If you planted basil this spring, it's probably already 'ready' because it's one of the easiest herbs to grow and grows so well and so fast! I have done a few posts on it already and don't need to reinvent the wheel again but the photo above is a link to one of those posts if you are interested.
Another recipe posted many times on my site since I started it in 2006 is our family favorite canned salsa. We have 3 salsa recipes we tend to like and make often; this recipe (below) is the one I use for canning and have for over 20 years now.
10 Cups of peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes
5 c chopped onions
3 sweet banana peppers, diced
4 jalapenos, seeded and diced
2 t minced garlic
1 green pepper, chopped
1/2 red pepper, chopped
1 1/4 c vinegar
2 T chili powder
2 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t cayenne pepper
1 T sugar
To
peel/skin your tomatoes easily just put them in boiling water. Skins
will split in 10 seconds - 2 minutes. Remove as soon as the skin splits
and lay on a clean towel to cool until you can handle them comfortably -
or you can dip them into a bowl of ice water if you wish.
Some tomatoes won't split but they are still ready; if it has been in
the water for over a minute, lift it out and look at it and feel it. If it looks tight
and ready to burst, yet it feels like a water balloon, then remove it to
cool. It's ready. The second your fingers or a knife touch the skin
it will probably split on contact. Tomatoes can be seeded and the juice
canned separately or you can use the whole tomato in your salsa and
skip that process. Up to you.
Mix all the ingredients for your salsa and simmer 1-3 hours.
While simmering, be sure to either run your jars and lids and seals
through an extra hot dishwasher cycle or boil them in another pot of
water so they are hot and sterilized when you are ready to use them.
Ladle salsa into the jars with about 1/2 inch head space at the top.
Wipe the edges completely clean with a clean cloth and place the lid on
it and then the ring. You don't have to tighten them hard - just a
quick twist to hold the seal/lid on during the process. Simmer them in a water bath for 25 minutes for pints, 35 for quarts. (Originally
this old time recipe did not call for a water bath. The heat from the
salsa and the jar will seal the lid. However, I always water bath can them.)
Remove from the water, set on a towel on the counter and let them cool
at room temperature. You will hear popping noises. That is the lids
sealing. When completely cooled, store in your pantry or cupboard.
