New from Cleveland Botanical Garden's Green Corps —

Ripe From Downtown® Salsa
It's perfect for all your holiday gatherings!

Limited quantities available in The Garden Store and
Sergio's in University Circle and Sergio's SARAVÁ in Shaker Square

This past summer, Cleveland Botanical Garden's Green Corps students had a unique opportunity to work with a top local chef in developing a new recipe for a salsa that is now available for all your holiday celebrations.

Ripe From Downtown Salsa, a much-loved product now in its 9th year, got a jolt from Sergio Abramof, the chef/owner of Sergio's in University Circle and Sergio's SARAVÁ in Shaker Square. The new Ripe From Downtown Salsa is $4 per jar and is now available at Cleveland Botanical Garden Store, Sergio's in University Circle and Sergio's SARAVÁ in Shaker Square.

"Ripe From Downtown Salsa," says Natalie Ronayne, the Garden's executive director, "symbolizes hope, energy, and the spirit of entrepreneurship at the heart of our Green Corps urban outreach program." Through the Green Corps, urban teenagers develop a firsthand understanding of food production from seed to finished product while working in learning gardens located in Cleveland's Hough and Central neighborhoods and on the near West Side.

"We made Ripe from Downtown Salsa with love," says Sergio. "Working with the Green Corps kids was a phenomenal experience for me and for our chefs. We developed a great salsa recipe that highlights not only the stellar produce that they grow in their gardens, but also the Malaguetta pepper from Brazil. The result is a fresh-tasting salsa with a wonderful complexity of flavor, spice, and heat. This is such a great salsa that I feel it can be used in many other recipes and applications."

Sergio's Ripe from Downtown Salsa Recipe Ideas:

Downtown Shrimp Cocktail
Toss chilled cooked shrimp with fresh lemon, parsley, black pepper, sea salt and serve with Ripe from Downtown Salsa

Grilled Skirt Steak
Rub skirt steak with fresh chopped garlic, black pepper, and salt. Grill, thin slice, and serve with Ripe from Downtown Salsa thinned slightly with a dash of red wine vinegar.

Cilantro Chicken Quesadilla
Coat chicken breasts with garlic, lime, and cilantro. Grill, slice thin and wrap in a flour tortilla with your favorite cheese and Ripe from Downtown Salsa. Bake in a 450 oven until cheese is melted.

Ripe from Downtown Salsa is also a great dipping sauce for

• Fried calamari
• Fried mozzarella
• Plantain chips
• Yucca Chips
• Pita Chips
• And of course, tortilla chips!