With the holidays rapidly upon us my thoughts are turning to homemade gifts from the garden. A few years ago I received a wonderful gift of paprika which my friend Annie had prepared with peppers purchased from one of our local farmers. So this year I checked out the best peppers at the market.  Last week a farmer brought me a huge crate full of bright red peppers. I was told that this particular type of pepper would be sweet with a tiny bite to it. Perfect for adding to winter soups, stews and to use as a topping for spreads such as hummus. Homemade paprika makes a great gift for your "foodie" friends. One important thing to think about if you plan to make this recipe for gifts, is that the dried and powdered yield is quite a bit different from the whole fresh peppers you start with. I spent $24.00 on the crate of fresh peppers and ended up with 18 ounces of dried paprika; truley a special gift!

How to Make Dried Paprika

Put on your plastic gloves before cutting the peppers. Wash the peppers, cut in half and remove the seeds and ribs. Place pieces of pepper on the drying racks of your dehydrater and dehydrate over night or until each piece is completely dry.

Remove pepper pieces from the dehydrator and fill the Cuisinart halfway. Powder the peppers to the size you want them. Some people like their paprika a bit more chunky; I prefer it to be as powdered as possible. If you are left with some very powdered and some chunkier, seperate the two and use for different dishes. Pour the finished paprika into glass jars, label and enjoy.