Make Your Own Fiesta Salsa

This Zesty Fiesta Salsa recipe is my absolute favorite. You can alter the level of spiciness by altering the amount of jalapeño peppers or by tossing in some finely diced habanero peppers, if you’re daring enough! This easy recipe is great for beginners that have no idea how to start canning.
First, gather all of your ingredients & anyone you can con into helping you chop up veggies. This is a great recipe if you happen to have an abundance of tomatoes or jalapenos from your garden and make gorgeous tasty gifts as well.

You’ll Need:

• 10 C. Prepared Tomatoes (approx 6lbs)
• 5 C. Chopped -seeded Green Peppers (approx 2 lbs)
• 5 c. chopped onions – I use 1/2 red & 1/2 yellow (approx 1 1/2 lbs)
• 2 1/2 c. Chopped Seeded Jalapeños (about 1 lb)
• 3 Cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbs. Fresh Cilantro, minced
• 1 Tbs. Salt
• 1 1/4 c. Cider Vinegar

Here’s how to Prepare the tomatoes for canning:

They’ll need to be skinned, seeds removed and diced. To easily peel tomatoes, dip them into boiling water for 20-30 seconds, or until skins crack. Immediately plunge them into ice water and let them set for about 2 minutes. Gently rub the tomato in your hands for a second to loosen the skin The skins will peel off quite easily now, with or without a knife.

In a large Saucepan Combine all of the ingredients:

• 10 C. Prepared Tomatoes (approx 6lbs)
• 5 C. Chopped -seeded Green Peppers (approx 2 lbs)
• 5 c. chopped onions – I use 1/2 red & 1/2 yellow (approx 1 1/2 lbs)
• 2 1/2 c. Chopped Seeded Jalapeños (about 1 lb)
• 3 Cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbs. Fresh Cilantro, minced
• 1 Tbs. Salt
• 1 1/4 c. Cider Vinegar

Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and allow it to simmer for 10 minutes. Ladle the hot salsa into hot prepared jars, leaving 1/4″ headspace. Adjust two-piece caps and process for 15 minutes in a boiling water bath. Remember, when you add your jars to the boiling water in the water bath canner, your time does not start until the water is boiling again.
The water level should be an inch above the top of the lids.

As you can see from the picture above, this salsa is very colorful and makes a lovely addition to holiday gift baskets, (if you can manage to keep it in the house that long!). It’s not a rare occasion to catch my children eating a jarful with a Spoon.

Level of Spiciness: Mild, Taste Bud Tingler, Who Needs a Liver?

The above Recipe is a mild to medium spice salsa depending on the hotness of your Jalapeños. To make a milder Salsa simply reduce your Jalapeños by 1/3 c. and use an additional 1/3 c. chopped Green Pepper.

To make “Who Needs A Liver Salsa”– which is my favorite, replace a couple of the Jalapeños with Habanera Peppers. Be sure to label it accordingly for the ER docs. *wink*

Gift Ideas:

• Once again, this makes a great Gift Basket addition, simply tie some Raffia ribbon to the top, place it in a gift basket with some cornbread mix, a couple new potholders with Jalapeño Prints, and some homemade southwest mix seasoning

• Simply present a couple jars with a cute card and I guarantee they’ll beg for more next year.