one bowl southwestern style salad

Chop into similarly sized pieces:

avocado
turkey breast
tomato
corn (I microwave it first and cut it off the cob, but frozen would work too)
green onion
bell pepper, green or red
cucumber

Throw into a bowl with a can or two of drained black beans. If desired, add cooked rice (white, brown, spanish, yellow, whatever). Chop some fresh cilantro and mix everything together. Dress with a mixture of:

lime juice
wine vinegar (white or red or even sherry)
olive oil
celery seed
cumin
salt
red pepper flakes

Should keep in the fridge for a day or two. Might be good with shrimp, will try that next.

White Almond Gazpacho

(Bartolomé's Málaga-style White Gazpacho)

from "La Cocina de Mamá " by Penelope Casas

Serves 4

Penelope writes -

"A gazpacho typical of Malaga that relies on blanched almonds for its pure white color and creamy consistency. Sweet green grapes are the essential counterpoint to the soup's tang of garlic and vinegar.

Chef Bartolomé Rodrigo Lucena, a native of Andalucia whose love of cooking began at his mother's side, is today the chef at Malaga's Parador de Gibralfaro, a government-sponsored hotel spectacularly set on a hilltop with extraordinary views of the city's port and the Mediterranean sea.

The shrimp that Bartolomé adds to this traditional gazpacho are unorthodox, to be sure, but give a lovely flavor counterpoint. "

INGREDIENTS:

One 6-inch piece cut from firm-textured French-style bread, crusts removed

1/2 pound (about 1 1/2 cups) blanched almonds

2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 cup mild extra virgin olive oil

4 cups ice water

16 to 24 skinned seedless green grapes, or 16 small balls of green melon or apple

12 small cooked and shelled shrimp, optional

Preparation:

• - Soak the bread in water and squeeze dry. Place it in a food processor, add the almonds and garlic, and blend until very smooth.
• - Add the vinegar and salt, and with the motor running, add the oil in a thin stream until fully incorporated.
• - Gradually pour in the ice water.
• - Transfer to a covered bowl and chill for several hours or overnight.
• - Before serving, taste for salt and vinegar and adjust if necessary.
• - Serve in small soup bowls and garnish each serving with 4 to 6 grapes or melon or apple balls and 3 shrimp.

buttermilk waffles

adapted from Alton Brown

2 c flour
1 T cornmeal
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
3 T sugar
2 eggs, separated
pinch of cream of tartar
4 T unsalted butter, melted, cooled
1 3/4 c buttermilk

Whisk dry ingredients (flour, cornmeal, salt, soda, sugar) together in a large bowl. In a second bowl, whisk the egg yolks and butter together; add buttermilk. In a third bowl (chilled, if you think of it in time) beat egg whites with a pinch of cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Add the buttermilk mixture to the dry mixture and stir well. Carefully fold in egg whites.

Cook as directed by your waffle iron manufacturer.