This is my take on the popular Ensalada de Noche Buena (Christmas Eve Salad) that is served in Mexico. The jicama provides a nice crunchy texture to the salad, but if they are unavailable, use a crisp Granny Smith apple. For added color diced beets are sometimes added in the traditional salad. Pomegranates are in season this time of year, and the seeds add color as well as flavor to this holiday dish.
We don’t always end a holiday meal with pumpkin pie-sometimes we begin the feast with this spicy soup with its Caribbean island flavor. If you don’t want to use pumpkin, any winter squash, such as butternut, acorn or Hubbard, will do. This is an easy recipe to prepare, but if you want an even quicker version, used canned pumpkin puree or a 12-ounce package or frozen cooked winter squash as a base. This recipe is from Dave’s and my book, The Spicy Food Lover’s Bible.
