Homemade Salsa

Everyone has their own tastes and interpretations when it comes to salsa.  I was given a salsa recipe from a friend.   It contained quite a bit of sugar.  We don't use much sugar so I went on with the task of lowering the sugar. It also contained a thickener that dulled the color of our salsa.  I removed it so our salsa is more like fresh salsa, but canned. 

Taste your salsa before you can it.  If you wouldn't eat it fresh, you won't like it canned. 

Homemade Salsa

20 cups chopped peeled and seeded tomatoes*
1 to 1-1/2 cups minced onions (onions can be strong so ease in slow)
1-1/2 cups minced green peppers
7 banana peppers, minced
5-6 jalapenos (if they are hot, use less --if you can't tell start off with fewer, you can always add more), minced
2 Tablespoons sugar
2-1/2 Tablespoons chili powder
5-6 dashes of red cayenne pepper
1-1/2 cups vinegar
2 Tablespoons salt

Pizza Casserole

After I made this, my husband said it reminded him of a pasta dish a popular pizza place makes.  I hadn't thought of it but now that he had mentioned it, yes it does.  It was never one I ordered since the veggies were always still crunchy.  We like soft veggies.  If you like the add ins be sure to cook them first unless you like them crunchy. They also used assorted pasta. Mix and match as you like!

Pizza Casserole

8 ounce box of pasta (I used gluten-free elbow macaroni)
2 - 14 ounce jars pizza sauce (or 3 cups of homemade)
1 pound cooked ground beef
1/2  of a 7 ounce package pepperoni slices (use 2/3 cut in half for in the casserole and 1/3 cut into quarters on top)
2 cups shredded mozzarella (or Italian Blend Cheese)

Other options for stir ins:
mushrooms
green peppers
onions
sausage

Cook and drain pasta.  Mix together all of the ingredients except for the cheese and 1/3 of the pepperoni slices.

 Dump into 9 x 13 pan (you can grease if you want - I never seem to remember to.) If you want to freeze it, slide it into a bag, when ready to use, thaw, dump in dish and bake.

Sprinkle on mozzarella.  I made two dishes, one with and one without mushrooms.

Top with pepperoni slices.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until heated through and the pepperoni is nice and crispy on top.

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party #59

Welcome to Foodie Friends Friday LABOR DAY Party!!

Last week's recipes that received the MOST CLICKS.  

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An InLinkz Link-up

Thank you to everyone for making last week's Foodie Friends Friday Fruit Party a huge success. Did you see all the recipes that caught OUR attention last week? Check out the Host Favorites on the Daily Dish for links to all the recipes.

An InLinkz Link-up