Mango, avocado, & tomato salsa

A vacation in your mouth

It's no secret I enjoy supporting my local eateries — but I also love playing with food in my own kitchen. I tend toward baking more than cooking (I like to lick the bowl). But this isn't Eutopia and you can't serve brownies for dinner, so the other night I made a healthy and killer salsa.

 



 




























I can call it "killer" and it's not hotdogging, really, because anyone can chop up all these yummies and toss them together. So get out your knives and get choppin'! I based my salsa off a recipe from allrecipes.com, but switched up the proportions to have fewer tomatoes and enough for 4 hungry folks, with leftovers. 

- - - - - - -

MANGO, AVOCADO, & TOMATO SALSA

WHAT YOU'LL NEED: 
2 avocados 
2 mangoes
3 medium tomatoes
2 jalapeno peppers
1 small red onion (use 1/2 or more, to taste)
3 cloves of minced garlic (or more, to taste)
1 1/2 tsp salt (up to 2 tsp, to taste)
1–2 limes, juiced (depending how juicy they are!)
3 TBS olive oil
chopped cilantro (to taste)

WHAT YOU'LL DO: 
Chop up the choppables, and toss them all together with the garlic, salt, lime juice, and olive oil. Change the proportions as you wish.

- - - - - - - 

I thought the salsa would need some spices, but it truly didn't. It's so fresh and the consistency is so pleasant, you can practically forget the chips. In fact, my family did forget the chips and instead served it with coconut shrimp (the frozen kind) and rice cooked in coconut milk. It's like eating the tropics! Go ahead — take your mouth on a little vacation.

"Let us put aside our panic for this one minute...

And celebrate!" _Glinda, Wicked

Last Friday, some of my old college crew got together to celebrate one of our own having graduated from an intense nine-month Pilates program. This wasn't any pansy Pilates mat class certificate, though the dancer in me does love a good mat class. I'm talking 950+ hours of observation and teaching. I'm talking mastery over those machines reminiscent of torture devices. I'm talking the ability to heal clients' aches and pains through proper movement, helping them choose Pilates over knee surgery.

Armed with these skills, a brain full of knowledge, and a rockin' Pilates bod, there's no doubt in my mind that Kaitlyn is going to change lives — and that's something worth celebrating. And celebrate we did: with wine, canned margaritas (never again!), whiskey, too many dips, and a fruit tart — the "healthy" alternative to cake.

In the midst of the ever-flowing drinks and general buzz in the air, our friend Christina lamented the fact that her 27th birthday is practically upon her. "I'm almost 30," she cringed. This coming from a girl who, just a few short years ago, celebrated with a "birthday month." What is our world coming to when 30 is cringe-worthy? 

To my friends that read this: Let's not get hung up on numbers. If we can't handle 30, imagine how 40 and 50 is going to feel. At the risk of cornballing, life's too short not to jump at any and all excuses to celebrate. I for one am celebrating each and every one of you: your graduations, your 27th birthdays, your new adventures & next stages in life, your doctorate degrees, your adoring husbands, and your self-assured & sexy selves. Here's to you!

Mad for musicals

Good mornin'!

Among other things, I'm a freak about movie musicals from the Golden Age of Hollywood. J'adore them. And in my humble opinion, the likes of Gene, Judy, Fred, and Bing just don't get enough exposure or appreciation these days. I worry for the future youth of America!

Thankfully my favorite bloggers, Tom and Lorenzo (who I was lucky enough to meet a couple months back at a book signing) spearheaded Musical Monday, in which they hilariously rip apart these classic films — all out of love, of course. 

Inspired by their way of spreading movie musical appreciation, I'm instating "Mad for musicals" Monday. For the first installment: "Good mornin'" from Singin' in the Rain.



Fun fact: Poor Debbie Reynolds had to be carried to her dressing room after filming this dance number because blood vessels had burst in her aching feet. But bless her, she sure grins through the pain.

Rocket Baby 2.0

The chocolate almond croissant

'Tis season of out-of-town visitors and inevitable over-eating; I wouldn't want it any other way. This weekend, Rocket Baby was on the menu, and the out-of-towners were seriously smitten. And this trip — finally! — the Wauwatosa bakery was not sold out of chocolate almond croissants. Hot diggity dog! That was one tasty pastry. A picture is worth a thousand drools.