Homemade Salsa for Canning

Oh my gosh, the garden is going crazy with tomatoes, and so even though it is not Labor Day weekend, which is out usual day for heavy canning of tomatoes, we got started early. In addition to a primavera sauce (because we have lots of other vegetables on hand as well so why not?) and some pizza sauce, I took another stab at making and canning salsa (my last attempt was about a decade ago and it did not go well....). This one is good going into the jar, and hopefully will be just as good coming out. 9 cups peeled and chopped tomatoes 2 1/2 cups chopped bell peppers 2 1/2 cups chopped white onion 4 medium jalapenos, chopped (with seeds for a hotter salsa, without for a milder one) 8 large cloves garlic, chopped 6 teaspoons canning salt 1/2 cup cider vinegar 1 (12 ounce) can tomato paste Instructions Remove the skins from the tomatoes. To do this, make an “X” in the bottom of the tomatoes, then place in boiling water for 60 seconds. Then, remove the tomatoes from the water and place directly into a bowl if iced water to shock. The skins should slip right off. (I use my spider to transfer the tomatoes from the boiling water to the ice water without getting splashed.) Make the salsa. Place all of the ingredients in a large pot (you will need a 10qt. saucepan for this batch, or split the ingredients among 2 saucepans) and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until thickened and cooked. Prepare cans to be sealed. Ladle the cooked salsa into clean, sterile jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Wipe rims of jars with a damp, clean, paper towel, then place lids on top. To make filling easy, I highly recommend a wide funnel designed for canning jars. Process using a water bath (or better yet, pressure can them). To do this, bring a large saucepan filled with water to a boil. Your saucepan needs to be tall enough to have the water cover the jars by 2 inches- though the jars will displace some of the water as they are added. Add the jars to the water bath and cover with a lid. Process for 30 minutes, then remove. I use these tongs to make things easy.