Saturday, July 25, 2009

Avocado-Tomato Toss

I received my August issue of Southern Living magazine this week.

I remember "discovering" Southern Living when I was about 16 spending a summer vacation at my grandmother's farmhouse in North Carolina. It was a dry afternoon and the only "air conditioning" was a box fan propped up in an open window of the old home. It was one of those afternoons that was so hot you could hear the heat because even the bugs were quiet and still. In an effort to remain cool, I spent an afternoon minimizing activity by reading a few years worth of back issues of Southern Living.

I specifically remember reading about the difference between chicken fried steak and country fried steak. I am pretty sure that was the first day I ever wrote down a recipe to try, it was a flank steak with equal parts of oil, red wine, and soy sauce. But from then on, I was curious about food and how I could make mine better.

Sorry, I drifted off there for a minute. Now I get Southern Living every month courtesy of my parents. It is one of my favorite Christmas presents because I get it 12 times! Tonight we wanted to do something easy and quick without making a mess in the kitchen, so we tried the Avocado-Tomato Toss. We halved the recipe.

Avocado-Tomato Toss
Makes: 6 servings
Prep: 15 min


Ingredients
1/3 c cilantro, fresh chopped
1/4 c olive oil
2 T red wine vinegar
2 T lime juice
1/2 t salt
2 c cherry tomatoes, halved
1/3 c red onion, thinly sliced
2 medium avocados, halved and cut into chunks
4 romaine lettuce leaves

Instructions
Whisk the oil into the cilantro, vinegar, lime juice, and salt in a large bowl. Add the tomatoes, red onion and avocados, tossing gently to coat. Serve over the shredded romaine.

I messed up by tossing it all together with the romaine but it turned out alright anyway. I also added a little cracked black pepper.Alexis and I both loved it. It has all of the hallmarks of a good salad for me, varied textures, a little sweet, and a little bite. A little pedestrian, perhaps, but like I said, we were aiming for simple. If you don't like cilantro, this one isn't for you because I think cilantro is what gives it the signature flavor.

Some of the other recipes I have marked in the August issue to try are:
Chicken and Green Chile Enchiladas
Grilled Fingerling Potato Salad
Maque Choux (a dish we've previously enjoyed from Sharlene)
Bourbon Marinated Pork Tenderloin
Fiesta Brisket

So what are some of your favorite media sources for recipes?