By Cole's baby came early. Six weeks early. The call came Tuesday at four in the morning — Cole's voice steady in the way of people who are frightened and keeping it controlled. Emma was in labor, the baby was early, they were at the hospital in Livingston. I got there by five-thirty. Cole was in the waiting room. We sat together for three hours, not talking much. That's the right response to a waiting room at four in the morning. You sit with the person and you let the waiting be what it is.
Baby girl. Three pounds eleven ounces, breathing on her own, placed immediately in the NICU. Emma doing well, Cole shaking slightly when he came to tell me. He said the name they'd chosen: June. June Hartfield. I said it was a good name. He agreed. We sat for a while longer.
I went home and covered his accounts for the next two weeks without being asked, same as I'd planned. The accounts are fine. The horses are fine. Cole is at the hospital every morning when the NICU opens and leaves when they ask him to. June is gaining weight at the right rate according to the daily texts he sends me. She'll be home in two weeks. These things happen. Most of them end well. This one is ending well.
Made the canning and preserving push this week since the garden is ending — the last tomatoes, the last peppers, the dried chiles coming off the plants and into the barn. The pantry going into its winter configuration. Last year's chili chiles are gone now. This year's are drying. Everything in its sequence.
The chiles were coming off the plants anyway, and the last fresh peppers needed to go somewhere useful before the hard frost made the decision for me. This salsa isn’t a preservation recipe exactly — it’s more of a send-off, a way to use what’s still bright and fresh before everything shifts into dried and canned and put away. June is gaining weight and everything is in its sequence. This felt like the right thing to make at the end of that kind of week.
Mango Pineapple Salsa
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Total Time: 15 min | Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh mango, diced (about 2 medium mangoes)
- 1 cup fresh pineapple, diced
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
- 1/4 cup red onion, finely diced
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1 lime)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Dice the fruit. Peel and dice the mangoes and pineapple into roughly 1/2-inch pieces. Try to keep the cuts consistent so each bite has a good mix.
- Prep the vegetables. Finely dice the red bell pepper and red onion. Seed the jalapeño and mince it fine — leave some seeds in if you want more heat.
- Combine. Add the mango, pineapple, bell pepper, onion, jalapeño, and cilantro to a medium bowl. Toss to distribute evenly.
- Season. Add lime juice, salt, and black pepper. Stir gently and taste. Adjust salt or lime as needed.
- Rest before serving. Let the salsa sit for 10 minutes at room temperature before serving so the flavors come together. Serve with chips, over grilled chicken or fish, or alongside tacos.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 45 | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0g | Carbs: 11g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 150mg