Beyond Chicken Salad

Somehow my husband’s golf buddies and their spouses have gotten the idea that I can’t, or won’t, cook, so when they planned their end of summer pot luck card party, I was invited to bring a dip and some chips. I did not know about the reputation that has preceded me, so I immediately thought about making my favorite spicy fruit salsa.

My daughter has a recipe for a multi-fruit salsa that is to die for. My own recipe for cranberry salsa is a favorite every Christmas (it is great on ham), and this mango salsa is refreshing with chips on a late summer afternoon in North Carolina. I am really looking forward to this card party to celebrate the last weekend of the summer. I will be sure to make note of what was on the menu and share with you, dear readers (wherever you are.) For now, here are our favorite family salsa recipes.

Jaymi’s Spicy Fruit Salsa:

• 5 kiwis, peeled and diced
• 1 pint of blackberries, coarsely chopped
• 4 medium tart apples, diced finely
• 2 tablespoons of strawberry jam
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• 2 diced Jalapeño peppers
• 1 tablespoon of hot sauce (not Tabasco!)
• 7 oz. can of green salsa
• 1/3 cup lime juice

Mix all ingredients together and serve with fresh tortilla chips or with ham, pork or chicken. You can refrigerate this salsa for up to a week. The next day, the salsa will be much spicier!

Lynn’s Christmas Cranberry Salsa:

• 2 8 oz. bags of fresh cranberries, chopped in the food processor
• 1 Navel orange chopped in the food processor, peel and all
• 1 small red onion
• 3 or 4 fresh Jalapeño peppers (use fewer if you like your salsa milder), chopped in the food processor
• 1 cup white sugar

Mix ingredients together and serve with fresh tortilla chips, or as a side dish with ham or poultry. This salsa can be frozen. The longer it sits, however, the hotter it gets. I like to use it the second day.

Family Tangy Mango Salsa:

• 1 ripe mango, peeled, pitted, and diced (about 1 1/2 cup)
• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 1 or 2 Jalapeño peppers, finely chopped
• 1 small cucumber, peeled and diced (we remove the seeds, because Mom is allergic to them)
• 1 diced red bell pepper
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1/2 cup sugar

Mix all ingredients together and serve with fresh tortilla chips, or as a side dish for fish or poultry. Remember, the longer it sits, the hotter it gets.

This is the one I am making for this afternoon’s card party.