Simple Summer Salsa Recipe

Bee grabbed some tomatoes at the farmer’s market last week, and sitting right next to them was a recipe card for fresh salsa.  Next thing I knew, I’d filled our basket with all the necessary ingredients and was feeling saintly because they were local and organic.

And then my son had croutons for breakfast, but that’s a story for another day.

Once we got home, I got chopping and just a few minutes later– fresh salsa!  The perfect way to capture summer.  I can’t believe I don’t make it more often.  Or… at all.  Until now.

It did take me a few minutes to experiment with the spice level since I really had no idea which peppers were hot and which required a fire extinguisher.

Note to self: the red ones require a fire extinguisher.

I adapted the farmstand recipe to my preferred spice level and adjusted a few other ingredients.  Almost as quickly as it was made, it was GONE.  Since I didn’t use too much spice both kids actually loved it.  Who’d have thunk it?

Not. I.

As always, tweak as needed according to your preferences.  After all, this salsa is like summer itself: fresh, simple, and carefree!

Get your chef knives ready, and let’s get choppin’.

Since the tomatoes came in a berry basket, I’m not sure exactly how much I used.  The basket fits a pint, whatever that may be in real life.  PS- I’m a genius at math, did you know that?

1.  Chop up those beautiful ‘maters and add them to a bowl.  You can discard the seeds if you wish, but I don’t because I’m super lazy carefree.  Finely chop half an onion and a clove of garlic, add all of it to the bowl.

2.  Chop up some cilantro, add to bowl.  (I used about 1/3 of a bunch for my version)

3.  Finely chop your favorite hot pepper(s).  I tasted about a sesame seed size of the red one (habanero) and had to wash my mouth out.  After that, I used about 1/4 of a jalepeno pepper (the green one) and it was much better.  My suggestion is to add it a little bit at a time, stir, and taste.  If it’s okay, add some more until it’s juuuust right for you.

4.  Add freshly ground pepper and kosher salt to taste.  A splash of lime juice is yummy, too.  Make sure it’s all mixed together, and dig in.

We ate ours with blue corn chips.  So perfect together!

It occurred to me that if I had some self control and didn’t devour the whole thing in one sitting, fresh salsa is just so good in many easy dishes:

• on tacos, both beef and fish
• sauteed with pasta and chicken with a little pasta water
• mixed with melted cheese or sour cream for a naughty dip
• mixed with avocado for a healthy(ier) dip
• as a burger topper
• in crockpot chicken
• with eggs, southwest style
• on toasted baguettes, bruschetta style

Looks like I’ll be making lots salsa until I run out of tomatoes or get sick of it, whichever comes first.

My guess is I’ll run out of tomatoes first.