We got hooked on salsa verde awhile back…became particularly big fans of the Xochitl brand (Iif you haven’t had their corn chips and can…you should!  It’s the only food I really miss on GAPS!).  At $5.99 a jar…keeping up the addiction got a little steep.  🙂  So…last summer I started making my own.

Working with tomatillos is a little bit of a process…but it’s so worth it.  This year, I planted three tomatillo plants and have harvested a TON.  Last weekend, we made a double batch of this recipe adapted from one in a back issue of Organic Gardening magazine:

Salsa Verde (GAPS/SCD/GF):

5 pounds of tomatillos, husked and halved

2 onions, quartered

3 cloves of garlic

1 1/2 T. sea salt

1 habanero chile pepper, seeded (***BEWARE!  Just chopping this made me have a coughing fit!  Always wear plastic gloves when cutting hot peppers to preserve your hands and anything they touch for the next several hours!)

4 Anaheim peppers, seeded

2-4 Jalapeno peppers, seeded (depending on personal preference)

2 green peppers, seeded

2 T. fresh cilantro

Juice of one lime

I had some good help with picking the tomatillos…

And removing the husks…even got Grandpa into the act there…

And then I was on my own… 🙂

My easy-peasy semi-lazy woman’s way of tweaking this great recipe:  Rinse the sticky film off the tomatillos.  I decided not to roast them (because I was also in the midst of making sauerkraut and pickles and that just seemed like a lot of work), and ran everything through the food processor in shifts until it was well chopped and mixed.  I cooked it in a large stock pot on the stove until boiling, and simmered about 20 minutes – stirring every few minutes (this may be overkill, but I’ve been the victim of burnt salsa before!).

Ladle salsa into hot sanitized jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.  Check for air bubbles, wipe the rims clean and put on lids and rings.  Process in boiling water bath for 15 minutes.  If you haven’t canned before, be sure that the middle of the lid has a “depression” instead of a raised appearance when it’s done.  If it doesn’t, either reprocess the jars in a boiling water bath, or stick in fridge for more immediate use.  If everything has sealed like it should, let them sit out for about a day before removing the rings and storing them.

And if anyone is wondering, this salsa does have a slight kick but it will not burn the hair off your head or anything wild like that. 🙂  It has a medium heat.  If you want it hotter, add another habanero or two…we are not that brave…

Disclaimer:  My kitchen was VERY VERY BUSY on the day I made these and that last picture reflects it…please ignore the mess in the background!!!

This post was shared at Butter Believer’s Sunday School; The Morris Tribe’s Homesteader Blog Carnival; Simply Made Home’s Make  a Move Monday; The Healthy Home Economist’s Monday Mania; Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease Made from Scratch Monday; The Prairie Homesteader’s Homestead Barn Hop; Real Food Forager’s Fat Tuesdays; Simply Sugar and Gluten Free Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays; Cooking Traditional Foods Traditional Tuesdays; Like a Mustard Seed’s Living Green Tuesdays; The Tasty Alternative’s Allergy Free Wednesdays; Frugally Sustainable’s Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways; Kelly the Kitchen Kop’s Real Food Wednesdays; GNOWFGLINS Simple Lives Thursday; The Nourishing Gourmet’s Pennywise Platter; Real Food Freaks Freaky Friday; Too Many Jars in My Kitchen’s Fill Those Jars Friday; Vegetarian Mamma’s Gluten Free Fridays; The 21st Century Housewife’s Gallery of Favorites;