Pepper Man in kitchen!

Why is it that even though men are, oddly, the most renowned  chefs, few show up in any useful way in the kitchen? Pinching ass and tasting soup, while marginally entertaining, don't count. However, I am pleased to report that my retired man is a chef in his fiery

soul, and here he is on a rainy Monday, mid-way into a four-hour labor of love, cooking salsa to can and perfecting serrano sauce to freeze. It is a beautiful thing. Two recipes going at the same time! Could he have imagined having so much fun in retirement?
Both recipes are heavily dependent on fresh peppers, the cultivation of which is his passion and the processing of which has become his obsession. Not that he's complaining.
To the left, a pic of serrano peppers hanging to dry in the solarium. Most often you'll see green serranos in produce aisles, but ohmigod red ripe serranos are so much better. The salsa ingredients are the typical tomatoes, onions, mild green peppers and jalapenos, which are still holding on our back porch. The canned salsa is thick and provides a great taste of garden throughout the winter. But the serrano sauce—the clearest red and most fiery best—is my favorite pepper sauce by far. Here are a couple pepper-lover recipes.

Serrano Sauce Supremo
1 to 1.25 pounds fresh red serranos
2.5 cups rice vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon salt
 Remove seeds from the peppers, cut in half and dump into a stainless steel pot with the vinegar. Bring to a boil. Turn off heat and add sugar and salt. Steep for 10 minutes, then puree in a blender or food process. Taste and adjust for sweet and salt. Spoon into small glass freezing containers such as artichoke heart jars. This doesn't make nearly enough for the winter, so double or triple if you can get enough red serranos together.

Tangy Tomato Salsa
Makes 16-18 pints (recipe may be halved)
7 quarts coarsely chopped paste-type tomatoes (trim the ends and squeeze out some of the juice and seeds. Chop coarsely in a food processor. You can go the extra step to remove the skins, if you prefer.)
4 cups seeded, chopped long green mild chilies such as Anaheim
5 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped seeded jalapenos
3 tablespoons oregano leaves
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
2 cups bottled lemon juice
6 cloves minced garlic
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon black pepper
2 tablespoons ground cumin
Combine all ingredients except the herbs and spice in a large pot and bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add the herbs and simmer for another 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Ladle hot salsa into pint jars and apply canning lids. Be sure to leave about 1/2 inch headspace. Process in a boiling water canner according to altitude: 15 minutes at 0-1000 feet; 20 minutes at 1001 - 6,000 feet; 25 minutes above 6,000 feet.