tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41670629291253483912024-03-05T17:52:45.489-08:00Kirsten Cooks in Mexico!kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-76740360289529792612016-05-28T11:55:00.000-07:002016-05-28T12:27:38.895-07:00After two years of "blogger's block", I am back.<div style="text-align: left;">
I have started a new chapter in my life. After many years of giving Mexican cooking classes in various places, I took the leap and opened up a cooking school in San Miguel de Allende, where I have been living for the last 10 years. I am very excited and full of energy and new ideas.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>La Piña Azul Escuela de Cocina</b></span></div>
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<b>Welcome, come on in!</b></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo and text Brenda Sexton</span></div>
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West at the entrance to her new cooking school, La Piña Azul, and in her traditional <i>mayora's </i>(the near legenday women of the kitchen)<i> </i>clothing. The apron is from her nursing days, 50 years ago; her</div>
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lace head wrap was made by her grandmother 100 years ago.</div>
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<br />kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-14114603200724824662014-06-24T21:13:00.000-07:002014-06-24T21:13:41.732-07:00Hollywood and Moctezuma's Pie<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Recently
I catered</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> a</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">
dinner for a crowd from Hollywood. A well-known producer was celebrating her
husband</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s significant birthday with a few
close friends in one of San Miguel</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s
most stunning homes. They wanted Mexican food, which pleased me tremendously,
as this is when I am in my element. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">The
celebratory evening began with a <i>callejoneada</i> that included <i>mojigangas</i>,
a tequila burro and mariachis, followed by dinner. Hollywood was impressed and
had a blast!</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">The
following day, before the group returned to California, they were served a <i>taquisa</i>
(taco bar) in the casa</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s gardens. As the visitors returned to
their rooms to pack, a guest came over and told me that when he was a youngster
a famous Mexican actress had cooked dinner for his family in Los Angeles. It
was the best Mexican food that he had ever had. My interest was piqued. Who was
the actress and what had she cooked? He could not remember. Dolores del Rio or
Maria Felix? No, it was not them. Then he remembered. Her name was Lupita, and
she had been featured on a postage stamp. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">After
the group had departed, I asked my friend (who had planned their stay) who had
I been talking to? He was the son of William Wyler. No wonder he had had a
famous actresses cooking for him! William Wyler was a director, screenwriter
and producer, a master craftsman of cinema. </span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"><br /></span></div>
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">A few of the films he directed were
<i>Ben-Hur, The Best Years of Our Lives, Funny Girl, How to Steal a Million,
Mrs. Miniver, Roman Holiday, Wuthering Heights </i>and<i> Jezebel.</i></span><i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">That
Lupita had been cooking Mexican food for such a Hollywood giant sparked my
curiosity. This dinner must have occurred in the mid-fifties or early sixties,
and at that time, Mexican food was rarely considered befitting for upper-class
dinner tables. My friend, Diana Kennedy, an award-winning expert on Mexican
cuisine, told me that she learned this when she moved to Mexico City in 1957.
Invitations to dinners in private homes included mostly European cuisines but
not Mexican. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">How
did Lupita Tovar, her stage name, born in 1910, in the small Oaxacan town of
Matias Romero, make it to Hollywood? At least I understood why she had cooked
Mexican food for her friends in California. Oaxacans take great pride in their
culture and food has always been integral and still is to this day. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">While
researching Lupita</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s background I discovered a personal
telephone interview with Michael G. Ankerich on his blog<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">“</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Close-ups
and Long Shots</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">”</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">, where she told her amazing journey. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Ankerich
asked if she had had ambitions to become an actress. She replied: <i>Going to a
school of nuns, you don</i></span><i><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span></i><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t think about being an actress. I had
no ambitions about being an actress. Then, when I was about 16, I went to
another school. The instructor taught dancing, gymnastics, which we didn</span></i><i><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span></i><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">t have with the sisters. I loved it. That was my first
ambition, being a dancer.</span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Robert
J. Flathery, a very successful documentary filmmaker and with Fox Studios, was
in Mexico and spotted Lupita in a school play. He made some screen tests of her
and entered them into the studio</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s competition. Lupita won, and was
awarded a contract with Fox Studios in Hollywood.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Her
father would have none of it. However, after his family and village counsel
persuaded him that it would be a once-in-a-lifetime educational experience, he
caved in, giving Lupita his blessing, but only after declaring that her
grandmother would be her chaperone. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">From
then on, Lupita</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s life became a roller coaster
Hollywood ride. <i>I started out making $150 a week. They paid my grandmother
$25 a week for being with me. My father had never seen so much money. Of
course, I sent all my money home, I just kept very little. We lived very
modestly.</i></span><i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Lupita
took her new life as an actress very seriously and worked ardently at it. <i>I
started taking dancing lessons from Mr. Cansino (</i>Rita Hayworth</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s father, ever wonder why she was such a good dancer?)<i>.
I tried to learn English and do the best I could.</i></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"> Then a big
change happened to the film Industry, the “Talkies” films with sound. Lupita
was fearful of the change because of her accent.</span><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">However, </span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Universal Studios began dubbing films
into Spanish to expand their market into Latin American countries, this gave
Lupita the opportunity to continue working. Then the studio began to make films
with Spanish actors, also featuring Lupita, on the same lot.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Lupita
returned to Mexico for the premiere of </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">“</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">The
Cat Creeps</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">(</span><span style="font-family: "Times Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">La
Voluntad del Muerto)</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">
with Antonio Moreno and she became an instant celebrity. Universal offered her
more roles, and against her father</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">’</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">s
will, she returned to Hollywood. She had come to enjoy her independence. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Hollywood
was on a roll, literally. They decided to shoot the film </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">“</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Dracula</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">with
English-speaking actors during the day and Spanish-speaking actors at night, on
the same set. <i>This was very, very difficult because I always needed my sleep
</i></span><i><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">—</span></i><i><span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
</span></i><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">10
hours. It was a complete change because I had to sleep in the daytime. I was
actually frightened by the sets.</span></i><i><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span></i><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">I would go to work about an hour early and sit there and
try to concentrate. It was very dark and scary.</span></i><i><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span></i><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">We had our dinner at midnight. We left
in the morning before the English cast came in. </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Imagine a Mexican having to eat <i>comida</i>
at midnight? <i>Que horror</i>, I can so feel for her.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje5Hks01UzsOnhyphenhyphenGP-TWx3WPjF11TUenMS24Vbkc3NhL05M-f2pl6D-pxDzLK2omzYCBcvWty1LMeE7iVntKoG8RarIFr_fLPSEGyD1z2h3nV6JjKD_IG1i5sgBfIyZQBFTNiULcKzNbg/s1600/Dracula-Spanish1931-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje5Hks01UzsOnhyphenhyphenGP-TWx3WPjF11TUenMS24Vbkc3NhL05M-f2pl6D-pxDzLK2omzYCBcvWty1LMeE7iVntKoG8RarIFr_fLPSEGyD1z2h3nV6JjKD_IG1i5sgBfIyZQBFTNiULcKzNbg/s1600/Dracula-Spanish1931-01.jpg" height="268" width="320" /></a></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Lupita came back to Mexico to
star in <i>Santa </i>(1931), the country’s first talking film.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVpkIsa99XE8kAVB64VNqFAtbvPOWTtUlTKrL8rl6xgsWXmzrT9SRL61rITaXE2OyUVuyI00jq1ks0_xMg24_QkIZbj28RHMykxuFVcYKAc1f23D62T-OEb0IpLxwmEtcv2VhOdWrlI4o/s1600/1-santa-cartel.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVpkIsa99XE8kAVB64VNqFAtbvPOWTtUlTKrL8rl6xgsWXmzrT9SRL61rITaXE2OyUVuyI00jq1ks0_xMg24_QkIZbj28RHMykxuFVcYKAc1f23D62T-OEb0IpLxwmEtcv2VhOdWrlI4o/s1600/1-santa-cartel.gif" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
They called her
the “Sweetheart of Mexico.” The soundtrack for the film was composed by
Augustin Lara and his haunting song “Santa” is still popular today. The film
propelled Lupita into Mexican movie stardom, which included the honor of her
image on a postal stamp. </div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
Lupita settled in Los Angeles
after her marriage to Paul Kohner, the founder of the most successful talent
agency in Hollywood.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5tgY1WGDK7GIS6PT-CuZF_mMj5jpy9AyBTvzz_i_iyIT9UBb29qp7946zQsdz6JQA9SOG0W2oICLP_ficzmExou2GG-bUvoDokEqrBxyZhrMsawQaYJPZr6TFJR2xkjXUfqjqL79kQcQ/s1600/PaulKohner+and+Lupita+Tovar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5tgY1WGDK7GIS6PT-CuZF_mMj5jpy9AyBTvzz_i_iyIT9UBb29qp7946zQsdz6JQA9SOG0W2oICLP_ficzmExou2GG-bUvoDokEqrBxyZhrMsawQaYJPZr6TFJR2xkjXUfqjqL79kQcQ/s1600/PaulKohner+and+Lupita+Tovar.jpg" height="200" width="157" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Kohner and William Wyler had emigrated together on the
same boat from Europe to the United States, the land of opportunity, which they
found with daring and innovative ideas and hard work. They were life-long
friends and this is why, one evening, Lupita and her sister were cooking
Mexican food for the Wyler family. <br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
After some e-mails, I heard back
through Lupita’s son that the dinner most likely had been “Pastel Moctezuma and
huitlacoche.” This was helpful, but still vague. However, it inspired me to
create a variation on Moctezuma's pie dedicated to Lupita, “Pastel Lupita de
tortillas y huitlacoche.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
The date that Ankerich had
interviewed Lupita by phone was July 28, 2013, she was 103 years old. This July
27 she will be 104! When he asked her how she was doing she answered: <i>Carrying
on</i>. Keep carrying on wonderful Lupita and have a very happy birthday!<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
--------------------------------</div>
This article was printed in La Atención, San Miguel de Allende, Friday June 20. 2014<br />
It was also printed in Spanish, which I translated with the help of my Spanish teacher Concepción Perez, and it was edited by Jesus Ibarra, editor for La Atención.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
-------------------------------</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_mExS_50SJk2V0BWgnptneMOw_aNQd8QOi7a6JsxT63-HDrfjXDg8yEc1IvsGg3ghsBF3RYgRYeDH_1BuPPQDIgDj7ge4TDzgvM8yweQz3I9o03BYLnwLDLs9aLpja1K5_sTd9rz0Uuk/s1600/201111021143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_mExS_50SJk2V0BWgnptneMOw_aNQd8QOi7a6JsxT63-HDrfjXDg8yEc1IvsGg3ghsBF3RYgRYeDH_1BuPPQDIgDj7ge4TDzgvM8yweQz3I9o03BYLnwLDLs9aLpja1K5_sTd9rz0Uuk/s1600/201111021143.jpg" height="320" width="246" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Hollywood y el pastel Moctezuma</b></div>
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<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Recientemente ofrecí un servicio de comida(banquete) para un
grupo de (personas provedentes) de Hollywood. Se trataba de la fiesta de
cumpleaños que una renombrada productora de cine, organizaba a su esposo, con
algunos amigos en una de las más magnificas casas de San Miguel. Pidieron
comida mexicana, lo que me agrado tremendamente, pues es mi “mero mole”. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
La celebración inició con una callejoneada que incluía
mojigangas, el burro con tequila y los mariachis, seguida por la cena.
El groupo estaba impresionado y eufórico.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Al diá siguiente, antes de que regresaran a California,
tuvieron una “taquisa” en el jardín de la casa. Al terminar uno de los
huéspedes se me acercó y me contó que cuando él era joven, una famosa actriz
mexicana había cocinado para él y su familia en Los Ángeles – “Fue la mejor
comida mexicana que jamás he comido”dijo. Logró picar mi<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>curiosidad. ¿Quién sería esa actriz y
qué platillo habría cocinado? El hombre no pudía recordarlo. ¿Dolores del Río o
María Félix? No. No era ninguna de ellas. se acordó. Su nombre era Lupita
Tovar, y había un timbre postal con su rostro.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Depués de que el grupo se había ido le pregunté a mi amiga,
que había organizado la estancia quién era la persona con que había yo estado
platicando. Me dijo que su nombre era David Wyler, hijo del director William
Wyler y que no tenía idea de que una actriz Mexicana huhiera cocinando para él.
Algunas de las películas que <s>él </s>dirigió fueron: Ben Hur,<strong><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">
</span></strong><strong><span style="font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">1959.</span></strong><strong><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">
</span></strong><strong><span style="font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Los mejores años de nuestra
vida</span></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;"> </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;">(The Best Years of
Our Lives, 1946). <strong><span style="font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Jezabel</span></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b><strong><span style="font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">La loba</span></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b>(The Little Foxes, 1941).<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a> <strong><span style="font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Cumbres borrascosas</span></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">
</b>(Wuthering Heights, 1939).</span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Qué Lupita hubiera preparado comida mexicana para un gigante
de Hollywood aumentó mi curiosidad. Esta comida debió haber ocurrido a mediados
de los 50 o inicio de los 60, y, en aquel tiempo, la comida mexicana raramente
era considerada apropiada para las mesas de clase alta, según me dijo mi amiga,
Diana Kennedy, experta en cocina mexicana y ganadora de imortantes premios. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
¿Cómo fue que Lupita Tovar, nacida en 1910, en Matías
Romero, un pequeño pueblo de Oaxaca, habia llegado a Hollywood? Investigando
acera de Lupita descubrí una entrevista con ella, realizada vía telefónica por
Michael G. Ankerich en su blog “Close-ups and Long Shots”, (“Tan cerca y tan
lejos”) donde ella le contaba su increíble trayectoria.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ankerich le preguntó si ella había deseado ser actriz. Ella
respondió: - “Cuando vas a una escuela de monjas, no piensas en llegar a ser
una actiz. Jamás me pasó por la mente. Después cuando teniacomo 16 años fui a
otra escuela en donde un maestro me enseñó danza y gimnasia lo que nunca había
tenido con las monjas. Me encantó. Fue mi primera vez quise ser bailarina”. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Robert J. Flatherty, un exitoso productor de documentales de
los estudios Fox, visitó México y puso su ojos en Lupita durante una obra
escolar. Le hizo algunas tomas y las metió en un concurso Que Lupita ganó,
siendo premiada con un contrato para los estudios Fox en Hollywood. Su padre no
estaba de acuerdo. pero la familia lo persuadieron de que sería una experiencia única en su
educación. Al fin le dio la benedición a Lupita con la condición que su abuela
fuera con ella de chaperona.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
La vida de Lupita en Hollywood fue como una montaña rusa.
–“Empecé ganando 150 dólares a la semana y le pagaban a mi abuela 25 dólares a
la semana por acompañarme. Por su puesto, yo enviaba todo mi dinero a casa,
sólo me quedaba con un poquito. Mi abuela y yo vivíamos muy modestamente. Mi
padre nunca había visto tanto dinero junto.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lupita tomó muy seriamente su nueva vida como actriz y
empezó a trabajar incansablemente. “Comencé tomando clases de danza con el <s>Sr</s>.
señor Cansino (pa<s>pá</s>dre de Rita Hayworth). Traté de aprender inglés e
hice lo mejor que pude. Entonces hubo un gran cambio la industria del cine: las
películas habladas y con sonido. Lupita tenía miedo del cambio por su acento.
Como sea, los Estudios Universal empezaron a doblar las peliculas al español
para expandir su mercado dentro de los países latinoamericanos; esto le dio a
Lupita la oportunidad de continuar trabajando, puez se empezaron a la par
versiones en español de las peliculas con actores latinos, incluyendo a Lupita.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lupita regresó a México para la premiere de “La voluntad del
muerto” que hizo con Antonio Moreno y se convirtió de inmediato en celebridad.
Los estudios Universal le ofrecieron más papeles, y a pesar de la oposición de
su padre, regresó a Hollywood, empez<s>ó</s>ando a disfrutar de su
independencia. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Hollywood la envolvió literalmente. El estudio decidió que
filmara “Drácula” con actores de habla inglesa –Bela Lugosi- durante el día y
con actores de habla hispana –Lupita y Antonio Moreno- en la noche, en el mismo
set. –“Esto fue muy difícil porque yo siempre he necesitado dormir 10 horas y
ahora tenía que dormir durante el día. Fue terrible. Comíamos a media noche y </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
salíamos en la mañana antes de que el elenco americano
llegara”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lupita regresó a México para protagonizar <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Santa</i> (1931), la primera película
hablada en el país. La llamaban “la Novia de México”. La música para la
película fue compuesta por Augustín Lara que incluyó su melancólica canción
“Santa” popular aun en nuestros días. La película lanzó a Lupita como estrella
del cine mexicano, lo cual le valió la inclusion de su imaginen en un timbre
postal.<s><o:p></o:p></s></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Lupito se instaló en Los Ángeles depués de su matrimonio con
Paul Kohner, el fundador de la más exitosa agencia de talentos en Hollywood.
