Fruits in Mexico are picked at their peak and taste like they are meant to. Street carts and store fronts offer a variety of cut fruits — mangoes, pineapple, watermelon and other melons, with a squeeze of lime and a sprinkle of powdered red chile or hot sauce. Others sell an amazing array of aguas frescas (fresh fruit ades). The glass above shows another “pico de gallo” that also incorporates jicama and cucumbers.
These surprising salads combine vegetables and meats with perfectly ripe fruits. They are healthy and easy to make.
Mangos are in season and now is the perfect time to make this delicious, exciting, easy to make chicken salad. For years, I only ate it from the grill, but I now live in an apartment and need an alternate method of cooking the breast so that it does not dry out. I carefully slide a knife on the breast bone to separate the breast but DO NOT cut it away so it cooks on the bone after marinating with the chipotle paste. Let rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. You can also make this with roast duck. You won’t get a crisp skin because of the chipotle marinade, but it will be delicious.
I adore pomegranates and this pomegranate salsa/salad is a favorite.
I learned to make this orange and blue cheese salad at the very first Culinary Institute of America seminar that I attended in either Houston or Dallas. It was a salad seminar given by the charming Fritz Sonnenschmidt and the only two that I remember are strawberries and red onions in a poppy seed dressing and this one. It originally called for Stilton cheese but I Latinized it by calling for Cabrales, the marvelous blue cheese from Spain. I make it with blood oranges when available, but navel oranges work fine. You don’t need a recipe. Peel the oranges and remove white membrane with a sharp knife. Slice horizontally, arrange on a platter, alternating with thinly sliced red onions. Keep it light and sprinkle just a little (or go all out) crumbled Cabrales cheese over all and let sit for 2 or 3 hours so the cheese combines with the juice and the onions will release their flavor to make a wonderful dressing.
The Feast of Corpus Christi falls on a Thursday between May 20th and June 20th. In the city of Puebla I encountered a beautiful, unusual salad served during the fiesta with an assortment of fruits and vegetables that are then at their peak there. Vendors were selling it in the streets, in little paper cones. Everything ripens at a different time here, but you may be able to come close to the original in late summer.
