Guacamole

This guac recipe is out of Steven Raichlen's Healthy Latin Cooking cookbook, the same book from which the Roasted Tomato Salsa came. I have made several recipes from this book, and I would highly recommend it.

A food processor makes short work of creating the perfect texture for this guac. The recipe says to puree it, but I prefer my guac (and salsa, for that matter) extra chunky, so I just pulsed it to my desired chunkiness. Tomatillos aren't something regularly available in grocery stores near me, but I lucked out in that the CSA included a bunch in the latest box. I was able to get the avocados for $1 each at Sam's Club, and despite my low expectations for their quality, I was pleasantly surprised to cut them open and find perfectly ripe, un-mottled green flesh inside.

RECIPE:
2 large avocados, pits removed and flesh scooped out
4 tomatillos, husks removed and quartered
1/2 medium white onion, quartered
1-2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and quartered
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup cilantro
1 small tomato, chopped
juice of 1/2 lime
kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

Add tomatillos, onion, garlic, jalapeno, garlic, cilantro to a food process and pulse until well blended. Add avocado and pulse to desired texture. Scrape out mixture into medium bowl. Add tomato, lime juice, then season with salt & pepper to taste. Pair with thick tortilla chips (I am addicted to Target's organic blue corn chips!) Eat within a few hours of making.

Scallops with Spinach and Lemony Risotto

Huge, "jumbo" scallops were on sale at the grocery store, and since I was craving seared scallops over risotto anyway, I decided to buy a pound and try cooking them myself. Doing a quick online search, there were several recipes out there that sounded delicious, but I decided on this one because of it's simplicity and step-by-step directions. Here is the link to the blog I found and used. I followed the recipe pretty much exactly, so I won't replicate all the steps here since the blog author did such a great job of writing it!  I did add a couple additional splashes of white wine to the scallops and risotto broth because I like the tart flavor of a dry white to balance out the buttery flavors. I hope you have as much success making this as I did! Enjoy!