** If you do not keep smoked peppers on hand, you can substitute a re-hydrated chipolte pepper, which is a smoked jalapeno that has been dried. Pour hot water in a glass, submerge the chipolte for 20-30 minutes or until the skin plumps and the pepper is pliable again. Make sure to cut the stem off the pepper before adding it to the blender. **
3-4tbspolive oilenough to coat the ingredients for roasting
kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and raise the baking rack to the top third of the oven.
Wash tomatoes and spread them out on on a baking sheet with the whole shallots and garlic. For the garlic, I often cut the top off a whole head rather than break out the individual cloves. You don't need the whole head, but roasted garlic is delicious. I use what I need for this recipe and find something tasty to do with the rest. :)
Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper over the tomatoes, shallots and garlic (if you are roasting the whole head, make sure you drizzle the olive oil in the top of the head so it gets inside).
Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and allow it to cook for 20-30 minutes, or until the tomatoes are tender and burst open.
Remove baking sheet from the oven and toss all of the ingredients into a blender or food processor, leaving any water that has cooked out of the tomatoes on the pan. Add the smoked jalapeno(s) and pulse until all of the ingredients are broken up but not pureed - the goal is a jammy texture. The heat from jalapenos will vary widely, so add one jalapeno to begin and then a second later to fit your tastes.
Taste and adjust peppers or salt and pepper to taste.
The amount of liquid remaining in the jam will depend on the type of tomatoes you used and how much water cooked out during roasting. If you have a nice jammy texture now, great! If it is still watery, pour it into a pot or pan on the stove, bring it to a simmer, then turn the temperature to medium low and let it reduce until you have a thick, chunky, jam.
Once the texture reaches that of a thick jam, it is ready to store. I usually store these in small 4 ounce canning jars. If you choose to do that, spoon the mixture into jars leaving plenty of head space, drizzle a little olive oil on top, screw the lids on and pop them into the freezer. Make sure you keep one in the fridge to use on toasted baguettes with goat cheese, use as a sandwich condiment (makes the best veggie sandwich ever!), toss in with sauteed vegetables that need a smoky kick, or pour over hummus for a tasty snack or special appetizer.