Next up on the list of 10 Pear Salad Recipes by Mark Bittman: Jicama and Pear. I had the ingredients on hand this weekend and was looking for a light side dish to accompany a spice-filled stew, and this fit the bill. Bittman’s version is more heavily dressed, but I needed something crunchy and light to contrast my main dish. I subbed a dash of cayenne pepper for minced chile and added the suggested lime juice. Ole!

Concorde pears were a great choice for this dish. Their vanilla-sweet flavor and crisp texture made a perfect match for the similar jicama and the punchy vinaigrette. I tossed the salad with minced basil and parsley because that’s what I found in the crisper, but I would have loved cilantro, too.

This sweet salad reminded me of the Jicama Street Snack I devoured at Frontera Grill in Chicago – it’s essentially a dressed-up version of this combination: fruit + crisp veggie (jicama, cucumber) + spice + citrus. I’m keeping this one at the top of my recipe file — it’s perfect for summer potlucks, but I suspect it will be whisking me away to Mexico on some upcoming rainy days, too.