Spicy Homemade Ketchup

Make your own ketchup?? Yes, it is time consuming to make it yourself, but it really is nothing like the commercial stuff. (If you're looking for this to taste like Hunts or Heinz, this recipe is not for you.)

Homemade ketchup is a wonderful condiment, that you may even be tempted to eat right out of the jar. Last year, when I made this yummy ketchup, my 86-year-old mom went through the jar in less than one week!

If you decide that you'd like to try your hand at making ketchup, be sure to allow enough time. You'll need to be in and out of the kitchen, stirring the pot, for almost two hours.

Spicy Homemade Ketchup

2-3T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/8t red pepper, or to taste
1/8t ground allspice
1/8t ground cloves
3/4t salt
1/4t fresh ground pepper
7C chopped tomatoes -- seeded and skinned (it's fine if a lot of the 7C is juice, after seeding tomatoes)
3/4C sugar
3T molasses
2T tomato paste
1/2C fresh lemon juice

Saute onions in olive oil in large pan. When soft, add garlic and red pepper, allspice, cloves, salt and pepper and cook 1 minute. Add rest of ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat slightly. Simmer, stirring occasionally, around 2 hours, or until mixture thickens and is reduced to around two cups. (As it gets thicker keep a closer eye on the ketchup, stirring more frequently, and possibly turning down the heat a bit to avoid scorching.) Taste for seasoning as well as sweetness. (Cook a bit longer, if you add additional sugar, until it is fully dissolved.)

Store in the fridge for use within two weeks or so. Can also be successfully frozen for up to 6 months.

Summer Salsa

If you like salsa, you need to give yourself a taste treat and make homemade salsa!

Last year was the first year I gave it a try. I guess I thought it might not be worth the effort, but it's amazing. My first try, we had been given lots of very ripe heirloom tomatoes that needed to be used quickly. I think I made about 10 cups of salsa that day. I had no idea how we could possibly eat all that salsa, but, amazingly, we did. That fresh, summer-tomato taste just can't be duplicated in a jar.

Summer Salsa

3C tomatoes (approximately), seeded and chopped*
3/4t salt, or to taste
1/4t pepper, or to taste
1/4t ground cumin
1/2 small sweet onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, diced and then smushed w/ back of knife using a dash of kosher salt to help pulverize it
1 or more jalapenos, or other hot peppers of your choice, diced
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1t olive oil (optional)

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate at least 2 hours until serving.

*I strain out the seeds and save the juice for something else. You could drink it, as is, add to your homemade tomato sauce, soup or anything else you'd like. It's so delicious that it's a waste to throw it away!