A nice harvest for a drought. It's time to make Cooked Salsa

                                      Cooked Salsa-finally!
It's been a tough year for gardeners, not to mention farmers. The government declared 90% of Illinois corn crops were lost. We use a well for our water, so we have to be very conservative, only watering the garden once a week. But my husband harvested a nice batch today. If you want to make this hotter, add 2 cayenne, if you want it very hot, add a habenero.

It looks like I can finally make some salsa. The main reason I garden! I love both the cooked and un-cooked versions.( Pauls perfect salsa cruda)

                                                An Okra flower.

Ingredients:
1tsp. oil
 1cup diced tomatoes (I prefer romas but any tomato will work)
1 bell pepper-diced
2 jalapenos- minced
1 small onion diced
1tsp. minced garlic
1tsp. white vinegar
1/4tsp. salt
1/4tsp.sugar
1/2tsp. chopped cilantro (dried is fine too)

Preparation:
I prefer to puree the sauce after cooking, but you can puree first, if you like.
Heat the oil in a sauce pan.
Add all other ingredients and cook until most of the moisture has evaporated.
Puree in a blender, I like to leave it a little chunky, for texture.
Allow to cool. I think this tastes best at room temp. Use as a serving sauce or serve with tortilla chips. This makes 2/3cup.