Apple Smoked Habanero Pepper Powder

I just finished this year's first batch of applewood smoked habanero powder.   I put out 18 habanero plants and they are really starting to produce and should continue doing so until about November.  I use this powder for all sorts of recipes.  I make salsa out of it, a killer smoked habanero and peach hot sauce, and one of my favorite things to do with it is to sprinkle a little bit in a bowl of chili, you can just smell the smoke come off the bowl and it is wonderful.

So far I have harvested right at 3 pounds of ripe peppers.  Here I am rinsing some of them off before they go onto the smoker.  I also remove the stems at this point.



I loaded up my Traeger with apple pellets...



Then put on the peppers...



 I ended up smoking them for 11 hrs over apple, I thought it was 18 hrs last year but it must have been only 12.  After they smoked they are about the consistency of raisins so I put them in the dehydrator for 2 days which dries them completely. 



I  then crush them up and put into the spice grinder and mill into a powder.  I wore a mask and nitrile gloves while doing the grinding.  Last year I didn't wear gloves and used my bare hands to crush them up to put into the spice grinder and my hands ended up burning and going numb for 2 days, got smart this year and wore gloves.  I didn't take any pics of the grinding process because I was alone and had no one to take pics for me and I didn't want to take off the gloves and mask once I got started but I just grind them in one of the little coffee/spice grinders that have the blades inside.  3 pounds of fresh ripe peppers yielded 5 1/2 ounces of finished powder.

Is that the main habeñero influence in your salsa Andy?, or just something you keep around and use as an everyday spice?