Smoky Red Pear and Grilled Corn Salsa

USA Pears are back in season, and this unique late summer salsa is the perfect way to show them off! Adding a few pinches of cumin lends the salsa a gentle smokiness which balances the honey-sweetness of the pears. Serve this salsa with your favorite tortilla chips or use it to generously top grilled chicken or pork. Ingredients 2 ears of corn, shucked 1 tsp. neutral flavored oil, such as grapeseed ½ a medium sweet onion, small dice 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely minced 2 firm ripe red USA pears, such as Starkrimson or Red Bartlett 1 lime (for zest and juice) ¼ tsp. ground cumin ¼ tsp. sea salt 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro Directions Preheat your grill to medium. Drizzle the oil over the corn and rub to coat with the oil. Once the grill is hot, cook Continue reading

Pear Salsa

The sun is shining! Portlanders are rejoicing—we’re feeling Spring in our step, an extra twinkle in our eye as we wake up after the sun and leave work while it’s still in the sky. But that’s today. It could change tomorrow. And back before this long-lost friend came out from the clouds, back when it was still gray and drizzly, I threw together this pear salsa from Mark Bittman to spice up my meals. It was delicious with tortilla chips and with shredded chicken. It’s incredibly versatile, in fact; I’m sure it would be delicious with other fruit (maybe added halved grapes or diced mango) or used in other savory dishes (atop fajitas or avocado halves). I also loved that it called for unripe pears, because a). they were much easier to uniformly dice for photography purposes, and b). I Continue reading