Sweet Pepper Relish

I was gifted a box of sweet peppers from a family friend. Can't let a gift like that go to waste so I made sweet pepper relish. This will be good in potato and macaroni salads.

I found the recipe by googling Ball Sweet Pepper Relish. I always use the word Ball or USDA in front of my canning recipe searches to make sure I am using a tested safe recipe. This is what I found and the recipe I used.

National Center for home canning

• 5 cups ground green bell peppers 
• 5 cups ground red bell peppers 
• 1-½ cups ground onion
• 2-½ cups cider or white distilled vinegar (5%)
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 teaspoons pickling salt
• 4 teaspoons mustard seed

I washed and cut the tops off of the Sweet Peppers. Because Mine was an assortment of colored peppers I didn't pay attention to color. I just cut the tops off and put them in my blender. I pulsed them until they were finely chopped and measured them out until I had a total of 10 cups. I did the same with the onion. I put them in a large pot and added the rest of the ingredients. Brought it to a boil for 30 mins. While it was boiling I prepared my jars and my water bath canner. Once the 30 minutes were up I filled my hot pint jars with the hot relish leaving a 1/2 inch head-space and debubbled. Put my lids and rings on and put them in the canner. Brought the canner back up to a boil and processed them for 15 min. 

If you want to try this I highly recommend it. Please click on the link and read the recipe and instructions provided. 

Here's the relish boiling away.

 And the finished product. I made 2 of this recipe and ended up 16 1/2 pints.

Authentic Mexican Chorizo

 If I can make it my self  for less then it cost to buy it, then I make it. It really doesn't take that much time. I find you have to budget your time like you budget your money. I have 1 day every month that I do my major cooking  and freezing and I do my baking about once a week.Chorizo (Mexican sausage) is a regular part of my monthly food preparation

First of all see the big thing of ground beef........see the yellow tag....those yellow tags are like Christmas for me, when I see the discount tag I stock up. So that is a $10.00, 5lb. chub of ground meat for $6.30. In this recipe I used only 4 lbs of ground meat and froze the rest for spaghetti later in the week. TIP: my family also likes to use this chorizo in our spaghetti, it's like spicy Italian sausage..well kinda.
 4 lbs. Ground beef, pork, turkey ,lamb (whatever you choose...but if your budgeting choose the beef or pork)
 2 tbs. salt
1 c. ground chili powder.
8 crushed hot dried chili's (or if you get crushed peppers when you order pizza, save those packets for your chorizo, use about 4 pkt.)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 medium onion finely diced
1/4 cup dried oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon  sugar
3/4 c. vinegar
 put the meat in a large bowl.
Add all the other ingredients and mix it by hand like you would meatloaf. (if you aren't used to working with chili, I suggest using rubber gloves or your hands will burn. My hands are used to it now so I just dig in.) After it is well mixed cover and put in the fridge for 24 hrs. separate into freezer bags and freeze. Remember freeze it in portions that are suitable for your family's needs. I get about 4 meals out of this recipe. When you cook it you can brown it up and add it to scrambled eggs, into your fried potatoes, or in other recipes. Feel free to adjust the spices to suit your tastes.

Pickled Jalapinos with yellow peppers

My Davina loves spicy food, the hotter the better. I planted a bunch of jalapenos in my garden this year so that I could can a bunch of pickled Jalapenos for her. She eats them with her sandwiches, soups pretty much any meal. But unfortunately with my pollination and poor soil issues this year I haven't had much of a crop yet. Saturday my sister went to Market on the Move and brought me a big bag of Jalapenos and I was thrilled. I had so hoped to be able to can some up for Davina. So today I went for my big shopping trip and yellow chilies were on sale for 3lbs for .99 WOOT! I bought 3 lbs and came home to can some chilies.

 Ingredients

30-40 large jalapinos
30-40 large yellow chilies
4 cups water
7 c. white vinegar
4 tsp. canning salt
2 tsp. ground cumin
6 cloves whole garlic, peeled

First of all wash 6 quart jars with hot soapy water and rinse well. boil them in a large pot for 10 min. to sterilize. remove them and place them on a clean towel. In a smaller pot place your canning lids in simmering water.

In a stainless steel pan mix the water, vinegar, salt and cumin and bring to a boil, once boiling lower to a simmer. Cut all of your chilies into rounds about the same size. Fill your jars, packing the chilies in and add a clove are garlic on top. Fill with the hot pickling liquid and use your canning tool or a chop stick to slide down the edge of your jars to release air bubbles. Wipe your jar rims clean and put on you lids. Hot water bath can for 15 mins.

What is canola oil and is it healthy?

Canola is a hybrid plant developed in Canada in the 1960's. Canola oil is made with Rapeseed. Rapeseed is a bright yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae, the same family as Mustard.  There are some studies that show that Rapeseed has cumulative effects causing:
tremors and shaking
Disturbed Cordination when walking
slurred speech
deterioration of memory and thinking processes
fuzzy or low audio levels
difficulty urinating/incontinence
breathing problems
Shortness of breath
nervous breakdown
numbness and tingling in extremities
heart problems/arrhythmia 
Rapeseeds are heat processed with the chemical solvent Hexane, this produces a grey lumpy substance that doesn't smell very good. This substance must then be degummed, neutralized, dried, bleached, deodorized and then additives are added. At this point it is deemed "safe for human consumption". At this point I personally feel it has been molested to the point I wouldn't even call it food. 
93% of canola oil in the United States is Genetically Engineered. That  is even a better reason why Canola oil won't be found in my house ever again.  
You can do searches and find sources that say Canola oil is healthy and sources that say is is poison. You can decide for yourself what is safe for your family to eat. I am going to stick with the rule.....If my Grandma couldn't get it, I don't want it in my cupboards.