Hearts of Palm Puree- Ensalada de palmitos

Recipe: Zarela’s Veracruz, Houghton Mifflin, 2001

This is my go-to  appetizer when I have unexpected guests.  It is one of many good dishes made on the home ground of several palm varieties (Sabal spp.) resembling the Florida “swamp cabbage”, with a tender, delicious artichoke-like core at the center of the young trunks.  Because the whole tree must be cut down to obtain a small yield of palm heart, it remains a highly limited crop in ecologically fragile areas like Florida, and I have never seen it sold fresh in this country.  Suitable palm trees are much more abundant in Veracruz and are used for many purposes like building materials, so harvesting the fresh hearts of palm is not such a wasteful practice.  Even in Veracruz, however, cooks also are known to resort to canned hearts of palm.  I visited a factory in Pánuco where they are put up, though I doubt that brand is available in the United States.  Most of the ones sold here come from Brazil or Costa Rica.  Can or jar sizes vary confusingly from brand to brand; don’t worry as long as you end up with roughly 26 – 30 ounces in all.  This simple but universally popular mixture is equally good as a side dish or an appetizer spread.

They key ise to use the very best olive oil you have.  Hearts of palm are actually pretty bland and need the  kick of a good extras-virgin oil.

Makes 4 servings as side dish

One 28-ounce or two 14-ounce cans of hearts of palm, drained

2 garlic cloves

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, or as needed

1/2 cup finely chopped whites of scallions

Dash of salt (optional)

Process the garlic to a paste in a food processor.  Add the hearts of palm and process to a rough puree.  With the motor running, add the oil in a thin stream until you see the mixture coming together a velvety puree.  The absorbency of palm hearts can vary; any one batch may take a bit less or more than 1/3 cup.

Transfer to a serving bowl and stir in the scallions.  Taste for salt and add a little if desired (some canned brands have more salt than others).  Serve within a few  hours, though it can be held in the refrigerator for up to a day if you reserve the scallions a stir them in just before serving