I love Mexican food. When I was growing up, there was a fabulous little hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant that served the most delicious (and spicy) green salsa. It was on the table like salt and pepper, and you could add it to whatever you ordered. I remember my dad taking us girls there the first time, and he suggested I try some of this sauce as he knew I but hot sauce on everything. But, he forgot to warn me exactly how hot it really was. Boy, did he get a good laugh as I was downing my drink. The thought of that spicy sauce has stuck with me through the years, and when I came across the recipe for Roasted Salsa Verde in The All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving, I knew I had to try and make some for myself.

Most years I’ve been unable to find tomatillos locally at the farmers’ market, and the grocery stores never seemed to carry any (I live in a fairly small town), so I decided to grow some myself for the first time. Of course, after I’d planted them, I found them in the grocery store (go figure!). I really only wanted enough to make this salsa and the Aztec Soup (also made and recipe is on my blog), so I don’t need to plant them (hopefully) in the future, as they really produced, and I hate to waste garden food.

I also grew the peppers for this recipe, but if you prefer other kinds of peppers, you can certainly replace them with your favorites. Just use the same amount as what’s called for in the recipe. The recipe also calls for fresh lime juice, but you can substitute bottled lime juice if you’d like. The recipe calls for pints, but I used smaller jars because it’s just me, and I can only eat so much salsa in one sitting. Remember, you can always go down jar size, not up.

Roasted Salsa Verde

4 pounds tomatillos, husks removed

2 medium-sized white onions, each cut into 8 wedges

2 jalapeno or serrano peppers

6 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 cup lime juice (about 6 limes)

1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Arrange tomatillos, stem side down, on a large rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Place onions, jalapeno peppers, and garlic on prepared baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until garlic is softened. Remove garlic from baking sheet. Bake onion mixture 15 more minutes or until onion is tender and tomatillos and peppers are slightly charred. Remove from oven and cool slightly. When peppers are cool enough to handle, remove stems and seeds.

Process roasted vegetables and garlic in batches in a food processor until smooth. Transfer to a 4-quart stainless steel or enameled saucepan. Stir in lime juice and remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer. Remove from heat.

Ladle hot salsa into a hot jar, leaving 1/2-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band and adjust until fingertip tight. Place jar in a boiling water canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.

Process jars for 20 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Turn off heat. Remove lid and let jars stand for 5 minutes. Remove jars and cool.

Yield: Makes about 3 pint jars

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