Summer Salsa

Summer canning would not be complete without making Salsa!  There are many different salsa recipes and Bernardin does a great job of exposing us to a lot of them.  Last year we tried several and it is our hope to one day conquer them all but for now we are going to repeat a classic…summer salsa with the ingredients we had on hand.

We made a double batch of this one.  Now, the one thing I can say about this particular Bernardin recipe is the yeild is not accurate.  Doing a double batch should have yielded 12 x 500mL but we only got 9 x 500mL.  And, I found it to be a little bit on the runny side which I don’t like. 

 FOLLOWING THE BERNARDIN RECIPE:

• A single batch should yield 6 x500mL but we think it will be more like 9 x 250mL
• 4 cups chopped cored peeled tomatoes
• 2 cups chopped pitted peeled peaches, treat to prevent browning
• 2 cups chopped cored peeled pears, treat to prevent browning
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 cup chopped red onion
• 3-4 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup loosely packed finely chopped cilantro
• 1/2 cup liquid honey
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (we used cider vinegar)
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint

1. In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine tomatoes, peaches, pears, red pepper, onion and jalapeno peppers.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to prevent sticking.  Add cilantro, honey, lemon zest and juice, vinegar and mint.  Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.  (Note: we boiled ours for a lot longer because there was too much liquid and it was not thick enough)
2. Ladle hot salsa into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/2″ headspace.  Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace.  Wipe rim with a damp paper towel. Center lid on jar. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight.
3. Place jars in canner, ensuring they are completely covered with water.  Bring to a full rolling boil and process (250mL jars for 15 mins.) and 500mL jars for 20 minutes.  When the time is up turn off the heat, remove canner lid and wait 5 minutes, then remove jars to a folded towel on the counter.
4. Check the seals, label, and store.  Refrigerate any unsealed jars.

Put up Total:

• 7 x 500mL wide mouth jars
• 2 x 500mL wide mouth fancy jars