"Fancy" Homemade Canned Salsa

Holy cow.  A lot has happened to this little blog in the last 24 hours.  Not only did it get a facelift, but it entered the big leagues of food blogs--it has its own website now!  I feel particularly smart and computer savvy after making these changes.  Now let's hope the food lives up to the website's standard.

This "fancy" homemade canned salsa's simplicity is a stark contrast to the precise technical moves I had to make with the website inception.  This salsa is like fools gold--looks (and tastes) fancy, but is extraordinarily simple and quick.  It is absolutely delicious and packs a punch of chipotle heat.  The best part about it is that you are more than likely to have all the ingredients already on-hand in your pantry and fridge--canned tomatoes, canned jalapenos, onion, garlic, cilantro, chipotle peppers in adobo, chili powder, cumin, lime juice, cayenne, paprika, sugar, salt, and pepper.  Of course you can be fancy and only use fresh ingredients, but this is great out of the can.  Additionally, it is extremely versatile--you can kick it up a notch (bam!) or simmer it down depending on the chipotle peppers, jalapenos, and cayenne.  In addition to being able to tailor the flavor and spice to my palette, I love this salsa because of its thicker consistency.  I hate watery salsa, which is so often the case.  This salsa is thick like a sauce--and actually stays on your chip!!  I have permanently sworn off store bought salsa as a result.

Your friends are bound to be impressed and you can tell a little white lie and claim you slaved away in the kitchen for hours on end.  They don't need to know your trick!

"FANCY!"

"Fancy" Homemade Canned Salsa:

• 2 cans of no salt added diced canned tomatoes,  drained
• half of a medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 heaping tablespoon of canned diced jalapenos (adjust more or less depending on heat preference)
• 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo, diced
• 2ish tablespoons each of chili powder and cumin
• a dash or two of cayenne (again, depends on heat preference)
• a teaspoon or so of paprika
• a squeeze of lime juice
• 3 or 4 tablespoons of cilantro
• a few dashes of salt and pepper (be careful not to over-salt because there will certainly be salt on your chips)
• a very light sprinkling of sugar
• optional: about 2 tablespoons of cornstarch mixed with just enough water to make a liquid

1. Add the tomatoes, onion, jalapenos, garlic, and chipotle peppers to a food processor.  Pulse on high to combine.
2. Add all of the spices, lime juice, and cilantro.  Pulse again.
3. Taste.
4. Add sugar, salt, and pepper as needed.  Pulse one more time.
5. Taste and adjust all the spices to meet your preference.
6. If using, add the cornstarch mixed with water to thicken your salsa even more.
7. Garnish with more cilantro and/or onions and serve in a very pretty bowl.
8. Let your friends gush over how amazing your salsa is!