My older sister lives in Hatch New Mexico (The Chili Capital of the World). Hatch is a small town of 1500 but once a year the annual Chile Festival brings over 30,000 to their town.  The foods Network & BBC both cover this 2 day festival.

My recipes really do come from my older sister. Having lived in Hatch for years she has made a lot of salsa, her husband even puts green chilies on his eggs in the morning!

Types of Salsa available:

• The Green Salsa is the hottest

• The Fresh is a Medium

• The Mild is just that – very mild

• The Corn Salsa is from my oldest daughter. She has lived in New Mexico, New Orleans & Australia & has developed her own taste; she even makes her own chips for dipping!

CHILE FACTS – From the New Mexico Chile Institute:

1. One fresh medium sized green chile pod has as much Vitamin C as six oranges.

2. One teaspoon of dried red chile power has the daily requirements of Vitamin A.

3. Hot chile peppers burn calories by triggering a thermodynamic burn in the body which speeds up the metabolism.

4. Teas & lozenges are made with chile peppers for the treatment of a sore throat.

5. Capsaicinoids, the chemical that make chile peppers hot, are used in muscle patches for sore and aching muscles.

6. Chile peppers are relatives of tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplants, all belong to the nightshade family.

7. The color extracted from very red chile pepper pods, oleoresin, is used in everything from lipstick to processed meats.

8. There are 26 know species of chile pepper, five of which are domesticated.