BANANA PEPPERS STUFFED WITH VIENNA SAUSAGES (OR HOT DOGS)

Steps:

• Mix tomato juice, vinegar, sugar, ketchup and garlic.
• Cook 30 Minutes.
• Cut stem end off of banana peppers and remove seeds (use rubber gloves if making hot peppers).
• Stuff 1 Vienna sausage (or hot dog) into each pepper.
• Pack peppers tightly into pint or quart jars.
• Bring sauce to boiling.
• Pour over peppers.
• Wipe rims of jar with a clean cloth; place llids and screw on rings fingertip-tight.
• Set the jars on lids for 5 minutes and then set right-side up until lids pop.**.
• **This is an heirloom recipe that uses the inversion method, which is no longer recommended by the USDA/NCHFP (National Center for Home Food Preservation) because it can affect the ability of the lid to form a good, secure seal to the jar. Current guidelines recommend pressure canning items containing meat for optimum shelf-stable storage safety, but at the very least the jars should be processed in a boiling water bath and left to cool, upright and undisturbed, on a cloth-protected counter for 24 hours. Check for seal and if the jar hasn't sealed, either re-process the jars within the 24 hours or refrigerate and use first.