EASIEST MANGO AND AVOCADO SALAD

  

  Adapted from a recipe in “Memories of a Cuban Kitchen”,  by Mary Urrutia Randelman,1992, from my first publisher, Macmillan.  Aside from the authentic family recipes, Urrutia gives us a glimpse of upper-class Cuban society in  Havana before Castro and the revolution—a world of yacht clubs, fine restaurants, elegant department stores, a Woodworth’s where she ate chicken salad on “American bread,” afternoon teas, formal dinner dances, Xmas eves with roast suckling pig, summers at seaside resorts on the Caribbean. 

The family immigrated to Miami, Florida in 1958, merely a year before Castro took power. Mary was 10 years old.

The thing to remember about this salad is that the mango and avocado must be perfectly ripe.  The mango will be slightly soft to the touch... the flavor is peach-like; if overripe it gets fibrous. The avocado should also be slightly soft when gently squeezed.

  

  1 mango

  1 large or 2 small avocados

  sweet or red onion slices

  baby spinach, lettuce or arugula

  olive oil and lemon juice

  salt, pepper, to taste.

1.      Peel, pit and thinly slice the mango

2.      Peel, pit and thinly slice the avocado

3.      Line the greens on a plate or platter. Arrange over them, the mango and avocado and onion.

4.      Whisk together the olive oil and lemon juice, (about 2 tablespoons each, or to taste); season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over the melange.

All photos by Carol Guilford

 1

EASIEST GAZPACHO (SPANISH SALAD SOUP)

With  Scallions Green Peppers and Cucumbers

“Good gazpacho should make you cry” said a friend of mine. He meant he liked it hot and sour.  So do I, but every cook adjusts this unusual cold soup to his/her own taste.

Paula Wolfert, the maven of Moroccan cooking says ‘gazpacho’ is an Arabian word, meaning “soaked bread.”  Brought to Spain by the Moors who conquered, as one historian puts it, for “loot and land.” Other reports cite that the Roman road builders or soldiers ate a combination of bread, vinegar and olive oil.

The main ingredient of gazpacho is tomatoes, but that is a fairly recent ingredient, since Columbus did not introduce tomatoes and peppers to Spain until after his first voyage, circa 1492. 

 A recipe for gazpacho appeared in my first book, “The New Cook’s Cookbook”  (available at Amazon on Kindle or as a used, rare book, from dealers) I have up-dated this version a tad.  Makes about 6-8 servings.

You will need a blender.  Gazpacho should be creamy, not watery.

   I  28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes.

  I use Contadina tomatoes in tomato puree because the can is marked

 non GMO and non BPA and they use sea salt.

  ½ cup sweet onion, coarsely chopped

  ½ cup green pepper, coarsely chopped

 For an extra kick, use an Anaheim pepper

  2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped  or 1 tablespoon garlic powder

  ½ cup vinegar

  10 drops Tabasco sauce

  ½ cup medium dry or dry sherry

1. Put all the ingredients into the blender container.  Blend for at least one minute until the ingredients are well combined.

2. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or overnight.  The flavors will intensify.

3. Correct the seasonings, to your taste. More vinegar or more Tabasco sauce, or both.

 Before serving, an idea is to add a small ice cube to each bowl, to keep the soup icy.  James Beard, bless his heart used to add a frozen cube of tomato juice.

 Pictured are garnish or garnishes which are very important to the dish.  Choose from--

With croutons

With  avocados and olives

Persian cucumbers, peeled and sliced

Green pepper, cubed small

Black olives, sliced

Green onions (scallions)

Croutons made from sliced cubed bread, drizzled with olive oil and fried in a

skillet. Keep turning. Don’t leave the stove; they will burn as soon as look at you.

Avocado

Small cooked shrimp

  Cgnote:  You may put the garnish in separate dishes and let guests help themselves.

Makes a brilliant first course, or main course on a hot day. If you want a heftier meal, cheese and crusty bread will do it.

 All photos by Carol Guilford