Raspberry Chipotle Salsa

We had a salsa tasting this week at the Mill City Farmer's Market. I brought recipe cards, but they disappeared quickly, so I said that I would post the recipe here so that anyone who wasn't able to get one could print it. A few quick things about the recipe. I like to use zucchini in salsa, because it has a flavor and texture that is very similar to avocado, with substantially fewer food miles. Feel free to adjust amounts of ingredients to your liking, such as adding more peppers if you like it spicier. This recipe usually turns out medium to spicy. I hope that your family enjoys this recipe and we will see you at the market!

Raspberry Chipotle Salsa

Ingredients:
2 medium sized tomatoes diced small
1 small zucchini peeled and diced small
1 small red onion chopped small
3 chipotle jalapeño peppers chopped (see note on roasting)
¼ cup Raspberry Pepper Jam
2 TBS cumin
1/2 Tsp salt
3 TBS lime juice
www.LUCILLESKITCHENGARDEN.com ¼ cup finely chopped Cilantro

Preparation:
· Whisk together pepper jam, cumin, salt and lime juice
· Combine the rest of ingredients and pour whisked mixture over the top, stir all ingredients together gently, careful not to crush the tomatoes
· Serve with chips, over fried cornbread cakes or fried polenta

~~Chipotle peppers are simply fire roasted peppers. For the best flavor I recommend roasting them on your grill. In a pinch you can roast them on a sheet pan in the oven at 450 degrees. For either method you want to roast them long enough to cause even blistering and slight charring on the entire jalapeño. When this has happened (only a few minutes over direct flame and 10 to 12 minutes in the oven) sweat the peppers in a plastic bag until cool to the touch. Remove the stem and the skin, which should slide off quite easily and use immediately or they should be good in the refrigerator for about a week. I keep a little of the browned skin to add to my salsa, as it carries most of the smoky flavor. The seeds and veins inside of the pepper hold the heat, so if you wish for a milder salsa, you can remove some or all of these, however you do lose flavor by doing so. ALWAYS USE RUBBER GLOVES WHEN TOUCHING JALAPENOS!