Happy Labor Day Every One

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.  source: US Department of Labor

I got up early this morning and then Frank and I got a run/walk in.  We did Day 1 of the C25K.  This is all part of my Quest for Fitness.  When we got home, Frank made breakfast, Bacon and Pancakes ( I know, I know, but hey I am not going to dissuade him from cooking when he feels like it! And it is all about portion control anyway) while I straightened up the house and got ready for our company this afternoon.

I also spent some time making and canning Salsa.  I love making salsa, it is so much better than what you get from the grocery shelf and you know exactly what is in it.  I adapted my recipe from the Ball Blue Book of Canning.  It is a great canning tool!!

Remove the stems from the tomatoes.

Slice an X on the bottom.

Place them in boiling water for a few moments.

Remove from boiling water and plunge immediately into ice water.

The skins will slip right off.

Once the skins are removed, I quarter the tomatoes and remove the seeds.

Then I roughly chop them.

It takes about 6 lbs of tomatoes to get 10 cups.

I pulled out the peppers that I had in the fridge.

You want to end up with 5-6 cups of chopped peppers.

The heat of the salsa will be determined by the heat of the peppers used.

I used 5 jalapenos for this batch.

I ended up with 7 pints of salsa.

6 pints that I canned and one pint that I served as an appetizer tonight.

Salsa for Canning

10 c. chopped, seeded, peeled and cored tomatoes
5-6 c. chopped and seeded, asst peppers, at least 5 of which are jalapenos (the types and amounts of each type of pepper will determine your heat)
2 large onions, diced
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 T. chopped cilantro
3 t. kosher salt
1 1/4 c. cider vinegar

Combine all ingredients in a large pot.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.  Ladle hot salsa into hot jars and process for 15 minutes in a boiling water bath.  Remove to a towel lined counter to cool. Print Recipe

We had a wonderful visit with everyone today.   Kurt and Kim brought both of their Moms and Mom Klik was here as well.  We relaxed in the pool, we had a wonderful dinner and the skies opened up and the rains came pouring down.  I am so glad that it waited until we were all done outside.

Homemade salsa is a snap to make and much less expensive than buying it premade.  I am sharing this recipe at Thrifty Thursday, stop by to find more money saving recipes and ideas.

One year ago today: Pears, Pigs and the Popps