Kohner y William Wyler habían emigrado juntos en el mismo barco de Europa a los
Estados Unidos, en donde ambos desarrollan ideas atrevidas e inovadoras y
trabajaron muy duro. Fueron amigos toda su vida y por eso, una tarde, Lupita y
su hermana Sarita cocinaron comida mexicana para la familia Wyler en su casa de
Bel-Air. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Después de algunos correos electrónicos, el hijo de Wyler
obtuvo respuesta de<s>l</s> Pancho Kohner, hijo de Lupita y productor de cine
quien le dijo que los platillos que probablemente haya cocinandoLupita aquella
tarde, fueron el la comida que más le había gustado, fue Pastel Moctezuma y
huitlacoche. Esto arrojaba alguna luz sobre el asunto pero era aún muy vago. De
cualquier forma me inspiró para crear una variación del “Pastel Moctezuma”
dedicado a Lupita, “Pastel Lupita de tortillas y huitlacoche”.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAl9eVYyNsvS9hEuxe-njs-nSo1jnqgSCMX-Nx2eOQA2ZcJaw9YD54iW1PaGDE1cpk-oVgJQCAVBcDI7ulDNshBOV-2nSaCNl9CXmqPnlshTA1cFQr91ToIqOHa0W3-d3PAxEvZvoxYko/s1600/IMG_3300.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAl9eVYyNsvS9hEuxe-njs-nSo1jnqgSCMX-Nx2eOQA2ZcJaw9YD54iW1PaGDE1cpk-oVgJQCAVBcDI7ulDNshBOV-2nSaCNl9CXmqPnlshTA1cFQr91ToIqOHa0W3-d3PAxEvZvoxYko/s1600/IMG_3300.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ankerich entrevistó a Lupita via
teléfonica el 28 de julio de 2013.
Ella tenía 103 años, ¡Este 27 de julio ella cumplirá 104! Cuando él le preguntó
a ella qué estaba haciendo ella contestó – “viviendo”-. ¡Continúa viviendo
maravillosa Lupita!y pase un muy feliz cumpleaños!</span><!--EndFragment-->
</div>
<!--EndFragment-->kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-43146666013997503062014-03-26T23:18:00.000-07:002014-03-26T23:36:09.531-07:00Up close with Rick Bayless<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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This article was published in "La Atención" San Miguel de Allende Mexico, March 21. 2014</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8W2CFzPg5P0TLBy5eW671qTjbWtCqAyNeLQevWNlKp6iadEEiXQBCcyikLkK5BZG2VqaLq-XUxKyCdD2a_V4MiWYtFKDdU9DWaFwqXaFkavNs4zyBkc1H1pB0C6XO8UXB8-UL-HMfzEw/s1600/Sazon+and+Diana+055_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8W2CFzPg5P0TLBy5eW671qTjbWtCqAyNeLQevWNlKp6iadEEiXQBCcyikLkK5BZG2VqaLq-XUxKyCdD2a_V4MiWYtFKDdU9DWaFwqXaFkavNs4zyBkc1H1pB0C6XO8UXB8-UL-HMfzEw/s1600/Sazon+and+Diana+055_2.jpg" height="295" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Rick Bayless - Kirsten West</span></div>
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Celebrity Chef Rick Bayless will be in San Miguel de Allende
to participate in Mesa Abierta, a three-day culinary festival to be held here
in various restaurants and locations from March 19-21.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Before I permanently moved to SMA, I was living in Chicago
and had the dream job of being the Test Kitchen Director with Rick Bayless for
8 years, testing thousands of true Mexican recipes, oh yes and testing and
testing and one more time back to the stove.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I clearly remember the moment when I spotted Rick’s first
cookbook “Authentic Mexican” in 1987 at the fabulous Italian “Rizzoli”
bookstore in posh South Coast Plaza in California. When I took he cookbook of
the shelf and looked through it, I knew I had found a treasure trove of recipes.
I immediately started cooking from the book. This chef from Oklahoma City and
me, the curious and passionate cook from Germany, I realized have one thing in
common: we really love Mexican food. My love for Mexican food had begun many
years earlier in Mexico where I literally fell in love at first bite.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdYXfyBLy7yFCdEZkZi8Y1l_6CjPCjulMvIuJtqZLjB0TVX8tF1lKbuhZanWz5qqVuJ6gaJh6B1BWFBEi7SDmfWXk-ZJrZK7lztutWmE9WTxjD4t2jzfnMf_Ciwr_qvbO8Ub-s5YztW0s/s1600/Authentic+Mexican+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdYXfyBLy7yFCdEZkZi8Y1l_6CjPCjulMvIuJtqZLjB0TVX8tF1lKbuhZanWz5qqVuJ6gaJh6B1BWFBEi7SDmfWXk-ZJrZK7lztutWmE9WTxjD4t2jzfnMf_Ciwr_qvbO8Ub-s5YztW0s/s1600/Authentic+Mexican+2.jpg" height="320" width="214" /></a></div>
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Years later as fate sometimes has it, I got to meet Rick
Bayless when a mutual friend introduced us on a visit in Oaxaca. We became
family friends and a few years later I moved from Los Angeles to Chicago to
begin the said dream job as Test Kitchen Director. </div>
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<br /></div>
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As Rick tells it, when he was a teenager his family took a
vacation trip to Mexico City where he fell in love with the vibrant culture and
cuisine of what was then the largest city in the world. Over the years many
more trips on his own followed and his honeymoon was spent crisscrossing Mexico
and living in the country for 5 years as well, relentlessly culling recipes
from market vendors, home cooks and restaurants for his first cookbook, which was
published in 1987, the same year he and his wife Deann opened their restaurant
“Frontera Grill” in Chicago.</div>
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Since then he has won every possible Culinary Award from the
James Beard Foundation, the Oscars of the culinary world; chef of the year,
best restaurant in the US, humanitarian of the year, and the list goes on. A TV
show “Mexico-One Plate at a Time” on Public Television followed, now in it’s
successful 14. Year. </div>
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President Barak Obama invited him to cook a Mexican dinner
at the White House for visiting president Felipe Calderón. He was awarded the
order of the Aztec Eagle (<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">Orden Mexicana del Águila Azteca</span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt;">)</span></i><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica;"> </span>in
2012, which the Mexican government bestows on foreigners promoting Mexican
culture aboard.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Whenever I mentioned my work with Rick, many times the
response to this was: “How lucky that he became so famous “.</div>
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Let me tell you, and this I can tell from having been
up-close, luck had very little to do with this.</div>
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In Hollywood they call it the 10-year overnight success when
suddenly an actor appears in the limelight after many years of hard work. This
truly applies to Rick and his wife Deann.</div>
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<br /></div>
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They started with driving a U-Haul from Oklahoma City loaded
with used restaurant equipment, bought from his family, to Chicago. They rented
a small storefront in a then derelict area of Chicago and with Deann’s family
helping them making it as inviting and cheerful as possible. When some of the
artwork Rick had collected in Mexico looked too lost and small on the walls,
they painted large colorful frames on the wall around them to make them look
bigger.</div>
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Rick trekked to the produce market early in the morning and
then cooked on the line until late at night. It did not take long after the
first diners had tasted his food for the word to get out about his delicious food
and guests braved the trip into the not so great neighborhood. From the start
Rick began to employ and train his staff to make sure they understood they were
not serving cheese smothered combination plates but true Mexican cuisine. To
deepen his staffs understanding of Mexican culture and cuisine, he began once a
year, and still does to this day after 26 years, intensive 4-5 day culinary
learning tours to different regions of Mexico. In-house training session with the kitchen staff
and front of the house are still ongoing on a weekly base. This has resulted in
a highly trained, well-informed and loyal staff at his restaurants. Not only
that, but also a highly engaged staff, as cooks are encouraged to contribute
suggestions to the monthly changing menus. For research, they have free access
to the cookbook library, which houses probably the largest private Spanish
language cookbook collection in the US.</div>
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Rick also began to encourage local farmers to bring their
products to the restaurant. If it was something that did not fit into the
Mexican menu, he passed on the foods to his staff all the while urging the
growers to try growing vegetables and fruits he could use on his menus. Today
he receives an abundance of fresh products at his door, the most amazing ones
probably are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tomatillos</i>, grown by
Amish farmers and the highly prized <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">huitlacoche</i>
which one his former executive chefs, with the initial instructions of a
mycologist (the corn fungus used to be only occurring randomly), is now able to
grow on her farm.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Two years after the opening of “Frontera Grill”, Rick and
Deann added the white tablecloth “Topolpbampo”, which took Mexican cuisine to
new heights. 22 years later “Xoco” (the little sister) came along, serving <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tortas, caldos, churros</i> and chocolate,
Mexican street food at its best. All three restaurants are in the same building
and as long as Rick is in the house, he never stops making sure all is as it
should be.</div>
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<br /></div>
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This is the kind of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“luck” it takes to become one of the most successful chefs and restaurateurs
in the US, to turn a derelict neighborhood into Chicago’s Restaurant Row and to
help farmers to provide many restaurants with their products, which mean they
can make a living being full time farmers.</div>
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<br /></div>
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To become successful as a chef or in any profession, it
takes hard work and keeping standards high, only this way can the world be
spared from mediocrity.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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To find out more about Rick’s dinner go to <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><a href="http://www.mesamerica.mx/2014/en/mesaabierta/">http://www.mesamerica.mx/2014/en/mesaabierta/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-62073717344766681732013-06-26T22:40:00.000-07:002013-08-14T22:48:05.251-07:00The Slow Food Movement is Picking Up Speed<!--[if !mso]>
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<br />
In recent years <i>Slow Food </i>is
definitely talked about more than ever, but for many it still is not clear what
the term slow food exactly means. There are the perceptions of slow growing
food and slow cooking food. After all, we have slow cookers and even slow
service in restaurants.</div>
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The Slow Food movement started
27 years ago in Italy. Roman citizens started protesting to a situation that we
are faced with in San Miguel, the planned opening of a McDonalds fast-food
franchise next to their much beloved historic landmark, the Spanish Steps in
the San Marcos Square. </div>
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Carlos Petrini, a journalist,
was among a group of very outraged Roman citizens. However, instead of using
signs to picket and protest, they decided to protest in a very different, yet
effective and deliciously proactive way. Petrini and his fellow protesters
brandished bowls of penne and other home-cooked Italian dishes to demonstrate
their culinary and social importance which was in danger of getting lost to
consumption of fast and homogenized foods. <br />
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<br />
What a great idea! Maybe in San
Miguel de Allende we should have parked one of our busy taco stands outside the
proposed McDonalds location in the historic center. With the help of mariachis,
the message would have been clear. The historic center should remain the
cultural heritage of San Miguel, including with its local family-owned
restaurants and stores.<br />
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<br />
After the protest the Italians
began to look at all the flavorful, traditionally produced foods from the
different regions of their country that had made Italian food one of the most
popular cuisines in the world. These foods were beginning to disappear in the
trail of industrialized food production and fast food operations.</div>
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A solution for preventing these
severe losses needed to be found and three years later 15 nations signed a
manifesto in Paris. The essence of their mission statement was: “Our defense
should begin at the table with Slow Food. Let us rediscover the flavors of
regional cooking and banish the degrading effects of Fast Food.”</div>
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Today, Slow Food has grown into
an impressive global movement. <span style="color: #181818;">There are over more
than 100,000 Slow Food members in 150 countries working for good, clean and
fair food. Their goal is to help producers of traditional foods to make good
products, in clean environments and receive a fair price for their efforts so
they can provide for their families and educate their children.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;">My
personal century-old family history is very closely tied to growing and
garnering food. My father’s ancestors in the Bavarian region of Germany were
farmers and on my mother’s Danish side they were farmers and fishermen. </span><br />
<span style="color: #181818;"><br /></span>
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<span style="color: #181818;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #181818;">I have
worked on farms, too, in the family tradition and know what hard and
back-breaking work this is. Hacking at frozen soil to harvest sugar beets in
freezing weather with clothes not fit for the cold, always made me wonder why
farmers are not highly respected and paid fair wages for their harvest. Here we
were providing affluent tables with their much coveted sugar, yet we were
covered in mud, freezing cold, hungry and tired.</span><br />
<span style="color: #181818;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Photo Getty Images -that's just how it was, back braking</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;">Carlos
Petrini, president of the Slow Food movement, is trying to make the world
understand that we have to respect and support the persons who grow the food
that sustains us and to make sure they can earn a decent living for their hard
work. For that reason I am a Slow Food member in support of this cause.</span><br />
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In 1999 Slow Food started to
catalogue traditionally produced foods in Italy that were on the brink of
extinction and decided to protect them from disappearing. They formed what they
called Presidia (meaning in Latin “garrison” or “fort”)
singling out producers of traditional foods and providing them with assistance
for better development of their products and marketing tools to make them economically
viable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This support system now
has been applied in over 75 countries in the world.</div>
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<b>Mexico today has five Presidia.</b></div>
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<b>Vanilla</b> <b>from
Chinantla</b> in Oaxaca. It’s the only region in the world where vanilla grows
wild. This might mean that the area is the origin of the vanilla plant. The
Aztec emperor Moctezuma demanded regular tribute of vanilla from the people of
Chinantla.</div>
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<b>Cacao from Contalpa</b>,
Tabasco. After the devastating floods in 2007, Slow Food stepped in, organizing
fundraisers to help the growers restore their lost cacao trees.<br />
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<b>Puebla Norte Sierra Native
Bees Honey</b>. The art of bee keeping was highly developed in Mexico and most
varieties were stingless. The biodiversity in the mountains of the Puebla
Sierra Norte is a delicious buffet for local bees to garner pollen to bring
back to their hives and turn them into their highly regarded honey.<br />
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<b>Seri Fire Roasted Mesquite</b>.
The Seri people of Sonora are eking out a living in an area that has less than
100 ml (6 inches) of annual rain. Relying on planting crops is not an option in
this region. Fortunately, they have the Pacific Coast for fish and seafood.
However, the Mesquite tree provides them with beans which when dried is milled
into flour for making tortillas.<br />
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<b>Tehuacán<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Amaranth</b>. This is most likely one
of the oldest cultivated grains in the world. In Tehuacán it has been traced
back to being cultivated 6000 years ago. This grain is a whole food, it has
accompanied astronauts on their space missions, just in case they run out of
junk food up there.<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">The amaranth plant that went to Chicago to grow in Rick Bayless' garden </span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;">Mr.
Petrini was recently on a multi city visit to Mexico. He attended “Mesamérica”
a gastronomic summit meeting of chefs in Mexico City, a Slow Food event in
Puebla and “Morelia en Boca” an international gastronomic festival. I attended
this 3-day festival and as a member of the press was invited to listen to Mr.
