Tropical Fusion Salad with Spicy Tortilla Ribbons

Introducing Paula Jones  from bell’alimento as guest contributor today…

Cover recipe from Taste of Home, May 2010
Tropical Fusion Salad with Spicy Tortilla Ribbons
I am so excited to be contributing here on Culinary Covers for Lori. I love looking at cooking magazines and am always initially drawn in by the mouthwatering cover photography. Sadly after making some of these cover recipes they do not always live up to tantalizing appearance. In comes Culinary Covers! What a fantastic idea for a site… to dissect the culinary cover and let you know whether or not the cover dish made the grade!

Now to choose a cover. After looking & drooling over all the latest covers I settled on Taste of Home. It had a beautiful cover shot. The captions were “fresh, light…and delicious!” “tropical flavor explosion!” And the photo was definitely that. The vibrant papaya and avocado colors immediately drew me in. I had my contestant and I set off to put her to the test!
Tropical Fusion Salad with Spicy Tortilla Ribbons
Source: Taste of Home, May 2010

ingredients:
2 cups cubed peeled papaya
1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed & drained
1 medium ripe avocado, peeled & cubed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 serrano peppers, seeded & chopped
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/4 cup orange juice
2 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. ground ancho chili pepper, divided
1/4 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 corn tortillas (6 in.), cut into 1/4-in. strips

instructions:
1. In a large bowl, combine the papaya, beans, avocado, corn, raisins, peppers, cilantro, orange juice, lime juice, vinegar, garlic 1/2 tsp. chili pepper, sugar and salt.
2. Place tortilla strips on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray: sprinkle with remaining chili pepper. Bake at 350 fro 8-10 minutes or until crisp.
3. Serve with salad.

Prep/Total Time: 30 min.
Yield: 4 servings

Editor’s Note: When cutting hot peppers, wear disposable gloves. Avoid touching your face or eyes.

Nutritional Facts: 1-1/4 cups salad with about 10 tortilla ribbons equals 321 calories, 8 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 380 mg sodium, 58 g carbohydrate, 11 g fiber, 9 g protein

Notes from Culinary Covers:
*This was a very flavorful dish with a kick. 2 serrano peppers plus the ancho chili pepper were a little overwhelming for my little ones.
* I would cut this back to 1 serrano pepper as well as cutting back the chili powder sprinkled onto the tortilla ribbons slightly. I like a little heat but not that much. If you like things spicier then definitely leave it as is. Or you could add more papaya to help cut some of the heat.
*I would recommend making sure your beans & corn are drained thoroughly. There is a lot of liquid from the orange and lime juices plus the vinegar which made it somewhat soupy at the bottom of the bowl. I had to use a slotted spoon to serve it with.
*The tortilla ribbons added a great layer of texture to this dish.

Did this recipe deserve the cover spotlight?  This is a very enticing dish. It immediately draws you in visually and stimulates every one of your taste buds. Great flavor, great texture. I would say YES it deserved the cover spotlight and, I would make it again with the slight modification to heat level.

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Tagged as: taste of home, tropical fusion salad