My friend Eugenia Bone's wonderful book At Mesa's Edge is an intimate and entertaining recollection of her first few seasons at the ranch she and her husband Kevin bought in Colorado a while back. The book includes over 100 recipes including one — ta da! — from me: Tomatillo Salsa.
As Gena points out, it's a great condiment for any Mexican-inspired dish, including her spectacular pheasant burritos. But it works wonders on simple stuff like eggs and grilled chicken and fish too.
While Mesa's Edge came out in 2004, I've since made a little tweak: rather than blanche the tomatillos, it's tastier to run them under the broiler to soften them up and char the skins a bit.
SEAN'S TOMATILLO SALSA
10-12 tomatillos, husked and rinsed
2 T. chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, stem and seeds removed
2 garlic cloves
1 T. fresh lemon juice
salt
Arrange the tomatillos on a cookie sheet and put under a hot broiler. After a few minutes they will start to char and kind of collapse. Use tongs to turn them over and char the other side too. They'll get all saggy and release some of their juice. Transfer the tomatillos and any juices on the cookie sheet into a food processor.
Add cilantro, jalapeno, garlic, lemon juice and salt to taste and process into a loose and slightly lumpy sauce. Pour into a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a low boil over medium heat. Boil the sauce for 20 minutes. Take the sauce off the heat and allow it to cool.
You can eat the sauce right away, or, if you plan to put it up, pour the sauce into sterilized jars, wipe the rims, screw on the lids and and bands, and process the jars in a boiling water bath for 20 minutes. Allow the jars to cool. Check the seals, label the jars and store in a cool, dark place for up to one year.