The Mountain Laurel Magazine published monthly in Highlands, Clayton and Asheville, NC will be featuring a regular column "Thea's 'Organic' Kitchen' starting in January of 2006. You can find a PDF link to that page of the Mountain Laurel by clicking below. • December Issue (featured article) • January Issue • February Issue • March Issue • April Issue • May Issue • June Issue • July Issue • August Issue • September Issue

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HIGHLANDS' CHILI COOKOFF
Sponsored by the Highlands Chamber of Commerce and The Mountain Laurel Magazine
Thea's Kitchen featured Chocolate Chili, Pear Salsa & Mama Thea's Down Home Corn bread.

The ballots are in and the winner is… Thea’s Organic Kitchen! Winner of “Best Fruit Salsa” in Highlands 2006 Chili Cook Off. For those of you who are salsa connoisseurs, I thought you might appreciate having this award-winning Pear Salsa recipe developed from years of living in the American Southwest. It is fresh table salsa, also known as “salsa fresca” or “salsa cruda.” Like its name, it is made from fresh, raw rather than cooked, ingredients. Presenting a table salsa is a ritualized habit Southwestern dining. It is eaten with tortilla chips before a meal, added to foods that need extra flavor like frijoles, or used as a condiment for grilled meats. Salsa Cruda also has great health-giving benefits some of which are vitamin C from limes, tomatoes and jalapeños, which have five times the vitamin C of an orange; parsley, which is good for the urinary tract; cilantro, which helps the body eliminate toxic heavy metals; garlic, which protects the immune system; and olive oil, which is beneficial for healthy skin. I stay healthy all winter long eating this wonderful fresh salsa. You can also make it plain by eliminating the pear, cinnamon, and sugar.

Award Winning Pear Salsa

8 Roma tomatoes, with pulp and seeds removed
2 large, firm ripe tomatoes
1 fresh firm pear (Red Bartlett)
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
2 jalapeños
1/2 Vidalia sweet onion
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon lime juice
large handful each of parsley and cilantro, cleaned and free of stems
1/4 teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
dash cayenne
dash cinnamon
salt to taste

Process garlic, parsley and cilantro greens, onion and jalapeño in food processor until finely chopped (a few seconds). Scrape into bowl with rubber spatula. Process Romas with olive oil, lime juice, sugar and chili powder with brief pulses until you reach a well-textured puree. Add to bowl. Chop ripe tomatoes and pear into small bite-size pieces and add to bowl with remaining seasonings. Toss lightly, let stand for one hour and serve.

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© 2006 Cynthia L. Stacey, aka: Thea