Petrini’s talk to a large group of students from one of Morelia’s leading
culinary schools. His passionate talk in, Mr. Petrini’s own words, his best
“italiañol”, he made it very clear that the situation is urgent and we are
running out of time.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: #181818;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #181818; font-size: x-small;">Carlos Petrini, press conference "Morelia en Boca 2013"</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #181818; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #181818;">He
vehemently addressed the danger of Mexico losing its over hundreds of
variations of corn, which have been cultivated in their country for thousands
of years, to the invasion of Monsanto’s GMO corn (genetically modified
organisms). What does this mean? Mexican corn farmers have been selecting their
seeds for millennium to ensure the best corn harvest for the coming seasons.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;">The
corn seeds sold to farmers by Monsanto “invaders” with the promise of much
higher yield than their traditional crops, those are referred to as “suicide
seeds”. Their seeds do not reproduce new plants. To be able to successfully
grow these seeds the farmers need to buy the Monsanto brands of pesticide and
fertilizer. If winds or birds spread Monsanto seeds into fields of farmers who
did not purchase the seeds from them, they can and have been sued by Monsanto
since their seeds are patented. After about three years of chemical fertilizers
and pesticides, the soil is exhausted and cannot support any more growth. It
takes about five years for the soil to recuperate from this damage.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #181818;">During
the following press conference a young women tried to point out to Mr. Petrini
that fast and packaged (junk) food was much less expensive, affordable and
convenient for low-income households. His answer was NO, NO, NO. You will pay
for it in the long run with astronomically high medical bills to treat junk
food induced illnesses such as obesity, diabetes (often with limb amputations)
and heart attacks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #181818;">Herein
lies the tragedy of this grave situation; the indigenous farmers of Mexico were
excellent and advanced agriculturists that bred and grew many grains, fruits
and vegetables that made them one of the healthiest people in the world before
the conquest. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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Go to the Slow Food website and
learn more about this movement. If you are interested in becoming a Slow Food
member, please ask me. The annual membership is 100 pesos.</div>
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I highly recommend these
documentaries, most of which can be viewed on the Internet.</div>
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<a href="http://www.thefutureoffood.com/"><span style="color: #0020f6;">http://www.thefutureoffood.com/</span></a></div>
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<a href="http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-world-according-to-monsanto/"><span style="color: #0020f6;">http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-world-according-to-monsanto/</span></a></div>
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<a href="http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/food-inc/"><span style="color: #0020f6;">http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/food-inc/</span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.kingcorn.net/"><span style="color: #0020f6;">http://www.kingcorn.net/</span></a>
</div>
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<br /></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-12108572113125074312013-01-30T19:29:00.000-08:002013-08-14T11:49:32.913-07:00Mexico's Cuisine Rocks!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghcCSTh4sqCOREHHZorma1WxZhhQBCg05IEs1g60w_T1ccUwqWwzF_l-ZAtAC8uZwXXWC6P4b1e5EnVDK_MhEXrqKPW6uq8DvDYbKQAWj6TxeqewYWgL67WCg2l1T49o5NkAwu5C-OAUQ/s1600/CIMG3029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghcCSTh4sqCOREHHZorma1WxZhhQBCg05IEs1g60w_T1ccUwqWwzF_l-ZAtAC8uZwXXWC6P4b1e5EnVDK_MhEXrqKPW6uq8DvDYbKQAWj6TxeqewYWgL67WCg2l1T49o5NkAwu5C-OAUQ/s640/CIMG3029.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">Looking back at the 2012 culinary year in
México, an explosion of exciting events took place in many areas of the country
and young chefs and restaurants rose to national and international fame. There
is no doubt anymore, México’s cuisine is hot! After becoming the first and only
cuisine in the world to be designated an intangible heritage of humanity by
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)
foreign chefs from Berlin to Melbourne are paying attention and flocking to the
Mexican <i>mercados</i> to learn more about its amazing foods. As with any new
trends, there are a lot of pretentious newcomers that pick up on the buzzwords
du jour, without knowing the foundation of the original that led to the trend. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">I have attended many food events in México
over the years but two of the most memorable events that stand out for me I
attended last year. They made it very clear that all Mexican food trends and
inspirations today are deeply rooted in its culinary traditions. In May at the first
“<i>Festival Internacional del Mole</i>” in Puebla, many cooks from the state
of Puebla proudly presented their moles to festival attendants. Mole heaven!
And no, it is not a chocolate sauce; it is a very complex sauce with many
variations that, in my opinion, leaves French sauces wanting, but more about
moles some other time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRzWrDVoL-Avff1G_opae5IaLElse6uKE9ijZmqZzpQ-EzKEIJHwt7iCsL_szzcjjwFLBijzxI_26NRUcdX_lDB_FkPKWZo_OWIoGgvayoTPYa5hEHnYn73TrZACw77p-j9x_d-LyIyW0/s1600/CIMG2795.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRzWrDVoL-Avff1G_opae5IaLElse6uKE9ijZmqZzpQ-EzKEIJHwt7iCsL_szzcjjwFLBijzxI_26NRUcdX_lDB_FkPKWZo_OWIoGgvayoTPYa5hEHnYn73TrZACw77p-j9x_d-LyIyW0/s640/CIMG2795.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">However, nothing prepared me for the impact
that the “<i>9</i></span><i><sup><span style="font-size: 8.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">°</span></sup></i><i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;"> Encuentro de Cocineras Traditionales de Michoacán</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">” (9</span><sup><span style="font-size: 8.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">th</span></sup><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;"> Encounter of
Traditional Cooks of Michoacán) sponsored by the Michoacán tourist council,
would have on me. In the past, I have attended culinary events featuring maybe
10 to 20 wonderful and exciting cooks and chefs, but at this event, 45 women
cooks from numerous rural Michoacán communities participated. The festival drew
a record breaking 5,000 hungry attendees!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">As my taxi pulled up to the large park of the
Morelia convention center, I knew I was in the right place. Smoke rose from
white tents and delicious smells wafted my way. My taxi driver was ready to
park his car and join me in the festivities. I told him to come back later with
his family and he did.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">The day was very hot. I forgot to bring my
hat. My new iPhone, that I had not a clue about to how to use, took fuzzy pictures.
Smoke from all the wood-fired cooking facilities burned my eyes and made my
hair and clothes smell like I lived in a meat smoker, and yet, overwhelmed with
this sensory input, I was in culinary heaven.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">I have visited Michoacán many times during the
past 20 years and have always loved the foods. Diana Kennedy, renowned Méxican
food expert and my friend and idol, first introduced me to <i>sopa</i> <i>tarasca</i>
(now called <i>sopa purépecha</i>). I love the classic <i>enchiladas de plaza</i>, </span><i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">chirupa</span></i><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;"> (a special occasion rich meat soup, see
recipe), <i>corundas</i> (the unique Michoacán three corner shaped tamales) and
<i>charales</i>, the little delicious white fish from Lake Patzcuaro, <i>pozole,</i>
a soup made with hominy and many condiments, just to mention a few. These
familiar dishes were all served at the festival. However, this is where my
familiarity stopped and now I was on new territory.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">Where was I going to begin tasting all of the
overwhelming variety of foods, for which I had only three days to eat my way
through? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">On the first day I decided to walk past all
the cooks’ tents and then choose my first meal. I am a big fan of <i>pozole</i>
and even if it is not a traditional breakfast fare, I got a bowl of <i>pozole
batido</i> (beaten <i>pozole</i>), which was a <i>pozole</i> that I was not
familiar with. It was creamy and scrumptious. No disposable dishes were used at
the event (I loved it, <i>si se puede</i>); therefore my <i>pozole</i> was
served in a traditional clay bowl with a “spoon” of a piece of agave that was
cut to a point. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8SH5inEtWP7xfGUPSl1JQ2W899Oe4OQC3aFP9JkiDFU7-hoFRNJDjY4AlK5Ug7xV4IaXeLL0RvQNUI-MeL9_FmAqrdPviywiH5mw-nbpLBV8A3lDL5-y_1xmiBzLgOxGnge0LFbof4O8/s1600/IMG_0051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8SH5inEtWP7xfGUPSl1JQ2W899Oe4OQC3aFP9JkiDFU7-hoFRNJDjY4AlK5Ug7xV4IaXeLL0RvQNUI-MeL9_FmAqrdPviywiH5mw-nbpLBV8A3lDL5-y_1xmiBzLgOxGnge0LFbof4O8/s640/IMG_0051.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">As I sat at a long communal table that was
covered with a white cotton tablecloth, and marveled over the incredible taste
of this dish, I realized that in the next few days I had to open my stomach
really wide to be able to taste these amazing dishes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">My next choice was a taco with freshly fried <i>charales</i>,
the little white fish from Lake Patzcuaro. When I took my first bite I thought
this would be a good moment to die, it was heavenly. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgME9moTMplZBzZQu-PYk-8Tnr4HPc-HbMCtCmhQBEr_eL08ipXF2wcUvlxdx_bt3ewvY6Wie6VLEn448Md-4xyWWbPhK9hBjAhrp977xCrk5hlmYmNzAKTcvPFfOcgi5AEsZMB3DFzrGw/s1600/IMG_0052.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgME9moTMplZBzZQu-PYk-8Tnr4HPc-HbMCtCmhQBEr_eL08ipXF2wcUvlxdx_bt3ewvY6Wie6VLEn448Md-4xyWWbPhK9hBjAhrp977xCrk5hlmYmNzAKTcvPFfOcgi5AEsZMB3DFzrGw/s640/IMG_0052.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">I watched a small boy
sitting across the table from me contently munching the little fishes, head to
tail, just as if he was digging into a bag of chips. A table companion was
curious and asked me why this <i>extranjera</i> (foreigner) was scarfing down
foods that were generally not much appreciated by non-Mexicans. A long
conversation about food followed and sharing of more taste treats, such as the
fried-to-a-crisp white fish, followed by endless family introductions. One is
never alone in México. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">My next taste was <i>atapacua</i>. This
vegetable and <i>masa</i>-thickened soup can be embellished with any type of tender
cooked meats; I enjoyed the vegetable version. The cook, dressed in her finest,
gold lace napped traditional dress, proudly presented my bowl to me with
welcoming outstretched arms.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha2fL7SEpOctzD3yZU11_5OxUcRBYclQySr9aV9_4tl0e-scltqMcG-rgFkXw79aeR0PQI5ewRBjJQMqRDJx4WYJWID01D4ErEz5284c8uXkZGKEpDw0OGm9t5iS_vCapOoAv9ujcisIA/s1600/CIMG3959.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha2fL7SEpOctzD3yZU11_5OxUcRBYclQySr9aV9_4tl0e-scltqMcG-rgFkXw79aeR0PQI5ewRBjJQMqRDJx4WYJWID01D4ErEz5284c8uXkZGKEpDw0OGm9t5iS_vCapOoAv9ujcisIA/s640/CIMG3959.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">In Michoacán, a type of tamale, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i>uchepos</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">,
are made from fresh corn and wrapped in fresh corn leaves. They are very
different from any other type of tamales served in México. This preparation is
much more common in South America, where they are called </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i>humitas.</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"> In the
US they were the culinary darlings in the 80s called “green corn tamales”.
Green because of being wrapped in fresh green corn husks. Here I was treated to
an unusual tamale of the same preparation with an amazing taste, called </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i>chircus </i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">(this might not be the proper spelling, I could only record it phonetically)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i> </i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">made from fresh blue corn, chile pasilla, yerbabuena (mint), cilantro, and
very finely shredded meat. The taste reminded me a lot of a dumpling (Semmel
Knödel) served in soups in my home of Bavaria, even if the ingredients were not
related at all.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Throughout the days I revisited the tent of
the cook Benedicta Alejo. I had seen her cooking demonstration at a previous
culinary event in Morelia where she totally stole the show. She apologized for
her poor Spanish (which it was not) that she only had learned a few years
earlier. She ended the demonstration with a greeting in her native <i>Purépecha</i>
language. She is an amazing leader whose knowlege has given great integrity to
the heritage cooking of Michoacán, the state that was partly instrumental in
the UNESCO designation of Mexican cuisine.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Benedicta was invited last December on the day
of the Virgen de Guadalupe to the Vatican where she cooked a Mexican dinner for
her namesake (<i>tocaya</i>) Pope Benedict XVI and 600 guests. I would have
loved to see this experience through Benedicta’s eyes. Her grand, grand, grand,
grand children will probably still remember this event and be showing pictures
of <i>la abuelita</i> Benedicta at the Vatican cooking <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">comida por el papa.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">Among the smoke of burning wood, the global
heat source for preparing meals since times immortal, I wanted to urge young
Mexican and other chefs to learn as much as they can about these traditional
preparations. This is their real heritage, this should be their inspiration,
not the foams, smears and sad drips on the dinner plates that they have
accepted from foreign cuisines, that seldom will be a truly satisfactory dining
experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;">¡Viva
la Cocina Mexicana!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--EndFragment-->kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-64778431616002209222012-04-28T17:41:00.001-07:002013-08-14T11:51:12.721-07:00Luscious Sweet Strawberries for Mother on Her Special Day<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Mother’s Day in Mexico is always on May 10th,
no matter what day of the week. I find that kind of comforting, just like
Christmas is <i>always</i> on December 25. However, there might not always be
time to pamper mother lavishly on a working weekday. What delicious treat
spells love more than strawberries? Serving mother a bowl of strawberries with
a dollop of <i>crema, </i>the local equivalent of <i>crème fraîche</i>, should
bring her pure bliss. It does not get much better considering that zero kitchen
skills are required.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Here in the Bajio it is strawberry time. At
the weekly Tuesday fresh market at the <i>Placita</i> also called <i>Tianguis</i>,
tables with patiently stacked pyramid-shaped piles of fragrant strawberries are
a bright splash of red, among the other seasonal offerings. San Miguel is close
to the city of Irapuato, which considers itself the strawberry center of
Mexico, and, apparently people born there call themselves <i>fresas.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Looking back at my own history with
strawberries I might qualify for this distinction as well. In my early
childhood, growing up in Denmark, I learned to love strawberries. The national
dessert, <i>Rødgrød med Fløde</i> (don’t feel bad if you cannot pronounce this)
is made from strawberries, which grow there in abundance, and, is always served
topped with a big dollop of whipped cream. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My first visit to Mexico, by bus decades ago, was during strawberry
season. Wherever the bus stopped, women surrounded us immediately offering
bowls of <i>fresas con crema.</i> I literally filled myself with strawberries
from bus stop to bus stop.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Strawberry jewlery, blouse, aprons..</span>..</div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Years later, I opened a strawberry crêpe (see recipe) concession at
the Renaissance Pleasure Faire, held for six weekends in Los Angeles and San
Francisco, earning the title of “Strawberry Queen”! No wonder, we went through
one ton of strawberries and 60 cases of whipped cream per weekend. Visitors
started to bring me gifts with strawberry motifs, from cookie jars </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioCAxmfCCtQIs18TIxgZmZaSlC_UxTzXEj53FObN0HbfTssYvmjSp-5hQIZb6aweIQKHdqPVx2sHL8Y9o0JP-stCHfnLxi0t3oQJFatfIFI6SQkGp7T0diMBq91SSHOwdremqfvvaKxv4/s1600/images-5.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="481" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioCAxmfCCtQIs18TIxgZmZaSlC_UxTzXEj53FObN0HbfTssYvmjSp-5hQIZb6aweIQKHdqPVx2sHL8Y9o0JP-stCHfnLxi0t3oQJFatfIFI6SQkGp7T0diMBq91SSHOwdremqfvvaKxv4/s640/images-5.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The wall paper<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">and silver
spoons to fabrics for my costumes. When a friend came along with an armful of
strawberry-patterned wallpaper, my husband decidedly put his foot down. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></div>
</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">One of
the best gifts however was a book about the history of the strawberry. And what a
history this sweet little berry has!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The name strawberry most likely comes from the word stray-berries, as
the mother plant grows (straying) runners. However, today, the word strawberry
makes more sense, since the low growing plants are often surrounded with straw
to prevent the delicate berries from rotting should they lie on the moist
earth. Today, plastic sheets replace the straw. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7JXpSr40J7FpcTNH4pKAcLGPuvnyXMPyHFZkV1b7EMV-uOA1RouJ7xbcWNbCpAIPN7PuoT4bfufdo3JGHtJ-4EvCe1Nik-ui68IrlVsp41MGsiWKAyHq68xi4z1yf4LawMbaRx7cEqAY/s1600/images-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="433" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7JXpSr40J7FpcTNH4pKAcLGPuvnyXMPyHFZkV1b7EMV-uOA1RouJ7xbcWNbCpAIPN7PuoT4bfufdo3JGHtJ-4EvCe1Nik-ui68IrlVsp41MGsiWKAyHq68xi4z1yf4LawMbaRx7cEqAY/s640/images-2.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tiny Fraise de bois</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The tiny strawberries; generally referred to as <i>fraise des bois</i>
or wild wood strawberry are already mentioned in early Greek and Roman
literature. In the 13</span><sup><span style="font-size: 8pt;">th</span></sup><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> century they became very popular in European religious paintings,
especially those depicting the Virgin Mary and Child. This was in part credited
to the deep love St. Francis of Assisi expressed for the gifts of Mother
Nature. It began to influence the style of religious paintings and book
illuminations.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The tiny jewel-like strawberries which only grew wild, were a luxury
that had to be foraged for, laboriously gathered and often presented to royalty
as a special gift. When in 914 a citizen of Auvers France, named Julius de
Berry presented his King with a gift of the fragrant berries, the king was so
pleased that he knighted de Berry and changed his name to de Fraise, the French
word for strawberry. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Almost 800 years later in 1712 an engineer and lieutenant in the French
Army Intelligence Corps named Amédée Francois Frézier, a descendant of de
Fraise, was sent on a secret reconnaissance mission, passing as a trader, to
Peru and Chile. At that time, the then peaceful Spanish-French political
connection was starting to be stressed and Frézier was sent to take stock of
the military strength of the Spanish colonies, just in case the countries
should go to war. His travels took him to every port in Peru and Chile and it
was here in the town of Concepción that he discovered whole fields of red and
white strawberries being cultivated. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For European standards they were exceptionally large, the seize of
walnuts or even hens eggs, as he described them. He found them not to be quite
as delicious as the tiny berries of France but still very good. He decided to
bring several plants back to France to be cultivated in the king’s garden. I
think today we would say the man had heavy strawberry Karma even if apparently
he was not aware of the origin of his last name! For the voyage back, which
took nearly six months, he had to get special permission from the ship’s
captain to be supplied with fresh water to keep his plants alive. It is not
known how many he took on board but 5 plants survived the voyage. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The plants did well in the king’s garden, however, with one important
snag that occurred; they did not bear fruit. Frézier had unknowingly only brought
female plants. His criteria had been to pick the plants with the biggest
berries. After many decades of frustrating experiments by botanists all over
Europe trying to successfully cultivate the big Chilean strawberry, eventually they
struck gold with the help of Antoine Nicolas Duchesne, a botanist at the
gardens of Versailles. He planted a row of native male strawberry plants next
to the Chilean ones and it worked. The large fruited Chilean strawberry, with
the help of its European cousin, paved the way for the strawberries we enjoy
today. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We know that the people of the Americas, south and north, were
incredibly skilled in plant cultivation. The Chileans probably already had
spent millennium on developing their big strawberries, which they were
cultivating on a large scale by the time the Spanish and later Frézier came
along. Couldn’t they have just asked them how they did it?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Crêpes<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I truly earned the title of the “Strawberry
Queen” during my eight years as a concessionaire at the Renaissance Pleasure
Faire in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Every food booth had a specialty and
mine was strawberry crêpes with whipped cream. The Faire was immensely popular;
and, like a juggler, I learned to bake crêpes simultaneously with eight pans in
order to fill demands; which on many days amounted to 2,500 servings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Makes about 20-22 6-inch crêpes<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">1 cup all
purpose flour<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">2 eggs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">1 ¼ cup milk
(or more, depending on the size of your eggs and consistency of the flour)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">¼ cup butter
(optional), melted<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">¼ tsp salt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> vegetable
oil for frying<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Place all the ingredients in a blender and mix
until smooth. The batter should have the consistency of heavy cream. If necessary,
add more milk. You can also do this by hand. Place the flour, eggs and salt in
a bowl, mix lightly, then add milk and optional butter and whisk to a smooth
and free of lumps batter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Let the batter rest for at least 30 minutes.
