bell peppers (any kind), chopped

12 jalapeno peppers, chopped and seeded

5 chili peppers, chopped and seeded (this will make it spicy or milder, depending on the peppers you choose)

10 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

1 1/3 cups white vinegar

1/4 cup salt

2 tsp pepper

2 tsp cayenne pepper

2 tsp cumin

2 tbsp lime juice

3 cans tomato paste (the bigger cans, not the tiny ones)



Combine all ingredients except tomato paste in a large stock pot. Simmer approximately 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add tomato paste and mix well. Simmer another 20 minutes or so. At this point, I take out about half of the salsa, blend it smooth in the blender and then return it to the pot, but you can leave it chunky if you prefer. Ladle into hot jars leaving 1/4" headspace. Cap and process 15 minutes in a water bath canner. Remove jars and let cool.

This recipe makes approximately 15 pints.

The original recipe also called for 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup white sugar, so if you like your salsa sweeter, add this in.

My Changes: I used 3 of the small tomato paste cans instead of the large, I don't know if I'll ever try it with more paste as I really liked it with less tomato paste. And because I couldn't get any fresh chili peppers, I boiled 5 large red dried chili peppers that were just covered with water. Let this boil for about 15-25 minutes. Run it in your blender until you have a smooth puree, then strain it to remove all the seeds and skin. I use a potato masher, makes it a quick 10 second job. Add this puree to the salsa and let it cook.

I got this recipe from a blog called the family Homestead where it was credited to Leah Hillam.

Enjoy!
Tina