Sunny Summer Salsas
By Sherri Brooks Vinton
Canning. It wasn’t long ago that the word brought up images of calico-covered kitchens and recipes as musty as the dust jackets that bound them. But as many are discovering, “Putting up” doesn’t have to mean flavors as antiquated as gelatin molds. The new wave of preserving books are full of dynamic, right-now tastes. And, for those of us dedicated to local agriculture, preserving the harvest is just a natural extension of seasonal eating— it lets you stop summer flavors in their tracks and support local growers even when fields are fallow. In this four-part series to be continued in upcoming issues of Edible Dallas and Fort Worth, I’ll bring you basic preserving techniques paired with recipes to get you started. First up, canning—also called the Boiling Water Method— and some sunny summer salsas. Put them up now and think outside of the chip bag—serve them alongside roasted meats or vegetables or a piece of sautéed fish, and they’ll bring a blast of brightness to those dark winter days.
RECIPES
SALSA (Stone Fruit Salsa and Cucurbit Salsa)
Sherri Brooks Vinton wants you to “preserve” local agriculture with your food choices. Her writing, talks and hands-on workshops teach fellow eaters how to find, cook and preserve local, seasonal, farm friendly food. She is currently touring with her latest book, Put ‘em Up! To find out more, visit her: www.sherribrooksvinton.com
Edible Dallas & Fort Worth is a quarterly local foods magazine that promotes the abundance of local foods in Dallas, Fort Worth and 34 North Texas counties. We celebrate the family farmers, wine makers, food artisans, chefs and other food-related businesses for their dedication to using the highest quality, fresh, seasonal foods and ingredients.
