Accidental Mango Salsa

Those of you who enjoy cooking probably have this happen to you - you create something wonderful by accident. In my mind there are two kinds of cooks - the scientist who follows recipes to a T; and there's the artist who finds whatever is in the fridge. I was a scientist when I had disposable income which allowed me to buy gourmet ingredients however obscure and costly, and even if I only used them once it was worthwhile for impressing my friends. Now I'm turning into a starving artist by default! I usually don't have a recipe in mind, I look at what is available and try to create something decent and healthy out of it - necessity is the mother of invention.

It was a warm May afternoon yesterday and I had been working in the yard all day, so slaving over a hot stove in our West-facing kitchen didn't seem very appealing. There was some turkey leftover that needed to be consumed quickly as we had been living off it for a week. We bought it at QFC around last Thanksgiving for 29 cents a pound. So there was cold turkey and burrito skins - a no brainer. And I was delighted to discover I had all the components for a fresh salsa (okay, I admit I don't have my own vine-ripe tomatoes); store-bought tomatoes, jalapeno, cilantro, lime, garlic and red onion Then I noticed the Manila Mango and the avocado I bought on sale also needed to be consumed before they became too ripe. I have used mango before but I think the secret is to use the right kind of mango. I don't know about you who live in other parts of the country or of the globe, but in Washington buying mango is a crap shoot. Once I bought a whole box at Costco (by the way, I quit Costco six months ago and I haven't suffered withdrawal); most of them were not edible. This is the big green and red Mexican variety. This mango I used is the smaller, oblong golden Manila mango which I bought at Central Market in Poulsbo, 3 for $5. And the avocado which I only splurge when it is a dollar each at the QFC.

Accidental Mango Salsa

Serves 2 (2 burritos each and some extra for chips)

2 ripe tomatoes, cored and seeded

jalapeno, cored and seeded (I used a whole one because it was also going soft!)

3/4 cup loosely packed cilantro

2 cloves of garlic

1 Tablespoon of red onion or green onion

1 Tablespoon of lime juice

1 ripe Manila Mango

1 Teaspoon of olive oil

1 Teaspoon fresh oregano (optional)

Salt and fresh-ground black pepper

Chopped everything up, add lime juice, salt, pepper and olive oil, let it sit in room temperature for 10-15 minutes. Viola. Add the usual suspects to your pan-warmed burritos, such as sour cream, shredded cheese, lettuce, crumbled corn chips (this really adds a nice texture to the burrito), and a dash of hot sauce (Cholula Original is our new favorite) if you like it hot and spicy like we do.