Nectarine Salsa – Stone Cold Delicious

I’ve always loved the marvelous contrast between a hot, smoky piece of meat, and a cold, fruity salsa; and this version featuring nectarines did not disappoint. In fact, the only thing that pairs better with this fresh fruit salsa is a basket of crispy tortilla chips.

This salsa will work with any stone fruit, but nectarines are my favorite. They’re usually sweet, even when still a bit firm, which I prefer texturally over a perfectly ripe price of fruit. Having said that, if you do have a few peaches to use up this summer, this is something to keep in mind.

As I said in my closing arguments at the end of the video, if you think fruit salsa is just too weird, then you need to be reminded that tomato, a fruit, is the most popular salsa ingredient of all time. I rest my case…again. Hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 2 cups Nectarine Salsa:

*Note: everything here is “to taste,” so adjust accordingly.

1 cup finely diced nectarine

1/3 cup finely diced onions

1/2 cup finely diced red bell pepper

2 tbsp finely diced jalapeno pepper

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

2 tsp olive oil

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste

pinch cayenne

pinch freshly ground black pepper

Quick Pickled Pepper Onion Relish – Not Just for Mini Philly Cheesesteaks Anymore

As promised, here is the pepper and onion relish you saw me accessorize my bite-sized cheesesteaks a few videos ago. The whole trick here is to find peppadew peppers, which have a very vibrant, sweet-hot-tangy flavor, and quickly and easily turn a pan of sautéed onions and jalapeños into a world-class condiment.

Pretty much any large grocery store that has one of those self-serve salad/olive bars will have these peppers. Just be sure to ladle in some of the flavorful pickling liquid, as that’s what really brings this all together. You'll also sometimes see them in jars on the shelf, as well as online.

You can certainly use any jarred, pickled pepper, but this works best with something that’s on the sweet and spicy side. No matter what pepper you use, you can always adjust with salt, sugar, and/or vinegar. Like I said in the clip, even if you don’t do the mini Philly cheesesteaks, I still hope you give this versatile relish a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 1 cup of relish:

2/3 cup finely diced onion

1/2 cup diced jalapeño

1/2 cup diced Peppadew peppers, or other sweet-hot pickled pepper

1/4 to 1/3 cup of the reserved Peppadew liquid, or as needed