ROJA SAUCE
2 cups canned diced tomatoes- i like Pomi brand that comes in a box
1 cup tomato juice
6 roma romatoes
2 poblano peppers
1 large sweet onion (2 cups) quartered
1 head of garlic roasted
1-2 cups water
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 t thyme
kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cut the Roma tomatoes in half and placed on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper- Drizzle the cut side with olive oil and salt the tomatoes. Place them cut side down. Add the onion quarters drizzle and salt them . Don’t crowd them- give them some space so they will roast and not steam. Roast them in the oven with the tomatoes for an hour or until very soft and caramelized.
Char the poblano peppers under the broiler or over a gas flame until black. Put in a paper sack and close tight. After they have cooled remove them- peel off the charred skin. Cut them in half, remove the stem and seeds and set aside.
Meanwhile roast the garlic. Cut the tops off the garlic about 1/2 inch down to expose all the cloves. Put in a small baking dish and dribble with olive oil. Cover with foil and bake in the oven along with the other roasting veggies- for about 40 minutes till golden and soft, be careful not to burn. Cool before handling. Squeeze out the roasted cloves and mash.
Place all the ingredients (except the garlic)into a slow cooker or a heavy duty cast iron dutch oven. Cook on low in the slow cooker for a couple more hours. Check from time to time to see if more water is needed.
When the roja sauce is done let it cool a bit. Blend in the roasted garlic cloves. At this point i use an immersion blender to break down the chunks a bit- but not too smooth. Freezes well.