Kick Ass Salsa Recipe

One of my friends from work gave me some homemade salsa and OMG was it good! I had to get the recipe from her which she got from Chatelaine magazine and I thought I'd share it with you guys. Salsa is one of my staples, and this is so much better than store bought. I made a batch this weekend and let me tell you, I got some good use out of my pampered chef chopper! So not only is this healthy, it's a great arm workout and stress relief (nothing like pounding the hell out of a bunch of veggies to release tension!!)

Here it is:

Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cooking Time: 40-60 minutes
Makes 10 cups (2.5L)

Ingredients:

10-12 large very ripe tomatoes
2 large cooking onions or 2 medium Spanish onions
1 tbsp (15mL) vegetable oil (I used olive oil)
8 garlic cloves, minced
8 jalapeno peppers or 1 (4-1/2 oz/127 g) can diced green chilies
2-3 sweet green peppers
2 (5-1/2 oz/156mL) cans tomato paste
1/4 cup (50 mL) white or cider vinegar, or lime juice
1 tbsp (15 mL) paprika
2 tsp (10 mL) granulated sugar
1-1/2 tsp (7 mL) salt
1/2 tsp (2 mL) cayenne pepper

1. Core, seed and coarsely chop tomatoes. You should have 10 cups (2.5 L). Peel and finely chop onions.

2. Heat oil in a large wide saucepan set over medium heat. When hot, add onions and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until onions have softened, from 7 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, seed, then very finely chop jalapenos. Seed and coarsely chop sweet peppers.

3. When onions are softened, stir in tomato paste. Then add tomatoes, peppers, vinegar, paprika, sugar and salt. If using canned diced green chilies, stir in contents of can without draining. For an extra hot 'n' spicy hit, stir in cayenne. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Adjust heat so mixture gently bubbles, and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 30 min. Store covered salsa in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze.

For those of you who want the nutrition info here it is:

Nutrients per 2 tablespoons:

.3 g protein
.1 g fat
1.6 g carbs
.3 g fibre
.2 mg iron
3 mg calcium
8 calories
25 mg sodium

Enjoy!