This can also be done hours in advance, then keep the batter in the
refrigerator. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Heat a small amount of oil or butter in a 6-or
10-inch pan, depending how large a crêpe you would like. Pour in a thin layer
of batter and fry until the batter is set and the underside is golden brown.
Flip the crêpe with a spatula and brown on the other side. Stack finished
crêpes on a plate and keep in a warm oven until ready to serve. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">To serve, fill and garnish with your choice of
filling. Crêpes can also be served with savory fillings, such as creamed
spinach or seafood. There is hardly anything a crêpe does not like.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You can make the crêpes in advance and freeze
them. Instead of stacking them when they are being fried, lay them out in a
single layer on paper towels until they are completely cooled, then stack them,
wrap in clear wrap and place in a freezer bag. To defrost, remove from the
freezer and thaw at room temperature. To reheat, place them in an ungreased pan
over medium heat or reheat them in the oven with your filling of choice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-65646648475446540712012-03-11T22:17:00.006-07:002013-08-14T11:52:08.907-07:00Paletas -The Mexican Popsicle and the Village that Could<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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Knowing Easter is coming soon, I began to think about traditional Mexican Easter foods. My favorite day starting the Easter celebrations in San Miguel de Allende, is <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">Viernes de Dolores</span>, held on the Friday <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">before</span> Good Friday. This is the day many homes erect beautifully decorated altars in honor of the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">Virgen Mary, </span>our Lady of Sorrow. In the evening hours, these homes are then opened for the public to visit. This event is much different from the following austere Easter celebrations of Semana Santa. The mood is festive but not boisterous. Soft, religious music is played, while families, friends and newcomers visit with each other while wandering from home to home. Fruity <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas</span> are offered to passersby, symbolizing the tears of <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">La Virgen de los Dolores</span>. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">Paletas</span> are the part that children are most excited about, but the adults enjoy them as well.</div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">Paletas</span> (from the Spanish word <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">palo</span>, meaning wooden stick or paddle) are ubiquitous throughout Mexico. I have always loved this refreshing fruit treat, even in the US when I lived near Mexican communities. The tinkling bell from the cart of the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta</span> vendor proved Pavlov’s conditioning theory right; I came running whenever I could. I took this refreshing treat almost for granted, but for this article I wanted to offer more information about it and I went into research mode. Well, I ended up getting so much <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta</span> information to be able to fill many pages of <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">La Atención. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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A millennium ago, the Chinese treasured edible ices and snow. Preserving ice throughout the year was difficult, and costly, a luxury reserved only for the royalty and the very privileged. Supposedly, the court of Moctezuma was no exception in craving this luxury, as snow from the Popocatepetel volcano was brought down to his court to create iced concoctions. </div>
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Electricity made it possible to produce ice without the help of freezing temperatures in nature, thus, it became a treat readily available for the masses. The popsicle, so popular in the US after its invention in the 1930’s, was mostly made from artificially flavored juices. In Mexico and other Latin American countries, because of the abundance of fruits, the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta</span> is made from fresh fruit, some with chunks of fruit in them, as well. These <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas</span> became very popular, but the vendors making and selling them still were only eking out a living.</div>
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Let’s go to a struggling small town in Michoacan: Tocumbo. It is considered the town that made the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas</span> famous in a unique way. </div>
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Despite the backbreaking labor, the sugarcane field surrounding the town allowed most of the inhabitants to make wages, yet they could barely survive. There was tradition of making <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas,</span> but again, it did not yield more of an income than working in the sugarcane fields. </div>
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One day, two brothers, Ignacio and Luis Alcázar, and their friend ,Agustin Andrade, headed for Mexico City to seek a better life. They knew how to make <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas</span> and opened a paleteria they named La Michoacana. Daily, they made <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas</span> from fresh fruits and became a huge success. These three men were illiterate, but they knew their trade. Soon they passed on their skills to other family members, who in turn, opened up more La Michoacanas. Those family members passed on the business, and so on.</div>
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Today, there are about 15,000 La Michoacanas in Mexico. All of these “franchises” are passed on with a handshake, and. financing is from person to person, without a bank. Only the Pemex gasoline stations of Mexico have been able to penetrate Mexico as much as La Michoacana.</div>
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As ideal as this sounds, there are severe international copyright issues as La Michoacana has moved northward to the US and Canada and there are plans for global expansion.</div>
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Today, Tocumbo is one of the most affluent communities in Mexico. The town has erected a spectacular monument to the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta,</span> which freed them from the hardship of toiling in the sugarcane fields. Opulent homes were built, the streets of the town are paved, the new church was designed by the famous Mexican architect, Pedro Ramirez Vasques, who designed the basilica of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Mexico City.</div>
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Interestingly, many of the very comfortable homes in Tocumbo are not occupied for eleven months of the year. In December, when the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta</span> business is slow, the families of Tocumbo, from wherever they have their franchises, return to their homes to celebrate Christmas and family fiestas, such as weddings, baptisms, quinceañeras, special birthdays, the passing of beloved ones, and, to participate in the annual <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta</span> festival.</div>
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This is as near to an utopian success story as we can get in our corporate business structure of today.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Academy Engraved LET';">¡</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">Viva las paletas!</span></div>
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Even though you can get <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paletas</span> nearly on every street corner here in Mexico, maybe you would like to try making your own? The following is a recipe by Fany Gerson; a Mexican pastry chef living in New York that started her own <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic';">paleta</span> business called “La Newyorkina.”</div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Bold'; font-size: 12pt;">Paletas de Fresas - Strawberry Pops<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and cut into quarters<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">¾ cup sugar<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">½ cup water<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">2 tablespoons lime or lemon juice, freshly squeezed<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Combine the strawberries and sugar in a bowl. Let sit until the strawberries start releasing their natural juices, about 20 to 30 minutes. Place the mixture in a saucepan over medium heat and simmer until the strawberries a slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Transfer the mixture to a blender or a food processor; add the lemon or lime juice and purée until smooth. Alternatively, you could leave some chunks in, if you like.<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Using conventional molds, divide the mixture among the molds, snap on the lid, and freeze until solid for about 5 hours. If using glasses or other unconventional molds, freeze until the pops are beginning to set (1½ to 2 hours), then insert the sticks and freeze until solid, about 4 to 5 hours. If using an instant ice pop maker follow the manufacturers instructions.<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 9pt;">From Fany Gerson’s </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman Italic'; font-size: 9pt;">Paletas: Authentic Recipes for Pops, Shaved Ice and Aguas Frescas</span><span style="font-size: 9pt;">, Ten Speed Press, Berkley, California.<span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-55931468293015513932011-12-23T15:56:00.000-08:002013-08-14T12:08:02.352-07:00Fields of Onions<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">“Only he can understand what a farm is, what a country is, who shall have sacrificed part of himself to his farm or country, fought to save it, struggled to make it beautiful. Only then will the love of farm or country fill his heart.” Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900-1944)</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I remember how hard the life of a farmer is, especially after having lived it, and it came back to me in full measure when I saw the results of the recent frost we experienced here in the Bajio. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">At the Ex-Hacienda Purisima de Jalpa, where I now work, we were ready to harvest the little yellow patty pan squashes, nasturtium flowers and heirloom tomatoes amongst other vegetables. Despite the thick protective plastic covering they turned to mush overnight due to the freeze (-4˚C/24˚F). I fried some of the unripened green tomatoes for our lunch but they just did not taste as delicious as usual, knowing they were a rescue effort from a disaster. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">However sad this loss was, there was a much bigger one looming in the distance in the large onion fields of the hacienda. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">A group of field workers had been hired to begin harvesting the tons of onions that were ready for market. The kitchen staff was busy cooking hearty meals to bring to the workers in the fields. Hundreds of sacks of onions were quickly piling up and then packed onto delivery trucks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">After the freeze, the green tops of the yet-to-be-harvested onions, having dutifully protected the onion bulb, turned into a yellow brown mush and left the onion bulbs vulnerable to damage by the next round of frost and to also become sunburned, which meant developing into a very undesirable shade of green. The loss would be devastating in many ways; hundreds of hours of lost labor, money invested and a scarcity of onions for the consumer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">With the speed of an ambulance a large truck carrying thousands of yards of a white cotton-like, non-woven material was brought in and spread over each of the endless rows of onions. Despite the grim situation, the fabric created a surreal image; the large white strips of cloth covering the ground waved in the wind like dancers veils, while the wind stirred the dried earth into dust that defused the sunlight. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The sun warmed the onions and the most aromatic fragrance was released. All I could think about were my favorite onion dishes: French onion soup, onion tart and Indian-style caramelized crisp onion strips. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">But most of all, it reminded me off how volatile growing crops can be. In this case, Mother Nature did not need to create a dramatic natural disaster such as floods, hail or storms. Just the subtle drop of a few degrees in temperature was all it took to cause great damage in the fields, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">not just for the Ex-Hacienda Purisima de Jalpa, but for <i>all</i> of the farmers in our area. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The recipe for onion soup is from <i><span style="color: #222222; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">The Art of Mastering French Cooking</span></i><span style="color: #222222; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"> by Julia Child. I personally like to place my cheese croutes on top of the soup and melt the cheese under a broiler. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Onion Soup <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Soupe à l’Oignon<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">For 6 to 8 servings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">1 1/2 pounds (680 grams, about 5 cups) thinly sliced yellow onions <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">3 tablespoons (40 grams) butter <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">1 tablespoon oil <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">1 teaspoon salt <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar (helps the onions to brown) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">3 tablespoons (25 grams) all-purpose flour <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">2 quarts (2 liters) boiling beef or other stock <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">1/2 cup (120 ml) dry white wine or dry white vermouth <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Salt and pepper to taste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">3 tablespoons cognac or brandy (optional)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Rounds of hard-toasted French bread (see recipe)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">1 to 2 cups grated Swiss or Parmesan cheese <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Cook the onions slowly with the butter and oil in a heavy bottomed 4-quart saucepan, covered for 15 minutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Uncover, raise the heat to moderate, and stir in the salt and sugar. Cook for 30 to 40 minutes stirring frequently, until the onions have turned an even, deep, golden brown.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 3 minutes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Off heat, blend in the boiling liquid. Add the wine, and season to taste. Simmer partially covered for 30 to 40 minutes, skimming occasionally. Correct seasoning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Set aside uncovered until ready to serve. Then reheat to simmer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Just before serving, stir in the cognac. Pour into a soup tureen or soup cups over the rounds of bread, and pass the cheese separately.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Garnishings for onion soup<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Croutes</span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">- hard toasted French bread</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">12-16 slices of French bread, cut ¾ inch thick<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Olive oil or beef drippings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">A cut clove of garlic<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Place the bread in one layer in a roasting pan and bake in a preheated 325</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">˚F/160˚C oven for about half an hour, until it is thoroughly dried out and lightly browned.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Halfway through the baking, each side may be basted with a teaspoon of olive oil or beef drippings; and after baking, each piece may be rubbed with the cut garlic.<span style="color: #222222; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Croutes au Fromage</span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"> cheese <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">croutes</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Grated Swiss or Parmesan cheese<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Olive oil or beef drippings<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Spread one side of each </span><span lang="FR" style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">croute</span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;"> with grated cheese and sprinkle with drops of olive oil or beef drippings. Brown under a hot broiler before serving.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; letter-spacing: 1.2pt;">Bon Appétit!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-40511553576024504752011-12-23T15:17:00.000-08:002013-08-14T12:18:50.992-07:00Eggplant— Large Purple Eggs?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Thanks to Michael Scott, who grows a great variety of unusual and delicious vegetables at Rancho Las Palmas near Atatonilco, visitors to the Saturday Organic market will now be able to find out how eggplant, the large purple one that most of us know, got it’s name. In his crate are little round white ones, and that is the answer. There are many varieties of eggplants that come in different colors and shapes. Purple, green, white and orange – small marble seized, golf ball seized, egg seized, long narrow sausage like ones and the large pear shaped ones.</div>
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Botanically the eggplant<span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 13pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">(<i>Solanum melongena</i>)</span> is classified as a fruit and belongs to the family of nightshades, it is remotely related to the tomato and potato. </div>
