Canning Chopped Tomatoes

Here are the beauties! My garden keeps on producing tomatoes like mad. I am loving it! My husband will be happy I am saving him money by canning these babies! Bring on the Red delicious tomatoes.

I mixed the Beef Stake, Roma, and Lg. Cherry tomatoes to make this batch of chopped canned tomatoes. You know me, I can't waste a thing! 

Here is my lovely canning pot on the stove. My husband gave this to me as a gift last year for my birthday. Who knew I would become a domesticated canning woman. 

Here are the beautiful chopped tomatoes nicely preserved in pint sized jars. I can't wait to eat them in the fall when I am craving tomatoes again :).

Awe....delicious tomatoes!!!

Zesty Garden Salsa

My garden is overflowing with tomatoes! Yikes....I have tried to make every meal possible using tomatoes and I am running out of creative cooking ideas so I canned salsa today with fresh ingredients from my garden.

I usually spend time canning with my sister, but I wanted to see if I could do a batch all by myself. I did it! The truth is canning is better with someone to talk to :). Okay, I did have cute little kids around to talk to so I wasn't completely alone.

Here are my unwashed tomatoes straight out of the garden. I used a mixture of tomatoes for the salsa.

 After blanching the tomatoes for 30-60 seconds I placed the peeling tomatoes in ice water. 

I used the BALL Blue Book Guide to Preserving and followed the Zesty Salsa recipe inside. I love that book. My sister gave it to me for a gift and I know I will use it often in the years to come.

I combined tomatoes, green peppers, onions, garlic, salt, cider, and hot pepper flakes. 

After it came to a boil, I reduced the heat and simmered for 10 min. 

I processed the pint sized salsa jars in boiling water.

Here is one of my canned beauties! I can't wait to serve this salsa up with some delicious corn chips!

Zesty Garden Salsa

6 pint sized jars of zesty salsa.