Nopales Salad with Jalapeno Dressing

BobS

The other day, someone was asking about recipes for nopales. I happened to run across the following recipe in the April 2006, issue of Saveur and decided to post it. I have not tried it, but I thought it looked good.[p]Nopales Salad with Jalapeno Dressing[p]From: Saveur, April 2006[p]SERVES 4[p]2 jalapenos, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
1/2 Cup sour cream
1/3 Cup cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
Pinch ground cumin
Salt
4 medium nopales (prickly pear cactus pads)
1 tomatillo, husked and cored
1 small red onion, peeled and diced
1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and diced
1 ripe avocado[p]1. Puree jalapenos, sour cream, 1/4 Cup of the cilantro, lime juice, and cumin in a food processor until smooth. Transfer to a bowl, season to taste with salt, cover, and refrigerate for 3 hours.[p]2. Place each cactus pad on a work surface, hold base with a kitchen towel, and shave off thorny bumps on each side with a sharp knife. Blanch cactus and tomatillo in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat. Remove tomatillo when tender, about 5 minutes, rinse in cold water, and transfer to a plate. Cook cactus until tender, about 5 minutes more, rinse in cold water, and transfer to plate. Cut cactus crosswise into 1/2"- wide strips and return to pot to let cook for 2-3 minutes more to remove excess slime. Drain cactus, rinse in cold water, and dry with paper towels. Transfer cactus to a bowl. Dice tomatillo and add to bowl. Add onions and peppers, season to taste with salt, cover, and refrigerate for 3 hours.[p]3. To serve, halve avocado, discard pit and skin, and thinly slice lengthwise. Toss together avocado, cactus mixture, dressing, and salt to taste in a serving bowl. Garnish with remaining cilantro.