Three Beer Salsa

                                                      Three Beer Salsa

15 lbs.             Tomatoes cut in half or quarters (approx. 35 medium or about 8 liters)  Skin them.
1/2 c.               Salt (coarse)

                   Soak for 6-12 hours  
                   Drain off liquid from Tomatoes

15 lbs.             Tomatoes
2 c.                  Vinegar
2 Tbsp.            Sugar
20                    Hot Peppers (assorted)
                        eg. - jalapeño, crimson hot, anaheim, thick red (no stems but everything else)

                        Cook on medium heat and stir for 1 hour - be careful! .....it will burn.
                        Then simmer for 1 hour.


Half way through the cooking time

2 lrg.               Green peppers (cut into 1/2"-1" pieces)
2 - 3 lrg.          Onions (1/2"-1" Pieces)
13 oz.              Tomatoes Paste

This is called Three Beer Salsa because a person can have 3 beers while stirring the Salsa.  There actually is no Beer in this Salsa!

Ham, White Bean and Tomato Soup

I am at the lake and trying to fill the freezer with healthy soups, using the tomatoes that are on the vines by the side of my house.  I am going to try this soup today.  I picked it out over other recipes, which were also interesting, but asked for things like 1 tablespoon of chili paste.  Having that in my fridge in Calgary, but not here was a small blip, since this recipe calls for a series of dried spices which I do have in my cupboards here.

I am going for it!

2 slices bacon
1 onion, diced
1 stalk celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (10 ounce) bag Baby Spinach, sliced into thin slices
1⁄2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1⁄2 teaspoon allspice
1⁄2 teaspoon salt
1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
3 cups chicken broth
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (28 ounce) can white beans, drained
3⁄4 cup chopped cooked ham
5 sage leaves, minced
5 sprigs minced thyme
5 sprigs minced parsley


DIRECTIONS Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until just crisp, turning several times, about 4 minutes; remove bacon, crumble and set aside.

Add onion and celery to skillet; cook until softened, about 5 minutes; stir in garlic, cook 1 minute; stir in spinach, cook until wilted, about 2 minutes.

Season with red pepper flakes, allspice, salt and black pepper; add chicken broth, tomatoes, beans, ham, sage, thyme and parsley; cook until flavors blend about 20 minutes.


http://www.food.com/recipe/ham-white-bean-and-tomato-soup-89130