Hi there! Stephanie here. This is my first contribution to My Cooking Spot, and I really hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do. If you follow my blog, you’ll know that I grew up in Texas and really, really love Mexican food. I grew up cooking with my friends’ abuelitas, and really can’t get enough of the nuanced style of Mexican and Tex-Mex cooking.
Traditional Mexican cooking really values fresh, seasonal ingredients and the type of dishes that often involve bringing people together to cook, enjoy conversation in the kitchen, and then sit around the table for an afternoon with family, friends and neighbors. I always loved spending the afternoon learning to make a new dish in wonderful company. I think that’s why we entertain so often in the summer months.
One of my favorite summer party fruit dishes is a Mexican fruit salad made with tart, fresh tomatillos, watermelon, avocado, lime, cheese and a spicy dressing. I just love how the chunks of juicy watermelon counter the sour tomatillos, and the creamy avocado balances the spicy jalapeno dressing. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t get any more refreshing and summery than that salad.
When I’ve made the salad in the past, a lot of the ingredients would mush together in the bowl and the watermelon juice would eventually soak through the paper plates we’d bring out to bbq. So, to solve that problem, I decided to turn all those wonderful ingredients into a fancy skewer. (Everything is more exciting on a stick!) This one is super simple to put together, and would be a great recipe to get your kiddos involved in the kitchen.
A quick note on the jalapeno: Jalapeno oils can burn your skin and eyes, so I typically recommend wearing disposable kitchen gloves when dicing them. That way you can just dispose of the gloves at the end and not worry about accidentally rubbing jalapeno in your eyes later. (I may or may not know this from experience.)
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups watermelon, cut in 1/2" cubes
- 1 ripe avocado, cut in 1/2" cubes
- 2-3 ripe tomatillos, husks removed, washed and sliced into thin wedges
- 1/4 cup crumbled queso fresco (for garnish)
- 24 decorative appetizer skewers (or long toothpicks)
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons jalapeno, seeds removed and very finely diced (This is fairly mild. Leave the seeds in or add more for increased heat.)
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients for the vinaigrette to a small screw-top jar and shake until well combined. (Can be made up to 2 days ahead of time and stored in the fridge.) The longer you let this sit, the spicier it will get as the jalapeno oils disperse.
- Take each skewer and add a wedge of tomatillo, a cube of watermelon, and a cube of avocado.
- Arrange the skewers on a platter and drizzle generously with vinaigrette.
- Sprinkle with queso fresco and serve immediately.
Notes
Excess vinaigrette makes a great salad dressing!
What’s your favorite summer fruit salad?
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