#17 Southern Delight: Tomatillo Bass, Avocado Salad and Margarita Granita

Wow, this recipe was one well-rounded delight. Not only was the fish and tomatillo sauce mouth-watering, the avocado salad had a nice bite to it which was refreshingly followed with the post-dinner margaritas. This will definitely be a recipe to pull out next time I have dinner guests so more people than just the novio and I get to savor all the tastes this recipe provides. And as far as the novio and I, we both gave this recipe a 5 star rating. Be ready to be gratified, this one is a keeper. (And thanks go to Rachel Ray as the recipe was adapted from her original one.)

Tomatillo Bass

Ingredients:

4 fillets Bass

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon ground cumin (eyeball it)

1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika (eyeball it)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

The juice of 1 lime

1/2 medium red onion, chopped

1 jalapeno or serrano pepper, seeded, and finely chopped

2 or 3 large cloves of garlic, minced

8 to 10 tomatillos, peeled and diced with juice

1/2 can of beer

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (a palmful)

Avocado Salad with Corn and Peppers

1 tablespoon extra-virgin oilive oil (once around the pan)

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 small red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 can corn kernals

1 sprinkly of sugar

Dash Cayenne pepper

Dash salt

2 tablespoons butter

2 ripe avocadoes

The juice of 1 lime

Coarse salt

Directions:

Season Fish on both sides salt, pepper, cumin and paprika. Preheat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the hot skillet and saute fish 3 minutes on each side, turning carefully with a thin spatula. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 lime over the fish, and transfer fillets to a warm serving platter.

Return skillet to the stove over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, red onion, jalapeno, and garlic, and saute, 1 minute or 2, then add tomatillos. Season with salt and pepper, and saute, another 1 or 2 minutes. Add beer and the juice of 1/2 lime, and bring sauce to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, 5 minutes.

While sauce is simmering, get a second skillet hot over moderate heat. Add olive oil, onion, jalapeno, bell pepper, and saute, 2 or 3 minutes. Pour the corn into the skillet. Combine with peppers and onions. Season with sugar, cayenne, and salt. When mixture bubbles, reduce heat to a simmer. Cut butter into pieces, stir into corn mixture, and simmer until creamy, 5 to 7 minutes.

Cut avocados in half lengthwise and remove pits. Squeeze lime juice over the avocados to keep them from browning and season with a little coarse salt.

Back to the sauce for fish: Add cilantro, and adjust salt and pepper, to taste. Spoon hot tomatillo sauce over the fish.

To serve, set 1/2 an avocado per person alongside a serving of fish, topped with tomatillo sauce. Fill the avocado with corn and peppers, allowing the corn to spill down and over the sides. The ripe avocado is spooned away from its skin with bites of creamy, warm corn and peppers.

Margarita Granita

Ingredients:

The juice of 2 limes

1 tray ice cubes

1 pint lime sherbet

4 shots good quality tequila

1 cup of frozen strawberries

Combine all ingredients ina blender and blend on high, 1 or 2 minutes or until smooth and frothy. Spoon into glasses and serve.