Garden Fresh Restaurant Style Salsa ~ TacoTuesday

All season long I wait for my garden to start turning red.  Like Big Boy red.  And Roma red.  Sometimes Yellow Pear and Heirloom Purple too, depending on the type of tomato's I've planted.  And when the tomatoes have gotten as fresh as can be, I pick 'em, cook 'em and can 'em.  This my tomato loving friends, is my go-to Garden Fresh Restaurant Style Salsa recipe with canning directions too!

First things first, pick (or purchase) the freshest tomatoes you can get your little green thumbs on.  Like stated above I like to plant a variety of tomatoes in a variety of colors.  And I grow them in straw bales!  Learn the how-to's of Straw Bale Gardening here.  You might also spot some Super Sweet Cherry and Chocolate tomatoes in the batch below.

I highly suggest you use a food processor to make your salsa.  Or a blender.  Now you could chop each individual tomato, but who has time for that?  I like to pop the tops off my tom's, chunk up the big ones and pop them into the processor.  Add a few other ingredients to the bowl and a few pulses later you are done!  

Chill your salsa in the fridge for a couple of hours so the flavors will mix and intensify.  If you are like me and plant a crazy amount of tomatoes try your hand at small batch canning!  Small batch canning is also great for making jam.  To can this salsa it's just one extra step of simmering your salsa in a pot for about 20 minutes before the canning process.  I use this Ball® Home Canning Discovery Kit (by Jarden Home Brands) when I small batch can.  You can pick the entire set up for about $12!

I do feel compelled to give you a little warning tho... This recipe is so quick, and easy, and super tasty that you won't ever want to purchase store-bought salsa again.  And if this turns out to be the case for you, don't worry!  I've included the super easy canning directions below so you can can to your hearts content!

Restaurant Style Salsa

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Cooking Time:  25 minutes (only if canning)

Amount:  3 pints

Ingredients:

4 lbs. tomatoes

1 medium onion, quartered

10 garlic cloves

1 bunch of cilantro

1 lemon, juiced

1/2 Tbl. spoon garlic salt

spicy option: 1/2-1 Jalapeno with or without seeds (depending on taste)

Directions:

Pull or cut tops off tomatoes.

Cut bigger tomatoes into chunks and put into a food processor (or blender).

Add garlic, cilantro, **lemon juice, garlic salt and jalapeno if using.

Pulse in food processor slowly until well mixed being careful not to over process.

Add to clean jars and chill in the refrigerator for several hours to allow flavors to mix.

**Canning Option:

Follow the above directions except leave out the lemon juice.

Put salsa into a pot and bring to a boil.

Lower temperature and simmer for 20-25 minutes.

Add salsa to clean & sterilized jars taking care to leave 1-2 inches head space.  

Top pint-sized jars off with 1 Tbl. spoon lemon juice and quart-sized jars with 2 Tbl. spoons lemon juice.

Slide a clean knife down the sides of jars to release bubbles.

Wipe the rim off with a clean wet cloth and apply the lid and ring.

Water bathe pint-sized jars for 15 minutes and quart-sized jars for 20 minutes.

This salsa would also be great with Mini-Taco Nacho's!

Do you like your salsa spicy? What kind of peppers do you use? Any suggestions I'd love to hear them  =)