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The eggplant originated in India and continued it’s global voyage on to southern and eastern Asia where it has been cultivated and much appreciated for over 4000 years. From there it was taken to the Arabic and Mediterranean countries. It was the small white, egg seized one that was first introduced to Europe in the Middle Ages and it’s name Eggplant stuck in English speaking countries, even as the more familiar purple ones were introduced later. In France it was named after the color purple, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">aubergine.</i><span style="color: #444444; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">The Spanish, who named it "Berengenas" (<i>berenjenas</i> in Mexico) believed it to be an aphrodisiac, its name translates to “Apple of Love”. They introduced the eggplant to the Americas, mainly to Brazil as early as 1650. Eggplants were still unknown to the United States for another 150 years. Thomas Jefferson introduced them to the United States in 1806 from France were he had enjoyed them very much. To this day a prickly, white Eggplant is still grown in Jefferson's preserved Virginia Garden at Monticello. Jefferson was not only a founding father of the United States, but also a legendary horticulturist who championed new vegetable varieties to his country. Despite his efforts, the eggplant for a long time was only an ornamental plant in the United States, until immigrants from eggplant loving countries arrived and tuned the garden ornaments into their favorite dishes. Last year the US imported about 140 million pounds of eggplant, 80% of which was grown in Mexico.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Go to the recipe tab for my "Eggplant and Potato" recipe.</span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-6497236288320112952011-10-07T19:03:00.000-07:002013-08-14T12:13:25.508-07:00In Praise of the Green Onion<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">It is hard for me to understand the horror of having onion (or garlic) breath. To swish your mouth with chemical liquids, you all know the blue stuff I am talking about, to eliminate the fact that you just have enjoyed one of the most ancient delicious vegetable known to man, is cruel taste punishment.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The onion is one of the earliest consumed bulbs by man dating back about 5000 years. The Egyptians treasured them immensely, Greek Olympian contenders and Roman doomed gladiators believed in the strengthening power of onion by rubbing their bodies with its juices. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus"><span style="color: windowtext;">Christopher Columbus</span></a></span><span style="font-size: 13pt;"> on his 1492 expedition to the New World brought onions, not wanting to miss them away from home. However, strains of wild onions already grew throughout North America and Native American Indians ate wild onions raw or cooked, for seasoning or as a vegetable. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13pt;">Here in Mexico the markets always have a large display of the green onion bundles, referred to as Mexican bulb onions (scallions in the US). In restaurants or street stalls where tacos are served, a plate of green grilled onions are served as a side with plenty of lime wedges for juice to squeeze over them. They are grilled without oil but take on an almost buttery taste. The green tops are usually used as a handle to hold on to the bulbs for munching on them, but not eaten. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13pt;">As a person that hates waste, imagine my delight in finding this recipe from of our local state of Guanajuato. Indigenous and colonial food roots run deeper here than is generally known. I am out there exploring the culinary frontiers for you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13pt;">If you like authentic Mexican food, keep exploring with me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Green Onion Soup<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sopa de rabos de cebolla<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Makes 8 servings</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> 6 cups onion greens, chopped coarsely<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> ¼ stick butter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> 6 cups chicken broth (or vegetable)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> 1cup sour cream (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">crema</i>)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For garnish:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> 3 white rolls (<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">bolillos</i> or firm white bread) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> ¼ stick butter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Melt the ¼ stick butter in a 4 -quart sauce pan, then add the chopped green onions and fry them until wilted. In a blender process the onions with 3 cups of the chicken (or vegetable) broth until very smooth. Press mixture through a strainer back into the saucepan and add the other 3 cups of chicken (or vegetable) broth. Bring to a boil and let simmer on a low flame for about 5 minutes. The soup can be made in advance up to this point and refrigerated. Just before serving reheat and add the cream. Do not let the soup boil after you have added the cream as it might curdle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Garnish:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Cut the bolillos or bread into ½ inch cubes and toast them in a large frying pan in the butter-vegetable oil mixture over medium heat, stirring often. The cubes should be crisp and golden on all sides. These can also be done in advance and kept in an airtight container until serving.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Place them in a serving bowl with a spoon and pass them with the soup.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 9pt;">Guia gastronómica méxico desconocido #11, comida guanajatense<o:p></o:p></span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-34173950636384670872011-10-07T18:48:00.000-07:002013-08-14T12:24:34.998-07:00You say Tomato and I say Tomahto.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We are so lucky to finally have local growers produce tasty, succulent heirloom tomatoes. Red and yellow cherry tomatoes, wrinkled dark red brandy wine, bright yellow ones and even a sprinkling of green zebra have been spotted. Since I am next to the Via Organica plant stand, I noticed a brisk sale in their tomato plants and customers stop by to report on the growing progress of their plants. The tomato is another gift from the New World and it is a tragedy to see what we are offered today on a commercial level. Tasteless and hard, prematurely picked green and gassed with ethylene to turn them red, all for the sake of long distance travel and year round availability. So, how can we make the most of our local crop as long as the season lasts? Tomato sauce is on top of my list because it can be added to so many dishes, pasta being the most favorite one. Homemade ketchup is another favorite. Dill pickled cherry tomatoes make a great accompaniment for meat dishes. However, these methods require canning, which is more effort than many are willing to invest in. Oven-dried tomatoes are absolutely delicious in salads and pastas, even in off-season winter guacamole. If you are in the habit of having afternoon tea (that’s the fancy one, high tea is the substantial savory fare for hard working folks), then here is an old-fashioned recipe for you that is absolutely delicious and you can keep several jars in the refrigerator for weeks. Tomatoes for the longest time had an identity crisis, is it a fruit or a vegetable? The use as a vegetable seems to have settled the dispute by cooks but this sweet </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">recipe will have your friends coveting an invitation to your afternoon teas. Don’t forget to bake some fresh scones!</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="ES-MX" style="font-size: 12pt;">Tomato-Orange Jam <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Makes about 2-3 cups<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">2 lbs ripe tomatoes <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">2 medium navel oranges<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">1 slice of quarter coin size of fresh ginger (or ¼ teaspoon powdered)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">2 inch strip of lime rind<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Skin the tomatoes by dropping them into boiling water for a few seconds, and then plunging them into cold water, the peel will now come off very easily.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Cut the tomatoes across in half, and squeeze out the seeds if you wish, it is not necessary. Cut the tomatoes into ¼ inch cubes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Make orange wedges by peeling the orange and then cutting out the “flesh” between the membranes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Combine tomatoes, orange slices, ginger and sugar in heavy saucepan and cook covered for 20 minutes. Uncover, add lime rind and slowly boil for about 1- 1½ hours until the mixture has a thick syrupy (jammy) consistency.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Fill hot into a glass jar with a screw top lid, and then cool completely before refrigerating. This will keep in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks, if you do not consume it faster.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Note:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">If you like to can, you can multiply the recipe to your liking and preserve it with proper canning methods. This way it will keep for months without refrigeration<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-24079538094495027052011-10-06T12:56:00.000-07:002013-08-14T12:26:00.202-07:00Pesto - pronto!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:DocumentProperties> <o:Template>Normal.dotm</o:Template> <o:Revision>0</o:Revision> <o:TotalTime>0</o:TotalTime> <o:Pages>1</o:Pages> <o:Words>321</o:Words> <o:Characters>1833</o:Characters> <o:Company>Home Use</o:Company> <o:Lines>15</o:Lines> <o:Paragraphs>3</o:Paragraphs> <o:CharactersWithSpaces>2251</o:CharactersWithSpaces> <o:Version>12.0</o:Version> </o:DocumentProperties> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:DontAutofitConstrainedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="276"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDE1r5Y_EH9mzrCJgZbWJ1Y-g6zLgtnoawpRlTsSzbIwf5cfNk6J3X5MAnH8wmqpFVEZZP7VSme4ZYhHwIiT_6SSd9vTOq7b9ALh7vG40hd8NHKYuzSPOXyM2gKVSxOLC4VqwAzdPsbU/s1600/CIMG2060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDE1r5Y_EH9mzrCJgZbWJ1Y-g6zLgtnoawpRlTsSzbIwf5cfNk6J3X5MAnH8wmqpFVEZZP7VSme4ZYhHwIiT_6SSd9vTOq7b9ALh7vG40hd8NHKYuzSPOXyM2gKVSxOLC4VqwAzdPsbU/s640/CIMG2060.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Handy little containers of pesto in your freezer</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Right now is the height of the growing season for all things edible. The stalls at the Saturday organic market are brimming with all kinds of wonderful fruits and vegetables. Since there is a limit to how much we can eat, the thought of preserving some of the foods comes up. Canning, of course, is the most efficient way, however few are inclined to go though the efforts of doing so. Drying is a good way to save some items, especially fruits. Freezing is not much an option; except there is a terrific way of saving the flavor of basil for a long time<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">—</b>make pesto and freeze it. There is no cooking involved; all you need to do is switch on your food processor and pesto! There are many herbal pastes now calling themselves pesto but the original version is from Genoa in Italy. It is traditionally made in a mortar with a pestle, from which the sauce’s name is derived. The ingredients are basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese and olive oil, that’s it. Store your pesto in small containers, enough to have an instant seasoning for pasta, grilled vegetables, meats, seafood, sandwiches (mix it with mayo) or when extended with oil and vinegar you get a great salad dressing. Walnuts can be substituted for the pine nuts; in case of allergies you can leave out the nuts and still have a great sauce. The garlic, cheese and olive oil you can also buy right at the market with your basil. The pine nuts and handy containers you find at Bonanza. ¡Buen provecho!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">6 1/2 cups <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>basil leaves, packed</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">3/4 cup <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Parmesan (or pecorino), cut into chunks</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">6 tbsp. <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>extra-virgin olive oil</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">3 tbsp. <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>pine nuts, lightly toasted </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">3 cloves <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>garlic, minced </span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia; mso-bidi-font-size: 14.0pt;">Place the chunks of cheese in your food processor and pulse until it looks like grated. Remove it and set aside. Then place basil leaves, half of the olive oil, pine nuts and garlic in the food processor and pulse until you have a fine paste. Drizzle in the rest of the olive oil while the processor is running. Scrape down sides of the processor container, then add the grated cheese and pulse a few times. You should have a smooth paste by now, if not add more olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-37920821379738654232011-08-23T22:55:00.000-07:002013-08-14T12:32:50.449-07:00Granada—the Fruit—the City—the Song<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivvA6URdg_Zu9u01326NWDaDFDvI-Pj9-rD-Nv4Vt467u6uaM6GXZafjjKsXuzf6xrLihtmwBi5BWxIVJ09RCHpTHiZngrnW5b5uaPHP1HZqSgbgWkOIpQdPIs1w9_aP7_QRhDW8h4oKs/s1600/Pomegranate_Tree.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="634" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivvA6URdg_Zu9u01326NWDaDFDvI-Pj9-rD-Nv4Vt467u6uaM6GXZafjjKsXuzf6xrLihtmwBi5BWxIVJ09RCHpTHiZngrnW5b5uaPHP1HZqSgbgWkOIpQdPIs1w9_aP7_QRhDW8h4oKs/s640/Pomegranate_Tree.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Its pomegranate<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">, granada</i> season, most apparent for mny of us with the offerings of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chiles en nogada</i> during this month when Mexicans are celebrating their independence on September 16. The jewel-like red seeds used for garnish of the dish gives it its festive sparkle and completes the red, green (cilantro or parsley) and white (walnut sauce) colors of the flag. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">The brilliantly red seeds are now also offered are at all the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mercados</i> in town<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">.</i> Here they are filled into clear plastic beakers and placed next to the whole fruits, which is sometimes cut into 4 wedges, revealing it’s supposedly 365 or more jewel-like seeds</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">. </i>As patriotic as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chile en nogada</i> appear to be, the pomegranate came a long way from its country of origin, that is Persia, today’s Iran. It has been cultivated there for over 4000 years. It is depicted in old paintings as a symbol of fertility and when you break one open, it becomes apparent why.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Other than humans, foods have historically been the next most enthusiastic long distance travelers, many times hitching free rides as seeds in the pockets of their explorers. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">From Persia the pomegranate made it’s </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p>first </o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">voyage to India, then Asia, Egypt and many other sub-tropical climates where it thrives well. In Spain the fruit was especially treasured and </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">the city of Granada, after several previous name changes, was eventually named after the fruit as the trees grew there in abundance on its hill sides. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHk13hKGHkRZ_ddL3joUdHykEZqRzHvuET7PX0bPz0sJn6E1zHRVR5WlQu_jaYi9Z_KvcZK-lD7DcW_C1ktrIsm04Mgy78mqEV3aav7RMh8g9PHnN-rj7gIeLXVcweTvd_hxlyFQ2JCJE/s1600/2010-02-02__15-15-58Image6.GIF" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHk13hKGHkRZ_ddL3joUdHykEZqRzHvuET7PX0bPz0sJn6E1zHRVR5WlQu_jaYi9Z_KvcZK-lD7DcW_C1ktrIsm04Mgy78mqEV3aav7RMh8g9PHnN-rj7gIeLXVcweTvd_hxlyFQ2JCJE/s640/2010-02-02__15-15-58Image6.GIF" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Luis Melendez, Spain 1771</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">As we know, what the Spanish conquerors of the New World did not find in there, they brought with them. In their goodie bags they also had walnuts, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nuez de Castillo</i>, from which the creamy white sauce is made that smothers the stuffed chile. The filling of the chiles, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">picadillo, </i>is a classic Moorish/Spanish combination of meat, fruits and “warm” spices. The cilantro sprinkled on top came into Mexico via Acapulco from Asia on the mighty and forbiddingly powerful Manila Galleons, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">los</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">naos de china</i>. So the only indigenous part of this patriotic dish is the chile. However, considering the many gift this country has given to the world, it is a dish resulting from a fabulously harmonious exchange of flavors, a 400 year old food fusion so to speak. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Chiles en nogada</i> can be a bit challenging for home cooks to prepare, but if you like pomegranate seeds, there are many other ways to use them. My friend Diana Kennedy gleaned a recipe for an unusual guacamole form a family in Comonfort that is easy to make and will most likely become your most favorite way of preparing guacamole. It uses fruits in season including pomegranates and is amazingly delicious and looks beautiful. It holds-up very well, so it can be made a few hours in advance if you are planning to serve it to guests. Treat yourself to the blue corn tortillas that the women from the campo sell at the Mercado San Juan de Ramirez to mop-up this divine but seasonal treat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The reason you might have shied away from using pomegranates could be not knowing how to manage getting the seeds out of its hard peel. Visions of red splattered clothing and kitchen walls might have deterred you, but here is an easy way to prevent all that., After you see how easy they are to peel, you might just want to start eating them, as long as the season lasts, for breakfast, lunch and dinner because the fruit has an abundance of health properties and —don’t forget the Grenadine for concocting your Kir Royal, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">sipping it while Augustin Lara is singing his famous composition of “Granada”. This should send you into sheer pomegranate bliss.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A Clean and Easy Way to Peel a Pomegranate</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Step 1:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Cut the crown end of the pomegranate<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Step 2:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Lightly score the rind in several places.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Step 3:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Immerse fruit in a bowl of water <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Step 4:</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Hold fruit under water and break sections apart, separating seeds from </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">membrane. Seeds will sink while rind and membrane float</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Step 5: </span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Skim off and discard membranes and rind<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Step 6: </span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Strain seeds (arils)</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For Diana Kennedy's guacamole recipe go to Recipes.</span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-6992631889614226662011-07-23T21:57:00.000-07:002013-08-14T12:48:20.045-07:00Come to CASA's Margaritaville<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><b>Sip’n vote tonight at the 4</b><sup><b>th</b></sup></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><b> annual CASA Margarita Contest and fundrais</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">CASA's spectacular roof terrace</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Tequila has gone from hooch to haute and lately mescal is not far behind. Tonight (July 29. 2011) about 25 of San Miguel’s top restaurants will show just how serious they are about crafting the best margarita for you. And you will be the judge for choosing the best. If one of your personal missions would be to find out who serves the best margarita in town, visiting all the different restaurants might be a daunting task. However, tonight you can try all of them in one sitting under one roof, to be exact, on the roof of the CASA (Center for Adolescents of San Miguel A.C.) facility in Santa Julia with its breathtaking 360 view. There will be live music to dance to, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">botanas</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"> created just for the occasion by yours truly, door prizes and fabulous auction items.