Garden City Salsa

A couple years ago I was stranded 600 miles from nowhere in Garden City, Kansas. I did a three month rotation out there in general surgery.
Readers might remember that there is a huge packing industry in Garden City and that the population is mostly Mexican and Vietnamese. Some of the best Mexican food I have ever had was in Garden City. Certainly the best Vietnamese food I have ever had was in Garden City.

One of the highlights every week was when this lady who worked in the pre-op area would bring in her homemade salsa. You had to get there right when she opened it because it would get devoured within seconds.

Towards the end of my rotation she told me how she makes it. It is really easy!

Garden City Salsa

28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes
1 jalapeno, broiled under the broiler until it has black spots on it
1 1/2 t onion powder
1 clove garlic
about 1 T fresh cilantro leaves
1 t powdered sugar
juice of 1 lime
a few dashes of your favorite hot sauce to taste - I used Thai garlic chili sauce
salt to taste

Combine everything but the salt in a blender and blend until smooth. Taste the sauce. Add salt a little bit at a time until it tastes right.