Homemade Garden Salsa

I promised you guys yesterday that I had an amazing salsa recipe today and boy, do I! Let me start out by saying that I could make chips & salsa my entire meal.  When I go to a mexican restaurant, I really don’t need a meal, I’ll just have the chips & salsa and a sweet simple marg. And although I love some salty crunchy chips, I really could just eat this salsa on it’s own.  I put in on eggs and mix it into rice for a little south of the border flare for every meal.

Most homemade salsa’s I try are a little lack-luster and very very acidic. For this reason, I haven’t made homemade salsa in quite some time because it was honestly just never as good as store-bought.  But, this year we have an overabundance of tomatoes, so I need to do something with them and set out to create a better salsa. I’ve balanced this recipe out with one wonderful little addition that will have you singing the praises of the salsa gods. 

First things first, usually people buy the biggest tomatoes for salsa, but I highly suggest using cherry, grape, or roma tomatoes for your salsa.  The bigger a tomato gets, the less sweet it tends to be, so choosing small and naturally sweet varieties is the first step.  Since they’re going in a blender and don’t have to be peeled, go ahead and use a bunch of little ones!  You’ll thank me!

The second secret is that I add a small pinch of agave nectar to the salsa. The agave nectar isn’t supposed to sweeten the whole batch, but just act as a balance to the acid.  Think about how you add 1/8th teaspoon of salt to cookie recipes – the same is true for the opposite.

Fresh Tomato Salsa

• 4 cups halved cherry or grape tomatoes
• 1/4th yellow onion
• 1 small jalapeño, seeds removed
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 1/8 teaspoon agave nectar
• juice of 1 lime
• salt & pepper to taste

Put all of the above ingredients into a blender or food processor and pulse 3-4 times until combined and chunks are consistently sized.  Pour out into glass jars and keep in the fridge for 7-10 days.

I’m thinking about giving some jars as hostess gifts this fall!  If you’re into canning, you can properly can the salsa so that it is shelf stable and lasts much longer.  I’ll probably do this for the end of the season!

Enjoy the salsa with your favorite chips, or in anything you’d like.  I dare you not to eat it straight.