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">CASA has a special reason to celebrate this year; the organization has been in operation for 30 years. If you ask why celebrate with a margarita contest, here is my personal view. The German author Goethe ended one of his most famous poems with (my rough translation): “daily work-evening guests, dour weeks-happy fiestas, this be your future magic words” (</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Tages Arbeit, abends Gäste! Saure Wochen, frohe Feste! Sei dein künftig Zauberwort)</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">. It is my life’s motto. Nadine Goodman the founder of CASA who is originally from New York, has relentlessly worked long days and many hard weeks and years to realize her extraordinary vision of providing a better life for mainly adolescents and single mothers in her adopted home of San Miguel de Allende. However, the fiestas have been far apart.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In a way that is why I think a margarita festival is a wonderful way to celebrate. Tequila is Mexico’s national beverage and I see a parallel with the development of CASA and the production of Tequila, seriously I do, read on. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -Producing tequila or mescal is very hard work and takes years of endurance and patience. The agave from which tequila or mescal is made can take up to 8-12 and sometime 20 years to grow before it is ready to be harvested. It has to withstand droughts, pests and rot in all those years. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegyYPNfxMTDwK9zjCpYO_AzED3jlwQKZL6_POpRbSqfbcqM4OCga_wDtVpOKe2mvOASWpD__7aqP3u2dO-c9g8H_Ey108ALLSYVtL-RkofOS40uhLHEIW9SfbJ4rQbQzOy6Nm0Q48asI/s1600/556560_427655193932085_993819014_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegyYPNfxMTDwK9zjCpYO_AzED3jlwQKZL6_POpRbSqfbcqM4OCga_wDtVpOKe2mvOASWpD__7aqP3u2dO-c9g8H_Ey108ALLSYVtL-RkofOS40uhLHEIW9SfbJ4rQbQzOy6Nm0Q48asI/s640/556560_427655193932085_993819014_n.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -CASA has endured strong resistance to its juvenile pregnancy prevention efforts, domestic violence awareness and gender discrimination. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -Once the agave is ready to be harvested, its spiny leaves are cut off, making the core look like a pineapple. These are then placed in big ovens where they are steam-cooked. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -When CASA started its midwife-training program, it was put through the steamer for years with strong opposition from the medical field. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -After this, the steamed and crushed agave cores are left to ferment. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -CASA persevered and kept all of its programs going. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -The final process is distilling the fermented agaves into the pure spirits that is Tequila or Mescal. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> -CASA now, after 15 years of hard work, is the first and only midwife school in Mexico to grant a professional certificate to its graduating students. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Good things take time, so sip your tequila slowly and don’t ask for aged tequila, as you can see it has already aged in the plant. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">A fond thought also goes out to Miss Margarita, whoever she was, for being the inspiration for one of the most popular cocktails on the planet. Tonight the classic version will compete side by side with new exotic versions. There will also be non-alcoholic beverages offered for the designated drivers. Come and join the fun and cast your vote for the best. Be a CASA supporter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">www.casa.org.mx </span><br />
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kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-27677590670350478522011-07-05T21:21:00.000-07:002013-08-14T13:00:52.889-07:00Rice is Nice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">“Rice Is Nice, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">that's what they say, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Rice Is Nice, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">throw some my way, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Rice Is Nice on any day,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;">Twice as nice when violins play.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 8pt;">Rice is Nice </span></i><span style="font-size: 8pt;">by The Lemon Pipers<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The lyrics to this popular 1960s song refers to having rice thrown at you at your wedding. This is an ancient custom, symbolizing good wishes of fertility and for a bountiful new life together. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p> Rice grains</o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Now when served a portion of rice, one rarely thinks about the importance rice has played in the history of civilization. It is one of the oldest cultivated grains in the world. As with any transition for humankind from hunter-gatherers to farmers, it was the beginning of a civilization. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Here in the Americas the same occurred with the cultivation of <i>maize</i> (corn). Both grains were taken on a global journey and became an integral food in most countries of the world. Corn and rice with wheat are today the worlds most widely grown grains. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Rice has its origins in China; from there it was taken to all Asian countries and India. Alexander the Great supposedly brought rice to Greece where it was named <i>oryza</i>. I think any food that traveled from Asia to Europe that we have no clear records of, for example, pasta, got shoved into Alex’s luggage. Whichever way, rice moved on to North Africa and with the Moors from there to Spain. The Arabic word for rice,<i> al-ruz</i>, became the Spanish <i>arroz</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When rice was introduced to Mexico by the Spanish explorers through the port of Veracruz, the climate in this coastal area proved to be ideal for growing rice. To this day, the state of Veracruz is the largest producer of rice in Mexico. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">As with many other foods introduced to the New World, rice soon was flavored with the native tomatoes, chiles and corn. Combined with Old World onions, garlic, peas and carrots, sprinkled with the Chinese import of cilantro, rice became a culinary favorite and one of Mexico’s signature rice dishes.</span></div>
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Arroz a la Mexicana</div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Rice also became a menu staple as <i>sopa seca</i> (dry soups), the equivalent of the Italian pasta course, <i>sopa aguada</i> (wet soups) and and </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">accompaniment to the main course. For dessert, rice was served as <i>arroz con leche</i> (rice pudding).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Fast forward to the present with the alarming rise in incidents of obesity and diabetes in Mexico. The government has begun a nationwide campaign to promote increasing the consumption of rice, including the addition of fresh vegetables and fruits. Despite the assumption that the Mexican diet consists of rice, beans and corn, its rice consumption is very low compared to other countries. Asian countries consume about 400 pounds of rice per capita, the USA about 24 pounds and Mexico only 17 pounds. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Rice has lost its appeal in restaurants and the upper middle class desires the more trendy pasta. No offense against pasta, but it can’t hold a nutritional candle to rice. Rice, is with no doubt, a super food. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">If you are in a rice rut (it is not a disease) then look to all the fabulous ways rice can be prepared from recipes the world over. Grilled Japanese rice balls, risotto, rice omelets, rice cake, <i>horchata</i> (rice drink) and then some. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Come join me at this Saturday’s Fiesta Arroz, Pan y Vino at 1:30 PM where I will help you to get out of your rice rut by showing new, exciting and easy ways to prepare nice rice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Published as an article in La Atención, San Miguel de Allende, July 1. 2011</span></div>
kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-83657800554061904442011-06-17T18:40:00.000-07:002015-01-05T12:10:14.090-08:00The Amazing Amaranth Village<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The amaranth's red and green seed heads are filled with tens of thousands of tiny seeds.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Imagine you are an astronaut on a space mission. Your ration of Tang, the fake orange juice, and your squeeze-tube meals have ran out because you were hungrier on this trip than you thought. What do you do? You break out your emergency stash of amaranth seeds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Well, this might just be a curious daydream for space travel lovers. However, it is a real fact that the US astronauts carry amaranth seeds on board of their missions. It is lightweight and has a long shelf life, useful attributes for space travel, but most important of all; this ancient grain, with its origin in Mexico, is one of the world’s few complete foods. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The indigenous people of Mexico appreciated this grain more than corn, and worshipped it as a special gift of nature. For their ceremonial tributes to the amaranth grain, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">huautli</i> in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nahuatl </i>language, they sculptured figurines out of the seeds, and at the end of the rituals they broke them into small pieces and passed them around to the worshipers. Eating the seeds symbolized the assurance for a successful new harvest.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The newly arrived Spanish Catholic clergy, observing this, thought their ritual of Holy Communion was being mocked, consequently, they angrily outlawed the cultivation of amaranth under penalty of death. Removing one of the most nutritious grains from the indigenous diet caused a massive epidemic of malnutrition and starvation. For centuries amaranth was not cultivated as a crop in Mexico because of this taboo, yet interestingly, the plant was taken to nearly every corner of the world by early explorers. Even </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">today it is still appreciated around the globe for its health properties, beauty and color. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Amaranth is a very resilient plant and almost impossible to wipe out, with each flower producing about 60,000 seeds.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> The plant needs very little water and will grow in almost any soil without care. With present renewed awareness of its nutritional benefits, commercial cultivation is beginning to be developed again in Mexico, primarily in the state of Puebla, where it originated more than 7,000 years ago.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">To find out what happens to the seeds once they are harvested, 15 curious persons from San Miguel de Allende and</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Querétaro recently traveled to a small village near San Juan del Rio in the state of Hidalgo. Arriving at the gate of the amaranth processing plant, we were greeted by a wildly waving man, dressed in blue hospital scrubs, Dr. Benito Manrique de Lara, the director and mastermind of this unique operation.Twenty-six years ago, after working for many years in India and Europe, <i>Benito</i> (as he is generally referred to and a native of Columbia) found himself in the middle of nowhere in Mexico with an offer (more like a challenge) to restore an amaranth processing plant that had fallen into ruins. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The nearby village had no water, electricity or roads. The houses were made of stones and any found materials and its inhabitants, families left behind by the nearby ex-hacienda after the revolution, were mostly illiterate. These were the only people Benito had close by to help him, unless he would recruit more skilled people from within several hours of commuting. Benito decided make a primary investment in human capital and began working with what he had on hand, and then bringing the amaranth plant back to life. The villagers, with Benito’s encouragement, literally build a new life for themselves. Their hamlet soon had water, electricity and roads. Once the basic infrastructure was in place, they began simultaneously to build the factory and continued work on their village. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Today they have a church, school, ball courts, a health care center, a daycare center, a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">zócalo</i> for fiestas, a social center and a media room with access to computers. Their homes are now solid constructions with enough yards and greenery around to grow vegetables and keep chickens, burros and cows. The children in the village, thanks to their amaranth formulas and fresh foods, have zero malnutrition, one of the very few rural places in Mexico able to claim so.<o:p></o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"> The progress of the village went hand in hand with the construction and development of the factory. Again, this was all done with the original village population. Some machinery for processing the amaranth was either too expensive or did not exist and Benito challenged his crew to come up with designs for the needed equipment. Experimenting with little toy models at first eventually resulted in the construction of very sophisticated and highly functional huge machinery.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">After we had donned blue coats, hats, facemasks and booties and walked though a wind chamber, we finally got to see the operation. We were struck by how spotless the building was, you could practically eat off the floor!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Benito explaining the specialized machinery in the amaranth factory.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Benito explained all the different machinery to us and what they do. Some amaranth seeds get popped, literally like popcorn, which are then made into the candy called <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">alegría</i>.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amaranth seed cakes (Alegria)</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Other seeds go through a process where the protein is separated from the seeds, mixed with other ingredients and made into baby formulas and different flavored</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> atoles</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">. All products are developed in house in their custom laboratory and they leave the plant fully packaged ready for sale.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby formula created with amaranth seeds.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px;">Just when we thought we could not get any more impressed, all of our mouths dropped open in disbelief when Benito told us that all of the 70 employees rotate their position in the plant everyday! They all know how to do every task, including lab and office work. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Meticulously kept seed records.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The cooks in the village were very gracious and prepared lunch for us with an amazing array of flavorful dishes. Each cook proudly told us what she had made from the fresh vegetables, chickens, beans and corn. There were handmade <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tortillas, tamales, chilaquiles</i>, amaranth greens, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">salsas, flautas</i>, crisp cabbage salad and lots of fresh ranch eggs, just to mention a few.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beans with lettuce and egg garnish</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">And if that was not enough, they sent us off with a big goodie bag with popped amaranth (great for breakfast cereal), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">atoles</i> (comforting on cool mornings), and amaranth marzipan.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What an amazing experience. My account is by far only a rough sketch of our experience as the details could nearly fill a book. I hope that you get a glimpse of what can be done with dedication, determination and trust in the human capacity to learn. Benito is my hero!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">If you are interested in joining me for another trip to Utopia, please contact me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p>This article was published in <i>La Atención</i> June 17, 2011</o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hiding behind an amaranth plant in Chicago.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p>This amazing amaranth grew in Rick Bayless' Chicago garden. The following year there was amaranth growing within blocks of his garden. A testimony to the plants hardiness; the seeds withstood the brutal Chicago winter. </o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: small;"><br /></span></o:p></span>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: small;">Dear amaranth friends,</span></o:p></span><br />
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I know you all remember Dr, Benito Manrique de Lara, the ebullient and enthusiastic founder of the utopian amaranth village we visited. With great sadness I was told by my friend Ada, my initial connection to Benito, that he died yesterday of a heart attack in his sleep. He was only 54 years old but he showed us in his short life time that a peaceful, respectful and productive existence among human beings is possible. </div>
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My heart goes out to all the people in the village of Huixcazdha which Benito with his faith and trust in their capabilities lifted from extreme poverty, illiteracy and malnutrition to a meaningful, healthy and dignified existence. They all have lost their guide and father to a better life.</div>
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I hope that Benito's work will be able to continue. I will keep you informed with any news. </div>
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I do not have all of the tour peoples email, please pass on the information to friends you knew were on the tour.</div>
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I made these amaranth green tacos today for Benito, they were seasoned with the salt of my tears.</div>
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Hugs to you all,</div>
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Kirsten</div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p>May 2014</o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: small;">Kirsten,</span></o:p></span><br />
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I am so sorry to hear this very heartbreaking news. I am currently in the Bahamas and did not get your message immediately. <b>What an amazing man, I can’t believe he is gone and at such a young age.</b> (54) He lived life to the fullest and demanded everyone around him do the same. What a great spirit - thank you for bringing him into my life through the amaranth tour. </div>
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Abrazos my friend,</div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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Jennifer</div>
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kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-87690698116360670632011-05-15T22:41:00.000-07:002011-05-15T23:01:22.798-07:00Mexico, Cocina Abierta<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHLvpyf9RG_JC-sX8nOk3HbXbTNL-DJXFAY3N95cUN37Et4FJ5m6C9-qKPnhTTyrEcBJOKDmiAwVHFhngg3Sn5XmC4Ec1wZ8CrHlRNB4M4RzsJMKlL3oYJC793-h5dih0MIheMeZaIbU4/s1600/CIMG8376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHLvpyf9RG_JC-sX8nOk3HbXbTNL-DJXFAY3N95cUN37Et4FJ5m6C9-qKPnhTTyrEcBJOKDmiAwVHFhngg3Sn5XmC4Ec1wZ8CrHlRNB4M4RzsJMKlL3oYJC793-h5dih0MIheMeZaIbU4/s320/CIMG8376.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span lang="ES-MX" style="font-size: 8pt;">Alajandro Ruiz, Casa Oaxaca, Oaxaca<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
