HABAÑERO DREAMS

Go spicy or go home. That's my motto.

I was inspired by both @professorbromide and his spicy christmas salsa and @backrdadventures, and his [jalapeño seasoning] when I decided to make and can a batch of hot sauce of my very own.

At our local Farmers' Market, I picked up a variety of fresh and local hot chiles, including chocolate habañero, jalapeños, cayenne, and serrano chiles.

I added bell peppers, garlic, and tomatoes to balance out the spicy peppers. I also used white vinegar, salt, and water. That's it!

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To make the hot sauce, I first roughly chopped the peppers, garlic, and tomatoes and charred them up a bit in a big cast iron pan with no oil. (Make sure you wear gloves while handling the peppers!!)

• Then I added 1-2 cups vinegar, 2 t salt, and water to cover the veggies.
• I brought everything to a boil and allowed the pot to simmer for about 10 minutes until all of the veggies were soft.
• I blended the whole batch in the blender and transferred it back to the pan, allowing the silky smooth hot sauce to simmer for about 15 more minutes until it was at our preferred hot sauce consistency.

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Then, to can the hot sauce, I filled sterilized mason jars to just shy of the rim and processed for 12 minutes in boiling water.

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Now we've got loads of delicious (and very spicy) hot sauce to last us all through the winter (and probably then some!)

What about you? Do you like hot sauce? Or do you take after my grandmother, who finds even black pepper extremely hazardous?

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All content and images by @jaymorebeet, taken on October 23, 2017 with a Canon 7D Mark II.