Pico De Gallo Made with 4 Colors of Tomatoes

My mom was driving up today to help me with the kids while I am recovering from my surgery. Everyone says the recovery is easy–and it probably is, relatively speaking–but I doubt they have chasing toddlers in mind as a good recovery strategy. Anyway, I just wanted a simple, easy dinner since I knew I could not count on being able to eat the leftovers (plus I knew she was bringing me Beef And Noodles–Grandma’s recipe–and that is what I would want tomorrow night). Anyway, I settled on quesadillas.

My favorite quesadillas have pico ge gallo both inside and on top of them, so I started by making the pico de gallo. I had a few tomatoes from my Early Arctic Tomato plant (which is determinedly surviving despite vicious attacks by the local deer who basically live on the golf course), as well as more of those incredible local orange cherry tomatoes. I also had purchased an heirloom variety, “Peach Tomatoes”, which are mild, sweet and literally fuzzy like a peach. But I barely had enough tomatoes.

I should have known Mom would bring a basketful.

To what I already had I added bell-shaped Roma tomatoes from my mom’s garden and the most beautiful and delicious tangy striped green tomatoes (not underripe, but green when ripe). It made a gorgeous pico de gallo. For the quesadillas, which were eaten too fast to have any pictures snapped, I used a mixture of cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, some drained (i.e., scooped with a slotted spoon) pico de gallo, some local corn simmered briefly and black beans. Add some sour cream and it was a fabulous meal.

Laura’s Pico De Gallo (which works just fine with any tomatoes)

1 small white onion, finely chopped
1 handful of cilantro, leaves and tender stems, chopped
jalapenos to taste, minced (seeded if you want them milder)
pinch of salt, black pepper
sugar–depends on how flavorful the tomatoes are, for a summer dish probably only a pinch, for the winter perhaps as much as a teaspoon
rough chopped tomatoes–at least 5 cups worth, but this should be to your taste (If they are extremely large juicy, you might gently squeeze them to remove some of the juice to keep your salsa from being watery)
juice of 1-2 limes, to taste

Mix all ingredients and let sit for 20 minutes. I have given very rough amounts. When I make salsa, I keep a bag of chips by my work station and scoop the pico de gallo and taste it every so often. Although the pico de gallo will keep a few days, it is best the day it is made.