It has been nearly a year now that I attended this incredible inspirational 3 day seminar at the university of Anahuac in Mexico City, one of the most prestiius universities in Mexico and also head quarter of the Cordon Bleu French cooking school. I was staying with my friend Ruth Alegria in her Condessa digs and early mornings we braved the Mexico City traffic for the three days to hear what was new in the culinary world in Mexico. Well, a lot, as you can read in the article, but what was just as great was visiting with culinary friends.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJADOtYU1Vi1ZrYAjI1N4sCjKfzealvTuH2l65S7A-U6mM8uwFeckLP-xpfw35Kd-wlrWKbr0hK-YD9e34njPcCa8Ac9iDOGmcmWLrkNq9yyM40FSkySpnbjiiyQHi1ukQVPGJb5AXZOY/s1600/CIMG8582.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJADOtYU1Vi1ZrYAjI1N4sCjKfzealvTuH2l65S7A-U6mM8uwFeckLP-xpfw35Kd-wlrWKbr0hK-YD9e34njPcCa8Ac9iDOGmcmWLrkNq9yyM40FSkySpnbjiiyQHi1ukQVPGJb5AXZOY/s320/CIMG8582.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">The "cool" Californians. Benito Molino from Manzanilla restaurant in Ensenada y moi, formerly of cool Los Angeles</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtVW5Wz_Y561sGdtENPqUd4BeNae6zQMj7MEtqFfRBg_vwViDnHSOnkBIWVatzQTBYZSx6C1_JjFF_R6SUdO8eOW1LeT44moo7oMickRtbVkGojMbInDT6JLT12suVkZdWnkK31XdxarY/s1600/CIMG8458.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtVW5Wz_Y561sGdtENPqUd4BeNae6zQMj7MEtqFfRBg_vwViDnHSOnkBIWVatzQTBYZSx6C1_JjFF_R6SUdO8eOW1LeT44moo7oMickRtbVkGojMbInDT6JLT12suVkZdWnkK31XdxarY/s320/CIMG8458.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Ruth Alegria, my gracious hostess</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif3Q8yGS6_TJiAZ5pqxzP4tSSX0Otl4lWh7z021EYuPTAScJ8UQeYQg69-oMJzPoB69uE8u96ekzBYi8wKo3MID2hq5JMu6Ix3fhLt8ttt5zT-fC4N-1O0_P-YlIcleHcM8hMTDCor-xU/s1600/CIMG8330.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif3Q8yGS6_TJiAZ5pqxzP4tSSX0Otl4lWh7z021EYuPTAScJ8UQeYQg69-oMJzPoB69uE8u96ekzBYi8wKo3MID2hq5JMu6Ix3fhLt8ttt5zT-fC4N-1O0_P-YlIcleHcM8hMTDCor-xU/s320/CIMG8330.JPG" width="296" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Diego Oka, "Wunderkind" chef if there ever was one. He is opening restaurants internationally for Peruvian star chef Gaston Acurio. Mind you he is 24, I want to adopt him. I met him at La Mar restaurant in Mexico City's very tony Santa Fe. I am still pining for his Peruvian "causa".<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6vVTAGtZYfZPvjv7A6LBA7BQQQjK0MQ6vXNACI3ycctG7HQ_65Z1LDQxF9zNOBCAxMvl1cCeljmua_0c8UTumLVRyld-ckagjYUCGUUQDzoK8zzhvDL9X0hL_dvnBVUoLNlWEZLybzCQ/s1600/CIMG2358.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6vVTAGtZYfZPvjv7A6LBA7BQQQjK0MQ6vXNACI3ycctG7HQ_65Z1LDQxF9zNOBCAxMvl1cCeljmua_0c8UTumLVRyld-ckagjYUCGUUQDzoK8zzhvDL9X0hL_dvnBVUoLNlWEZLybzCQ/s320/CIMG2358.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Causa, yummmm</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ65VfTuJoaVWAZUv4H63vGdOBiwBvOrFzK7ctKHMSj7LWWL5lC2Pn1GnkLrvBLItmZky1-XMfXj1FkmKxYBWKIphvymkK0xJCwBEfOM4lwWKWfhJWoXcu9BuuCiphIF-dpKVs-WFEjuk/s1600/CIMG8229.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ65VfTuJoaVWAZUv4H63vGdOBiwBvOrFzK7ctKHMSj7LWWL5lC2Pn1GnkLrvBLItmZky1-XMfXj1FkmKxYBWKIphvymkK0xJCwBEfOM4lwWKWfhJWoXcu9BuuCiphIF-dpKVs-WFEjuk/s320/CIMG8229.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Ricardo Muños, long time friend, restaurateur and Mexican food historian par excellance. Also owner of Azul y Oro at UNAM and in the trendy Condesa in Mexico City.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Article published in La Atención, July 2, 2010<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal">With Mexico’s cuisine earmarked to become one of the first in the world to gain UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) designation, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Conferencia de Mexico Cocina Abierta</i> (Conference of Mexican Open Kitchen), held at the University of Anahuac (also the headquarter for the French Cordon Bleu cooking school) in Mexico City from June 2-5, could not have been more timely. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">On opening night, at the fabulous new St. Regis Diana hotel across from the landmark Diana Fountain, chef, restaurant owner, culinary historian and radio host Ricardo Muñoz Zurita gave an eye-opening presentation about the indigenous foods of the Americas. The list is long and it was interesting to see how, by now, many countries in the world have appropriated imports from the New World as their own trademark foods. Ireland the potato; Italy, tomatoes and corn for polenta and Indian, Thai and Sichuan food are synonymous with chiles. Even if the USA is in the New World, many do not realize that its beloved peanuts and popcorn are indigenous, along with beans, squashes, avocados, vanilla and the queen of all the treasures: chocolate. This is just to mention a few of the more than 50 foods.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">The second day of the conference began with a demonstration by Chef Francisco Méndez from restaurant Tapasbar. His food was a harbinger of what was to come over the next three days. Even though <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">tapas</i> are a quintessential Spanish style of bar snacks, Chef Francisco used popular Mexican <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">botanas</i> (appetizers) for his inspiration. A black bean tamal baked in a banana leaf is served on a crusty toast round, topped with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">salsa</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">boracha</i> (literally: drunk salsa) and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">crema </i>(Mexican crème fraiche); a skewer with meat <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">al pastor</i> (gyro style) is placed upright into a toast round covered with fresh tomatoes grated over it, then drizzled with a pineapple salsa. This delicious bite pays tribute to the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">taco al pastor</i> (shepherds taco), served traditionally with a slice of pineapple. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">Eduardo Osuna from Casa Poniente in Celaya followed with his presentation of gorditas stuffed with crabmeat and garnished with an egg yolk-like sphere of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">salsa Valentina</i> (popular brand of a Mexican commercial salsa). To make this, the chef used a bit of new fangled chemistry based on natural ingredients. I can’t wait to go to his restaurant (Celaya is a 40 minute drive from San Miguel de Allende) and try his intriguing signature fish dish. A catch-of-the-day fish fillet is cooked with a medley of vegetables and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hoja santa</i> butter (an indigenous anise flavored herb), in a clear see-through pouch. The pouch is presented and opened at the table for the guest to be able to inhale the escaping fragrant smells. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">French chef Thierry Blouet, from Café des Artiste in Puerto Vallarta, showed that using his French skills and working with Mexican ingredients can produce the most superb mouthwatering dishes. His transparent lobster ravioli perfumed with cardamom and finished with a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chile poblano</i> sauce was a masterpiece that would have made Escoffier smile. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">My good friend of 20 years, Carmen “Titita” Ramirez Degollado, owner of the 38-year-old “El Bajio” restaurant, urged all the “youngsters” to continue to study their culinary roots. This she demonstrated by preparing the most healthful and delicious pre-Columbian green mole based on a profusion of leaves and herbs and served over a bed of steamed <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chayote</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">calabacitas </i> (zucchini). Aquiles Chaves, from restaurant Ló in Villahermosa in the state of Tabasco, where <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cacao</i> (chocolate) trees grow, made the audience swoon with the smell of roasting <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">cacao</i> beans, which he crushed and served as a garnish for seared fillet of red snapper nestled in an <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ancho</i> chile sauce and accompanied by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yucca</i> (cassava root) slices sautéed with tequila butter. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">At the very opposite end of the country, in Monterrey (bordering the US), one of Mexico’s best chefs, Guillermo Gonzáles Beristáin is letting his culinary ambitions loose in seven restaurants, including house-label wines to match the food. His avocado roll nestled on a sheet of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sangria</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gelatina</i> (sangria jello) and sprinkled with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">chicharrón</i> (fried pork skins) crumble would definitely be on my list to try if I were to visit Monterrey.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">Internationally acclaimed Spanish chef Ferran Adri<span style="font-size: 13pt;">à</span>, who dethroned France’s long-term dominance as culinary world masters, was represented at the conference by his brother Albert Adri<span style="font-size: 13pt;">à</span>. The sheer artistry and craftsmanship of both of their work is revolutionary. It has gone beyond food, cooking and feeding to alchemy, science and mind boggling artistry. Desserts of pain strikingly created replicas of fruits are turned into molds made from fruit essences to fool your palate; what looked like a strawberry that was served on your plate, was actually a combination of fruit purées of the most intense explosions of flavor. To me, it seemed to be a very sophisticated version of what I grew up with in Germany. We made look-alike foods from marzipan, which included all kinds of fruits, vegetables and even sausages. They looked very real, real enough for me wanting to put mustard on my marzipan sausages!<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"> I could fill an entire issue of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">La</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Atención</i> if I were to report every one of the amazing chefs that showed their enthusiasm for Mexican ingredients and dishes with a new and fresh touch in the three days of the conference. What saddened me was that I did not meet any SMA chefs or restaurateurs at this inspiring event. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal">We must live up our UNESCO heritage standards and put this magical historic town on the international culinary map as well. In turn, it could draw much-needed tourist business. We have such an abundance of fabulous locally-produced ingredients at hand, why not prepare them a way to showcase their quality and honor the relentless work and dedication that the local farmers and producers put towards giving us these superlative ingredients.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-87006883900958069962011-05-06T16:29:00.000-07:002011-05-06T16:29:19.959-07:00A sweet gift for Mother<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7u7RlooMgTk0_2IiUfbmiphh_2dHKwfJiSVoiFtkgm2jslVMtHS4Ig5hnS_qwjLkIW3oiJ8SPfn5XCWjLx9QDw7ZHRFjmfwXfoc65nQMGSIPseKhd8E_gfqDeNfB1QzUGvis-sfVBRGA/s1600/CIMG1314.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7u7RlooMgTk0_2IiUfbmiphh_2dHKwfJiSVoiFtkgm2jslVMtHS4Ig5hnS_qwjLkIW3oiJ8SPfn5XCWjLx9QDw7ZHRFjmfwXfoc65nQMGSIPseKhd8E_gfqDeNfB1QzUGvis-sfVBRGA/s320/CIMG1314.JPG" /></a></div>This gift for mother that I am suggesting happens also to be one of the gifts from the New World: the sweet potato (ipomoea batatus,) or camote (from the nahuatl camotli ). No, I am not mistaking Mothers Day for Thanksgiving. Read on and you will soon be off to the market to get this wonder food. True, it is not exactly the most attractive looking item for a gift. Its outer skin can be downright ugly, but it hides a true treasure on the inside.<br />
Christopher Columbus already had camotes on board on one of his return voyages to Spain. Its sweet taste made it easy to like this New World food without hesitation, and its long-term storage capacity made it fit for the sometimes up to 6 month long sea voyage. The sweet potato is easily cultivated in tropical and warm temperate regions, grows quickly and does not need much in the way of fertilizing. Therefore not before long, it spread from Central America to many other countries, mainly the Philippines, India, China, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand and Hawaii, just to name a few. (China is now the world's largest producer of sweet potatoes). Upon arriving in North America in the 16th century, the orange-fleshed variety mistakenly was named a yam, a completely different plant, which is originally from Africa, and not often found in US or Mexican markets. The sweet potato also is only very remotely related to the potato. The white and orange varieties became very popular in the US, mostly in the South, because of favorable growing conditions. During the Civil War it became to be one of the main staples for the fighting soldiers. This delicious and nutritious food was always inexpensive and therefore became associated with poor people’s food. This might have been one reason for its loss in popularity. Only as part of the traditional Thanksgiving menu did the sweet potato have staying power. However, by loading this holiday dish with excess ingredients, such as butter and sugar, did all but drown its healthy properties. In 1904 per capita consumption was 22 pounds, in 2004 only 4 pounds. Consumption has slowly increased to nearly 5 pounds in 2007. Now that its many healthful properties are becoming better known, consumption could dramatically rise.<br />
The Center for Science in the Public Interest named the sweet potato, referring to the orange-fleshed variety, the most nutritious vegetable. Sweet potatoes definitely have a reputation among health food advocates as being one of the most densely nutritious (but surprisingly low-calorie) foods on the market. Sweet potatoes are packed with massive amounts of vitamin A, a nutrient considered critical in maintaining proper eye health. One sweet potato contains nearly eight times an adult's daily need of this important vitamin. It also contains significantly higher amounts of calcium, iron, vitamin E and protein in one serving, than the daily recommended amount. One of the wonderful benefits of the sweet potato is that diabetics can enjoy it as a sweet treat too. The list is long, if I have wetted your appetite for wanting more information, I recommend searching the Internet.<br />
No doubt, orange sweet potatoes do a body REALLY good. <br />
Now what can you do with them? A lot.<br />
Sweet potatoes are available in Mexico almost all year round, since they keep well in storage in between harvests. If you plan to store them, you must pick the ones free of blemishes or damaged skin. Keep them in a dark cool place (I keep mine under the sink in a basket), never in a plastic bag or in the refrigerator. There they actually develop an unpleasant taste. When baked, they freeze very well. For a fast addition to your meals, bake a bunch in their skins in an 400F oven for about an hour, or until they are soft to the touch and start to exude their juices. When completely cooled, wrap them individually in clear wrap and freeze them. My friend Diana Kennedy, the foremost authority on Mexican cuisine, has a recipe in her book “The Art of Mexican Cuisine” that calls for just baking them and then packing them down in a dish and letting them sit over night. The next day they are ready to be eaten as a treat, including the skin. This way you will have the full nutritional benefit because many of the nutrients are also located in the skin. BCC (Before Coca Cola) many Mexicans still remember their childhood breakfast comfort food, a lump of baked camote dropped into a glass of milk. What a sweet and healthy way to start the day. <br />
On one of my first visits to Mexico I was startled by a sound similar to the one a little train made that I commuted on to school in my native Germany. It was the camote vendor and his movable cart! In typical Mexican fashion of re-purposing items, a converted steel drum functioned as an oven in which to bake camotes. The whistle was powered by releasing steam from the oven. How much color and health a camotero, as the vendor is called, would add to the streets of San Miguel if we would invite him back? <br />
Recipes for sweet potatoes are tumbling out of my head; hashed browns, muffins, crepes, vichysoisse, and salads (see recipe). Ice cream? Oh yes, with fresh black berries!<br />
Do you think mom (dad too) will like this? I think she will love how much you care about her well being in such a delicious way. <br />
Happy Mothers Day, which is really every day. Mothers are the pillars of civilization.<br />
<br />
Sweet Potato Salad with Caramelized Onions, Watercress and <br />
Guajillo Chile Dressing<br />
Enselada de Camote con Cebollas Caramelizadas y Chile Guajillo<br />
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What makes this salad so delicious is the wonderful dressing. However if you have your own favorite homemade dressing, it will work just as well. Remember, if you use a commercial dressing, all the healthy properties of this dish will be wiped out in one fell swoop because of all the harmful addatives they contain. (KW)<br />
Serves 8<br />
<br />
For the Guajillo Chile Dressing:<br />
¾ cup vegetable oil, olive oil or a mixture of the two<br />
2 medium (1/2 oz. total) dried guajillo chiles (you can also use New Mexico chiles)<br />
2 garlic cloves peeled and cut into quarters<br />
¼ cup sherry vinegar (balsamic adds sweetness, champagne or white wine vinegar adds lightness, but the richness of the sherry is my favorite)<br />
Salt<br />
<br />
1 large onion, cut into ½ inch cubes<br />
3 medium (about 2 pounds) sweet potatoes (camote amarillo), peeled and<br />
cut into ½ inch cubes <br />
2 bunches watercress (or verdolaga or your favorite greens)<br />
<br />
Pour oil into a very large (12 inches) skillet and set over medium heat. When the oil is warm, add the chiles and garlic. Turn and stir until the chiles are toasty smelling, about 30 seconds (if the oil isn’t too hot). Remove from the heat. <br />
Transfer the chiles to a blender jar (leave the oil and the garlic in the pan). Add the vinegar and a scant teaspoon salt and blend 30 seconds. When the oil and garlic are cool (5-10 minutes), add to the blender, set the skillet aside without washing. Blend the dressing until smooth. Pour into a jar with a secure lid.<br />
Return the skillet (it will have a light coating of oil) to medium heat and add the onion. Cook, stirring regularly until soft and richly browned, 9-10 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes, ½ cup of the re-shaken dressing and 1 tsp salt. Stir well. Cover and cook until the sweet potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Uncover, remove from heat and let cool-most of the dressing will be absorbed into the potatoes. Taste and season with additional salt if necessary.<br />
Break the large stems of the watercress (you should have 8 loosely packed cups). Divide among eight plates, forming it into “nests”. Scoop a portion of the sweet potato mixture into each nest. Drizzle a little dressing over the watercress. Serve right away.<br />
<br />
Recipe by Rick Bayless from “Mexican Everyday”<br />
Article published in La Atención, San Miguel de Allende, May 6, 2011kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-54715707697660190242011-04-18T11:07:00.000-07:002013-08-14T13:15:24.513-07:00A "Fish" called Cucaracha del Mar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well, it lives in the ocean but is not exactly a fish; its name just reminded me of the movie title A Fish Called Wanda, where a water creature also had a name so unrelated to its nature. <br />
I got to know about this curious delicacy while attending the first Food & Wine Festival in Mexico, held in Ixtapa/Zihuateneo from March 26 - 28. The event was produced by the originators of the widely successful Food & Wine Festival in Aspen and other cities in the US. This was also my first visit to this part of costal Mexico and I was not disappointed. What a breathtakingly beautiful coastline.<br />
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Chef Rick Bayless from Chicago was the “Star” of the event and thanks to his popularity, and 10 of Mexico’s top chefs, about 3000 guests showed up for the 4 days of food and festivities. With combined efforts from the Mexican Tourist bureau (Consejo de Promoción Touristica de Mexico), Ixtapa/Zihuateneo tourist office, <br />
