Easy Summer Salsa

For many people, piles of produce are overwhelming. It's like you have these great ideas for healthy options in your mind when shopping, so you fill up your arms with so many tomatoes, summer squashes, peppers that when you get home you're like "Well now what??". And that same produce ends up in the trash or compost a week later. For shame.

To make a meal out of produce you have to think of what will make it interesting. Because realistically, you're just not going to eat only veg, straight up. When I do al fresco dinner platters, it's a pairing with cheese or olives that makes me happy. Sometimes it's roasting veggies and adding over greens with a really, really good dressing and quinoa confetti. And sometimes it's tortilla chips. Which is perfect if you have everything you need to make salsa at home. Like now. Olé! 

Making salsa at home takes a little time with all the finite chopping, but it's so worth it. After an entire day of munching on this compared to what I thought was pretty kick ass organic salsa from the store that I tried the next morning...no contest. I might as well have been eating ketchup packets before. The freshness and flavor combinations from jalapeño, onion, lime and then sweet summer tomatoes is one you just can't re-create any other season. So take advantage! Get a major dose of veggies to put on protein, chips or a taco salad. And because this has so many veggies, it has a lot of fiber which means you get full, faster. Pair that with the antioxidants from the tomatoes? You're pretty much on your way to an amazing meal.

Easy Summer Salsa

/// Ingredients ///

• 3 medium tomatoes, de-seeded and chopped (or a ton of cherry tomatoes!)
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 1 jalapeño, minced
• 1/2 medium red onion, minced
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 handful cilantro leaves, chopped
• salt
• pepper

/// Directions /// Chop all vegetables and tomatoes. For the tomatoes, you've got to 'gut them' or the salsa will be way too soggy. For me, that means cutting them into quarters and scooping out the seeds before chopping. As for that jalapeño? It's up to you to take out the seeds or leave them in depending on how hot you want it!  Mix everything together and let it set in the fridge for an hour if you can wait! Let the flavors meld together. 

Hope that helps to get you through the rest of the week! It's an easy summer something, perfect for sitting outside with friends.