SPICY TRIPLE PEPPER SALSA

IF YOU’RE A FAN OF SUPER FIERY FOOD, LEAVE THE SEEDS IN THE SMALLEST AND HOTTEST OF THE THREE CHILES IN THIS SALSA—THE HABANERO, THAI, OR SCOTCH BONNET PEPPERS. IF NOT, SCRAPE THEM OUT OF THE PEPPERS WITH THE TIP OF A SHARP KNIFE.

PREP: 2 HOURS COOK: 2 HOURS 15 MINUTES ROAST: 40 MINUTES AT 450°F PROCESS: 15 MINUTES MAKES: 7 PINTS PHOTO

14 pounds ripe red tomatoes
8 medium fresh poblano or Anaheim chile peppers
6 medium fresh banana peppers
6 bulbs garlic
4 teaspoons olive oil
2 cups finely chopped onions (2 large)
1⅓ cups bottled lime juice or cider vinegar
2 fresh habanero, Thai, or Scotch bonnet chile peppers, stemmed, seeded if desired, and finely chopped (see tip)
4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin

1. Cut tomatoes into quarters; remove and discard the seeds. Working in batches, add quartered tomatoes to a food processor or blender; cover and pulse with several on-off turns until tomatoes are finely chopped.

2. Transfer chopped tomatoes to an 8- to 10-quart stainless-steel, enamel, or nonstick heavy pot. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Boil gently, uncovered, about 2 hours or until reduced to 12 cups, stirring occasionally.

3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 450°F. Quarter the poblano and banana peppers; remove and discard stems and seeds (see tip). Place pepper quarters, skin sides up, on two foil-lined large baking sheets. Cut off the top½ inch of each garlic bulb to expose ends of individual cloves. Leaving each garlic bulb whole, remove any loose, papery outer layers. Place each garlic bulb, cut side up, on a square of double-thickness foil. Drizzle olive oil over garlic bulbs. Bring edges of foil up and around each bulb and fold edges together to loosely enclose. Place garlic packets directly on oven rack.

4. Roast peppers alongside garlic, one pan at a time, for 20 to 25 minutes or until pepper skins are charred and garlic cloves feel soft when carefully pressed. Transfer garlic packets to a wire rack to cool. Immediately bring edges of foil up around pepper quarters and fold edges together to enclose; let cool. Squeeze out garlic cloves into the food processor. Cover and process until nearly smooth; set aside. When pepper quarters are cool enough to handle, use a sharp knife to loosen edges of skins; gently pull off skins in strips and discard. Chop peppers.

5. Add chopped peppers, garlic, onions, lime juice, habanero peppers, salt, coriander, and cumin to the tomatoes. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, about 15 minutes or until reduced to 15 cups.

6. Ladle hot salsa into hot sterilized pint canning jars, leaving a ½-inch headspace. (Store any remaining salsa in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 1 week.) Wipe jar rims; adjust lids and screw bands.

7. Process filled jars in a boiling-water canner for 15 minutes (start timing when water returns to boiling). Remove jars from canner; cool on wire racks.

PER 3 TABLESPOONS: 36 cal., 1 g fat (0 g sat. fat), 0 mg chol., 163 mg sodium, 7 g carb., 2 g fiber, 1 g pro.