Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Tortilla Chips

I have to admit, this recipe is TEDIOUS. Usually I scoff at any recipe that takes more than a half an hour and has more than a handful of ingredients. Call me lazy, call me a busy working mom, or just call me practical, but that's the way I roll. At first glance, this recipe seems pretty easy, and I'm sure that's why I tried it in the first place. Just cut up some fruit, sprinkle on some seasonings, and serve!  Sounds pretty simple, but when you look a little closer, you'll notice that this calls for all the ingredients to be finely chopped. This is a salsa, so the chunks have to be small enough to balance a bunch of them on a thin little chip. About half way through the recipe I wanted to chuck it all in the blender and call it a smoothie! However, once I finished this and gave it a taste, it was all worth it.

This has the perfect balance of fruit, sweet, and spice. And the cinnamon chips? TO DIE FOR. You might as well make a double batch of those because you will find yourself wanting to dip them in everything. Actually, you might as well make a double batch of the salsa, too, because you're gonna have a half a cantaloupe and honeydew left over if you only make one batch. Be careful with the cayenne, though. I usually half the amount it calls for and it's still plenty spicy to me.

You can also feel free to substitute other fruits if you want, just make sure you dice them super fine. Here's a tip I figured out after making this a couple times: watch a really absorbing movie while you do all that dicing and you'll be done before you can say hand cramp!

Fruit Salsa

Prep time 30 min
Serves 16

1 cup finely chopped cantaloupe
1 cup finely chopped honeydew
1 cup finely chopped peeled mango
1/2 cup chopped cucumber
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet red pepper
1 green onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Chill until serving. Serve with cinnamon tortilla chips.

Cinnamon Tortilla Chips
Prep time: 10 min  Bake time: 10 min
Serves 16

16 small flour tortillas
1/2 cup melted butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbs cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350F.  Combine cinnamon and sugar in a shaker or a small bowl.  Brush one side of each tortilla with melted butter then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.  Cut into wedges or strips and spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Bake for 8-12 minutes or till golden brown.

178 calories per serving (salsa and chips.)  Click her for more nutritional info and shopping list!