My garden is overflowing right now. I could eat and eat. And I do.
I like to see what comes out of the garden and then decide what I will make for lunch or dinner.
Yesterday I picked lots of plum tomatoes and some beautiful green and jalapeno peppers (which I didn’t get a picture of).
That means salsa!
The recipe I made yesterday is an old favorite. I’ve made it ever since I started keeping a vegetable garden. It came from a quilting friend of my mom’s named Afton. And it is a gem.
Here’s how to make this delicious fresh from the garden salsa:
Chop up about a 1/2 of a medium onion.
Chop up your peppers. About a 1/2 of a large green pepper. I also added one jalapeno… seeded to cut down of the heat a little. I chop the jalapeno very fine.
And into the bowl they go.
Next come the Roma tomatoes. I like Romas for salsa since they aren’t as runny. About 4 large Roma tomatoes fit the bill.
I am sad to say this cilantro did not come from my garden. Every year I try to grow it and every year it dies in mid-summer. This bundle is store bought.
Give it a chop chop.
At least I can grow oregano. This herb is from my garden. Oregano is such a surprise for a salsa. But I love it in there.
I run my fingers down the stem to remove the leaves and chop up about 1/2 teaspoon of fresh. If you don’t have fresh use about 1/8 teaspoon of dried.
Fresh lime is a must. About 2 tablespoons.
Canned diced green chiles go in next. If I’ve roasted fresh… that’s what I’d use. But not today. I especially like the hot diced green chiles.
Here’s another twist. Add about 8 ounces of tomato sauce.
1 teaspoon of salt.
And a tablespoon of sugar. I ended up not putting in the whole tablespoon. I added half… and after stirring and tasting decided 1/2 a tablespoon was good for me.
Add 1 tablespoon vinegar. I used red wine vinegar.
And 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. I used mild light olive oil.
Mix it up and serve.
This is my oldest salsa recipe and one I keep coming back to. It’s a wonderful recipe with lots of flavor. This time of year it’s my favorite recipe since it uses my garden abundance.
Here’s the recipe: