Ingredients 300 g coditos (pasta) - see Variations below 1 tin of tuna in oil (drained weight 130 g), mashed Mayonnaise, using 500 ml olive oil 2 tbsp of Cream 500 g firm tomatoes, thinly sliced A handful of black olives, pitted 1 egg, hard boiled, finely chopped or put through a sieve Parsley, finely chopped Method Boil the coditos for about 15 minutes or per packet instructions. Rinse under cold water and drain thoroughly. When the pasta is cold, mix with the tuna, Cream and mayonnaise and place in the middle of a serving dish. Arrange the tomato slices around the pasta and place the olives on top of it. Sprinkle with the hard boiled egg. and the parsley.
INGREDIENTS For Pico de Gallo: 1 pint grape tomatoes, quartered 1/2 cup chopped white onion 1 tablespoon lime juice, or to taste 2 teaspoons minced fresh Serrano chile, or to taste 1/4 cup chopped cilantro Salt Freshly ground pepper For Tacos: 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 lb purslane, including tender upper stems, chopped (about 6 cups) 8 fresh corn tortillas 2 avocados 1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese (about 3 ounces), or to taste cilantro sprigs and lime wedges for serving PREPARATION Make Pico de Gallo: Combine tomatoes, onion, lime juice, chile, and cilantro in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Let it stand while assembling the tacos. Cook garlic in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring, until pale golden. Add purslane with salt to taste and cook, stirring, until wilted and tender, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a sieve set over a bowl and let it drain. Have a folded kitchen towel ready for the tortillas. Heat a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat until hot, then heat a tortilla, keeping the others covered, flipping it occasionally with tongs, until it puffs slightly and gets brown in spots, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer tortilla, as toasted, to towel, enclosing it, and repeat with remaining tortillas. Keep them warm in towel. Quarter avocados lengthwise and remove pit, then peel. Cut each section into thin slices (lengthwise or crosswise, it doesn't matter) and season with salt. Assemble tacos by spooning some purslane into a folded taco and topping it with avocado slices, cotija cheese, cilantro sprigs, and pico de gallo. Serve with lime wedges.
INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 cups sugar 1 3/4 cups water 2 (14-oz) packages frozen guanabana (soursop) purée such as Goya brand, thawed (3 cups) 1 1/2 cups fresh mango purée (from 1 1/2 lb mangoes) or 1 (14-oz) package frozen mango purée, thawed 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, or to taste 1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh lime zest Special equipment: an ice cream maker Garnish: lime zest PREPARATION Bring sugar and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a 1 1/2- to 2-quart saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until reduced to about 2 cups, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer syrup to a bowl and cool completely. Whisk together guanabana purée and 1 1/2 cups syrup, then freeze in ice cream maker. Transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden, about 2 hours. Blend mango purée, lime juice, 6 tablespoons of remaining syrup, and remaining 1/4 cup water in a blender until very smooth. Force through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing on and then discarding solids, then whisk in zest and, if necessary, additional water for a thin purée. Serve sorbet with coulis.
INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 pints blackberries 1 cup simple syrup 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves PREPARATION Purée 1 1/2 pints blackberries, 1 cup simple syrup, 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon leaves until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup, divide among ice-pop molds, insert sticks, and freeze until solid, at least 6 hours.
INGREDIENTS Chile-Lime Marinade 1 1/2 cups water 1/2 cup fresh lime juice 10 cloves garlic, sliced 2 serrano chiles, stemmed and sliced 2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano, ground (page 161) 1 tablespoon fine sea salt 2 pounds young shark fillet, cut into 4 by 3/4-inch strips (see headnote) Baja Tempura Batter 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon ice water 2 1/2 teaspoons yellow mustard (optional) 1 cup bleached all-purpose flour Vegetable oil, for deep-frying 10 (5 1/2-inch) soft white corn tortillas (page 13), for serving Garnish: Baja Cabbage Slaw (page 145), lime wedges, and pickled jalapeño rings PREPARATION To make the marinade, in a large bowl, combine the 1 1/2 cups water, lime juice, garlic, chiles, oregano, and salt. Add the fish strips and let marinate for at least 20 minutes. To make the tempura batter, in a separate bowl, whisk together the ice water and mustard. Gently stir in the flour, but don’t overmix; a few small lumps are okay. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Drain the shark pieces and pat them dry with a paper towel. Have a plate lined with paper towels ready. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, heat at least 2 to 3 inches of oil over medium heat until it reaches 360°F on a deep-fat thermometer. Remove the batter from the refrigerator and stir once more. Dredge the fish pieces in the batter, a few at a time, to evenly coat. Drop them in the hot fat, 2 pieces at a time, adding 2 more pieces every 30 seconds (fry no more than 4 pieces at a time). Monitor the temperature of the hot oil throughout frying, letting the oil return to proper temperature, if necessary, between batches; to ensure crispness, it must remain a constant 360°F to 380°F. If too low, the fish will be oily; if too hot, the pieces will burn. Fry them until crisp, light golden brown, and floating in the oil, about 2 1/2 minutes per batch. With a fine-mesh skimmer, transfer the fish tempura to the paper-towel-lined plate to absorb the excess oil. Repeat with the remaining pieces of fish. During frying, be sure to remove any pieces of floating batter, or they will burn and darken the oil, which will transfer a burned flavor to the tempura. Serve immediately. To serve, lay the tortillas side by side, open face and overlapping on a platter. Divide the slaw and filling equally between the tortillas and top with salsa and garnish. Grab, fold, and eat right away. Or build your own taco: lay a tortilla, open face, in one hand. Spoon on some slaw, then filling, top with salsa, fold, and eat right away.
