Sometime in the recent past, I became addicted to Mangoes. Granted I have eaten them for a while, but I seemed to have much more confidence about choosing and actually buying one after reading the best book: The Latin American Kitchen - by Elisabeth Luard.

For about a year now, I helplessly make Ina Garten's Mango Salsa recipe - and tweak it each time to accommodate my whims, sometimes using dried chiles, sometimes pickled or fresh, and most recently canned chipotles which is probably my favorite of all time. I always add handfuls of cilantro as well, Ina seems to have a dislike for my darling herb...

I eat this stuff on everything. Really, I am not joking. It's good on fish, chicken, steak, eggs, tamales. I have been known to eat it by itself with melted cheese on a tortilla or even on bread. And, guiltily, I have even eaten it just by spoonfuls when it is still hot. You can try it for yourself.

For the past 2.5 weeks, I have developed some kind of severe chapped lips. How is this related to Mango Madness? I really can' t be sure. I think I have a: incurred some kind of food related allergy or b: incurred some kind of intolerance for a product or substance I use on a regular basis. I can only hope it is the latter, I have no experience with food allergies, and think that would really be a problem for me.

At first, it was just a mild annoyance, I just wanted to keep dousing myself with Burt's Bees every 3 minutes. That and I likened my newly pouty self to a beestung Angelina Jolie. Then, last Saturday morning I woke up with Octomom lips. I was out of bed for a whopping 10 minutes before I figured out which walk in clinic I could storm. Long story short, I am still beestung and more Angelinalike than normal, but less than before I applied my topical steroid. I have a dermatological appointment next week - and I am really hoping I am not allergic to Mangoes or any other Fruit or Nut.

I need to lay off the Mangoes while I try to pinpoint this problem, but not until I eat the Mango Pie (modified into Mango Pie Filling with a crumble topping) I made today.

Hopefully I won't begin tomorrow at another clinic... But even if I do, these amazing Champagne Mangoes that baked up as soft as peaches yet are like eating exotic stone fruit flowers will be totally worth it.