Stitch's All Purpose Paleo Mango Salsa

I love fruit, especially when I'm trying to come down off of eating too many sweets (ahem... the Halloween Call of Cthulu and Hocus Pocus viewing party I attended with amazing pumpkin crumb cake, pumpkin juice, and candy... WOOPS). Idealy, if you're eating Paleo, you don't want to go overboard with the sweets, but if I'm feeling really sugar addicted, I'll have 3 or 4 servings for a few days and then gradually drop that down to one or two throughout the course of the week. 

Picking up a piece of fruit is easy but it's not always interesting. Sometimes, just picking up an apple or banana and easting it isn't appealing. My favorite fruit of all time happens to be mango so I decided to devise a mango salsa either for eating straight, Paleo style, or for eating with chips, chicken, talapia, salmon or anything else other people want to pair it with. It's an easy way to get in some more fruit, a few veggies, and of course to spice up an otherwise simple meal! 

Stitch's All Purpose Paleo Mango Salsa

Ingredients

• 2.5 cups of peeled and diced mangos
• 1 small tomato, diced
• 1 sweet red pepper, diced
• 1 avocado, pitted, skinned, and diced
• 1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
• cayenne pepper to taste (I don't like things super spicy, so you may want to adjust this factor based on what you like. I start with a pinch and do taste tests while mixing to find the right balance)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cucumber, diced
• 1/2 red onion, finely diced
• 1 whole lime, juiced

1. Chop, dice, and dump all your ingredients into a mixing bowl. 
2. Mix thoroughly. It's important because you don't want the salt or the spicy bits to get stuck in one particular clump or place
3. Serve and eat it! 

The Vanellope Von Schweetz Smoothie!

Sometimes, you just need something sweet, but if you're a stickler for health, then indulging yourself with ice cream or froyo everytime isn't really the best option. Well folks, I'm here to tell you that not only can you satisfy your sweet tooth, but you can get another serving of veggies at the same time so you can be both sweet and tough like Vanellope from Wreck it Ralph!

It took me a while to realize that fresh fruit smoothies are the bomb. They can serve as a great breakfast on the go or a small one can make a good snack later in the day, plus I sneak in some spinach (don't worry you can't taste it) so I can get another serving of vegetables without having to force them down via salad or sneak them into my omelette. I don't make mine with dairy, so they do satisfy the Paleo requirements. I shouldn't have to say this, but in order to make this recipe, you will need a blender. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup Almond Milk (You can buy it at the store, although there are usually some preservatives in it, or you can make it yourself).
• 1 cup Frozen Peaches (You can make or buy these ready frozen)
• 1 cup Frozen Mangoes (Same as above!)
• Banana
• 1 Cup of Spinach
• Optional: Add any other fruit you like!

1. Add both frozen fruits to the blender.
2. Break your banana in half and add both halves to the blender (if you're not a huge banana fanatic, only add one half or it will be SUPER banana flavored, which I happen to like). 
3. Add in a handful of spinach (that's generally about 1 cup). 
4. Then pour in your cup of Almond Milk.
5. Remember to cover the blender with the lid. Plug it in and then blend until everything is completely smooth. You want to make sure it's as smooth as possible so that you don't have tiny spinach leave particles floating around in there. The smoother it is, the less noticeable it will be. It will probably add a very "fresh" taste to the smoothie, but it's really not noticeable when you use a strong fruit like mangoes to cut it. 
6. Pour and enjoy! This generally makes 1.5-2 servings depending on how much smoothie you want to drink. I like to keep the half in the fridge for later or share it with someone.