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Food & Wine magazine and about 60 underwriting companies from both sides of the border, a spectacular festival came together. It can be done, si se puede. The attending guest came equally from both countries, including a good mix of other nationalities. Nothing like food, wine, festivities and great company to bring people together in a joyous celebration. When I become queen of the land, it will be law to have food festivals instead of wars. <br />
Attending the festival gave me the opportunity to re-visit with Rick and Deann Bayless with whom I collaborated 8 wonderful years in Chicago at their amazing award wining Mexican restaurants Frontera Grill and Topolpbampo. My former San Miguel de Allende food buddy <br />
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Lila/Shaw Lash, who left me so abruptly to join the Bayless camp in Chicago, was also there with them. In typical Bayless manner, after our arrival we all went immediately on a hunt for the best markets and food in Zihuatenjo. This is when we were introduced to the cucaracha del mar. Our driver Antonio Méndez López, who spoke the most eloquent English which he said he learned as a 10 year old from an Australian sailor he met in the Zihuatenjo harbor (I really wonder about this sailor’s story), quickly realized that we were looking for the real local food experience. On a remote dirt road in the Colonia Viejo of Zihuatenejo he parked next to a building that did not remotely resemble a restaurant. The only give-away were several, parked fancy SUVs from different states of Mexico. But after we climbed a flight of stairs, a large open and airy restaurant welcomed us to “El Tiburon” (The Shark),<br />
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the favorite seafood place of the in-the-know crowd. When we had just about ordered everything on the menu, Antonio casually asked if we had ever had cucaracha del mar? Cockroach of the ocean? What? He had our attention instantly. He ordered a serving for us, as this dish was not listed on the menu. Antonio said the treat we were in for was much like abalone, a mollusk, but much, much smaller, more like the seize of your pinky. When a full plate came to our table, bathed in a classic seafood cocktail salsa, garnished with avocado slices and served with crisp tortilla chips, we dug in without hesitation. They were very delicious, sweet, soft, but still with a chewy texture and a flavor reminiscent of the ocean. Rick likened the flavor to the west coast sea urchin. Rick, an avid Twitterer, immediately posted this new discovery and a suggestive response shot back: this thing needs a new press agent. “Yes”, it’s not a good name for something so delicious. In some other areas of Mexico it is also called lengua de perro, (dog’s tongue), not exactly an improvement. But do we really want to name it something more appetizing? Should we leave this delicacy to the brave? We sadly remember the “Patagonian Tooth Fish”, re-named “Chilean Sea Bass”, which is now facing extinction because of its clever new-name marketing campaign.<br />
In the meantime Deann was Googeling our dinner fare on her iPhone (oh, the glory of global connectedness) and here is the scoop: it is a mollusk found widely in costal seawaters around the world. Polyplacophora is its Latin name, meaning: poly = many; plac = plate; phor = carry, i.e.: bearer of many plates; similar to the shell plates of an armadillo. ”The polyplacophorans, commonly known as chitons, are often considered by scientists to be the most primitive of all existing mollusks. Strictly marine, the majority of the chiton species inhabit rocky seashore environments where their low dome-shaped shells are well suited to withstanding the violent serge of ocean waves. They all cling tenaciously to the hard substratum and if dislodged from its rock, will roll up into a ball to protect their fleshy under surface. This also allows it to roll around safely in the waves until it can reattach itself to an other rock”. They are vegetarian and feed on algae. We learned that it is much treasured in the Philippines; there it is packaged and frozen for shipping worldwide.<br />
On the Zihuatenejo beaches the fishermen wait for the low tide and then search for the creatures under rocks. They seem to cluster together and, if lucky, a harvest of a 100 can be garnered within an hour. The fishermen get paid for them by the dozen, usually 50. Pesos; in the restaurants an order of 12 starts at 70. Pesos. Considering its labor intensive means of harvesting, (each one has to pried loose from the rocks with a screwdriver), it is a very affordable special treat. In our excitement over our new discovery we almost forgot about the rest of the meal. It was a spectacular feast. Everything was prepared with care and a wonderful balance of spices. Grilled red snapper, coconut shrimp, devilish shrimp, seviche of mixed seafood, fried octopus, all served on a huge platter beautifully garnished with avocado, cucumbers, oranges and mango. A basket with freshly made tortillas, wrapped in a crisp white napkin with "El Tiburon"embroidered on it in delicate cross stitch, helped us mop-up all this goodness<br />
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There is nothing like a feast prepared with care, love, honesty and tradition. Meals like this will survive all the food trends that come and go.kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-85443283830748278302011-03-18T19:23:00.000-07:002015-01-16T19:55:21.531-08:00Kirsten's Cooking Classes in San Miguel de Allende<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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What I most of all like to show in my classes, no matter which cuisine, is that making tasty meals with fresh ingredients is so easy and healthy. <br />
When teaching students from other nationalities here in Mexico, I like to give them a deeper understanding of Mexican cuisine and culture. <br />
Please go to “UNESCO in the Mexican Cuisine post.” You will be surprised.<br />
<b>Mexican Food</b>:<br />
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Options for classes range from making crisp and delicious salsas and rich tasting seasonings, traditional holiday meals to complex moles. Seasonal ingredients are always a helpful guide for choosing the menus for my classes.<br />
<b>International:</b> <br />
Italian, French, German and Scandinavian cuisines and more. My father had an exceptional love and interest in food, which I gladly became part of. His native Bavarian dishes were his first love <br />
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and later he collected recipes on his travels to France, the Mediterranean and Morocco. I became his sous chef early in life when he was cooking at home. <br />
When living in Denmark, my mother’s home country, I gained a deep appreciating for its cuisine.<br />
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I read Babette’s Feast by Karen Blixen when I was 10 years old and I think it paved the way for my pursuit of culinary explorations for the rest of my life. <br />
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Single Subjects:</b><br />
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Pasta making, baking (bread, cakes, cookies), preserving and freezing.<br />
As we are looking to a future concerned with saving energy, there are many ways to preserve foods without it. We can learn by looking back.<br />
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<b>Inner Beauty: </b><br />
As we are finding out more about how beneficial healthy eating is, learning how to prepare delicious healthy meals is in big demand. Healthy eating can be practiced in any cuisine of the world.<br />
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<b>Outer Beauty:</b> <br />
There are many wonderful remedies in your kitchen that also can be used as beauty products. As an example, I always tell the story of Estee Lauder, who concocted her first beauty products in her kitchen. <br />
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<b>Excursions:</b> <br />
Day trips to food producers, such as cheese makers<br />
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a mole factory, honey co-ops or wine makers will give an up close insight into locally produced organic and artisinal products.<br />
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<b>Prices:</b> <br />
All cooking classes are 55. USD or Mexican Pesos at current exchange rate. Payable in cash. Sorry, US restrictions no longer allows deposit of US checks in Mexico.<br />
Classes are 2 to 2 ½ hours long, followed by a meal or tasting with non-alcoholic beverages. Recipe booklets are included.<br />
Excursions vary depending on location, but generally are more or less the same as classes.<br />
<b>Class Format:</b> <br />
Classes require a minimum of 4 students. They are mostly demonstration style with some hands-on experience.<br />
<b>Language:</b><br />
Classes can be taught in English, broken; but understandable Spanish, German and Danish.<br />
<b>Class Schedule: </b><br />
Until further notice, classes and locations are by appointment. <br />
<b>Travels:</b><br />
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I am also able to travel to other locations, I am comfortable with TV apperances or addressing a large audience.<br />
<b>Booking:</b><br />
Please contact Kirsten West kirstenwest@mac.com Classes require 4 days advance notice; excursions depend on availability of location<br />
Buen Provecho! Bon Appetit!kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-12839760120993447882011-03-12T17:55:00.000-08:002011-03-13T23:12:26.581-07:00Of an Other Green-White-Red Revolution<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_SptReVVklNAZfoEIRanf3WURqDeoSQswONc00Vz7yqUROOJXsExU1oj64Gj1zqf4T4K3AZ6CFbEj1AQ01RYzBhUw5iNUT4Lcnu8J1GeyLfR5e-gnkK-FUDBF2YyXM6ScIFiAbY8wMk/s1600/mexican-flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="150" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_SptReVVklNAZfoEIRanf3WURqDeoSQswONc00Vz7yqUROOJXsExU1oj64Gj1zqf4T4K3AZ6CFbEj1AQ01RYzBhUw5iNUT4Lcnu8J1GeyLfR5e-gnkK-FUDBF2YyXM6ScIFiAbY8wMk/s200/mexican-flag.jpg" /></a></div>The Mexican flag with its green, white and red colors as we see it today was designed in 1821 by Augustin de Iturbide, then emperor of the new nation of Mexico. It replaced the red cross of Burgundy flying over what was, until then, New Spain. The empire and Augustin were short-lived, but his flag to this day flutters proudly everywhere in Mexico. However, long before 1821 another Mexican green, white and red “revolution” took place in the rest of the world, in the culinary world to be exact.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhByGiiaC2FJReKV9oTT_KzxlZcV2SHVjXnA-_KILmbhG-4-r6ubl3-LZl-1e8YgmHdRsORU6mcHAr-MJteug2OVOWWEBsxVyprgYa4_EvAp7unBv8oS3EQXpk_eUSe940J7HsiFwnmeM8/s1600/images-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhByGiiaC2FJReKV9oTT_KzxlZcV2SHVjXnA-_KILmbhG-4-r6ubl3-LZl-1e8YgmHdRsORU6mcHAr-MJteug2OVOWWEBsxVyprgYa4_EvAp7unBv8oS3EQXpk_eUSe940J7HsiFwnmeM8/s200/images-2.jpeg" /></a></div>Green is for chile. It is, by now, widely known that in 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed off into the unknown in search of a more direct seaway to India to obtain black pepper, which, at the time, fetched a price weighed in gold. For him to have returned with a boatload of pepper would have made him and his investors very rich. To his disappointment, all he found were chile. When he returned to Spain, to assure funding for his next voyage, he claimed to have almost reached India– he named the native inhabitants where he had landed Indians and the chilli (the Nahuatl spelling) became known as the chilli pepper. On his next voyage to what we now know was the Caribbean, the native population quickly realized he did not come with good intentions and they tried to drive out the invaders by throwing “chile bombs” over their fortress walls. These were squashes filled with smoldering dried chile and their biting smoke made it almost impossible to breathe. It was a very effective weapon, but not enough to keep out the invaders with their guns and horses. When brought to Spain, the chile seeds first took root in aristocrats’ gardens where they were treasured as a novel ornamental plant. In monasteries, they were cultivated for medicinal purposes. Soon, farmers started to grow the plants for culinary uses; they had discovered that chile spiced up their rather bland foods just as good as the black Asian pepper, which had been too expensive for them to buy. It became known as the “poor man’s pepper”. From there on, the chile went on a non-stop voyage around the globe. It spread quickly over Europe, especially in Italy, Hungary and the Balkans. Some of those countries started to breed milder varieties of chile to be eaten as a vegetable. The result we now enjoy as bell peppers. The Portuguese spice traders introduced chiles to the Ottoman Empire and India. Today, it is hard to imagine chile being absent from the cuisines of India, Thailand, China, Hungary and Spain and many others. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikCFckaTh-7iF1JWrVqzpyLbx5nq0JC5PbU-85RWwrxXGqxEB-0Nz0f33C-oIo7igXai5HTQotpLj03xpA4bjkY0iNMo-zyq6uI4ong44rafCy6193SDimD_Qf72axakGIM_5P7w0BKSQ/s1600/potato-barrel-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="133" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikCFckaTh-7iF1JWrVqzpyLbx5nq0JC5PbU-85RWwrxXGqxEB-0Nz0f33C-oIo7igXai5HTQotpLj03xpA4bjkY0iNMo-zyq6uI4ong44rafCy6193SDimD_Qf72axakGIM_5P7w0BKSQ/s200/potato-barrel-11.jpg" /></a></div>White is for potato On the outside, the potato is not white but it is because of its delicious white inside that it is treasured. For more than 7000 years potatoes had been a cultivated and very important food of the people in what is now Peru and Chile. Mexicans also had been eating a wild growing variety of potato. The Spanish conquers in Peru did not pay much attention to the potato when they arrived, until they noticed that the native miners were eating <i>chuñu</i>, a dried form of potatoes which can be stored up to 10 years and still be fit for consumption. To keep ships’ rations from spoiling on the sometimes 6-month-long voyage between the continents had always been a grave issue. Therefore, the Spanish began using <i>chuñu</i> on their ocean crossings. In this manner, the potato reached Spain. As with other imported plants, the potato spread over Europe first as an ornamental plant. This seems to have been a safe way to get acquainted with foods unknown. French queen Marie Antoinette adorned her hair with its purple flowers. The tubers were not considered fit for human consumption and were used only as animal food. Crop failures and wars caused frequent famines in most European countries and therefore, the poor people were encouraged by their rulers to eat potatoes. But they did not trust the ugly brown root. Eventually, they were forced. Emperess Catherine the Great of Russia ordered her subjects to eat them. In Germany, the Kaiser restored to an old trick: he planted a potato field at which he posted guards to prevent theft. This made the potatoes seem special and soon, the people began stealing the potatoes with the guards conveniently looking the other way–exactly what the Kaiser wanted! The introduction of the potato to North America was through a British governor in the Bahamas, who sent a gift box of them to a friend in the northern colonies. But once again they were met with suspicion and it took the endorsement of president Thomas Jefferson, who served them to guests at the White House, to slowly bring the potato onto the peoples’ tables. Historians are divided over how the potato reached Ireland. Some say via an English person from the colonies, others say after it had already reached England it was taken to Ireland. All agree that it was not Sir Walter Raleigh as the popular song claims. Once the potato became a popular food there was no stopping it from covering the globe. Ireland became identified with the root; in Idaho, it is the official state vegetable. Then we have French fries, gnocchi, potato pancakes aka Kartoffelpuffer, Roesti, Latkas, Boxty, Daruni, Aloo-ki Tikki, Gamjajeon– the list is long. It’s hard to imagine potatoes missing from the foods of the world.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbs2a_-1u1M39zmBEq43KxtFVqEMviSCvAQ7KjB7WbYDSAWA1k28uigIaFu2BPvgiGC6EC-UV5ofhGNoIFenXvmGXv_-gvE44Uul9OO1tGqpJOvSCTYK7DHkW4GLYW5oFHj0ZGZyOhbXI/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbs2a_-1u1M39zmBEq43KxtFVqEMviSCvAQ7KjB7WbYDSAWA1k28uigIaFu2BPvgiGC6EC-UV5ofhGNoIFenXvmGXv_-gvE44Uul9OO1tGqpJOvSCTYK7DHkW4GLYW5oFHj0ZGZyOhbXI/s200/images.jpeg" /></a></div>Red is for tomato. Of all the foods from the New World, the tomato was among those considered most suspicious. Its lush, shining, intense red color spelled danger and when introduced to the Old World, it was met with the greatest resistance and suspicion. One reason could be that the smell of the tomato plant, which is nothing like what the tomato itself tastes like, is not an inviting smell to some. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, the first person to be an objective observer in the New World, described how women in the markets of Tenochtitlan (Mexico City) were blending tomatoes, chile and pumpkin seeds into what seems most likely to have been a salsa. Had the world paid attention then, we would not have had to wait 450 years for salsas to beat ketchup as the most popular condiment in the US. <br />
Surprisingly though, Italy resisted the tomato as a food for the longest time, and today no other country is more emblematically associated with the tomato than Italy! When it arrived in Italy from Spain, the tomato was thought of as either poison or an aphrodisiac. It was also referred to as a “poor and defective food”. In Sicily, an island that suffered from chronic famines and welcomed anything edible, tomatoes were eventually added to their pasta water. Today, tomatoes are called <i>pommodoro</i> in Italian, meaning golden apple, because some of the imported varieties from the New World were yellow. Most other countries use its original name of tomato, while the French misheard the term as pommo d'amore, or love apple. Until the arrival of tomato sauce in Italy, spaghetti was coated only with a bit of cheese and picked up with fingers. The customary way to eat spaghetti was then to hold them up high over one’s face and suck them in. (Little kids learning to eat still prefer this method). This all changed with the addition of tomato sauce, it became messy to eat this way. Because of that, Italians began to use the fork, which up until then had only been used as a serving utensil but not as part of an individual table setting as we know it today. Just as with the chile and potato, can you imagine tomatoes missing from the foods of the world? <br />
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Could the color of the eagle in the Mexican flag symbolize the brown of chocolate? Leave room for dessert.kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-79764578294193445042011-03-10T19:45:00.000-08:002011-03-11T08:49:32.784-08:00The Color of RedRED - the Color of Desire and why Mexico has a lot to do with this.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg32fis-FyeUtvblJZ-ufk8p9Nv8JAWof7Q-V30JAIxqfAGfeoah54POUstLKBiRs1woE293as0XFFQ5nECZ7BUHle7CiWUCcscIiIxOlHnGpkA-yp7ib0n84VWTtOf78WyG39gDmUgm-A/s1600/images-1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="140" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg32fis-FyeUtvblJZ-ufk8p9Nv8JAWof7Q-V30JAIxqfAGfeoah54POUstLKBiRs1woE293as0XFFQ5nECZ7BUHle7CiWUCcscIiIxOlHnGpkA-yp7ib0n84VWTtOf78WyG39gDmUgm-A/s200/images-1.jpeg" /></a></div>On Valentines Day the world is coming up roses, red roses. Other than giving our Valentine red roses and red hearts, chocolate boxes with red ribbons enjoy a brisk business and restaurants offer romantic dinners with seductive red berries for desserts. Red on this day is all about love. Yet, this is only one aspect of red, the one color that in my opinion has a seriously split personality. Throughout the ages in all cultures of the world red has represented power, status, wealth, fame, courage, the divine, good luck, prosperity, but also danger, sin and the forbidden. The cardinal vested in his scarlet garment and the red devil greeting you in hell; it’s enough to make you see red.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaNIVTnt9YQirTws1gEapZhklmGpm_Nl3K1_PhxA83zHzpvzdtqW_reyRgzCVpgDeegf4CBq1SWoC8mgfl2MGArwClX5ftfEH75NG7MXXwwb60CGH5tacLxhyphenhyphenjAT_UAT1lQHL8Z2o9fmw/s1600/wuerl+red+cardinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="140" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaNIVTnt9YQirTws1gEapZhklmGpm_Nl3K1_PhxA83zHzpvzdtqW_reyRgzCVpgDeegf4CBq1SWoC8mgfl2MGArwClX5ftfEH75NG7MXXwwb60CGH5tacLxhyphenhyphenjAT_UAT1lQHL8Z2o9fmw/s200/wuerl+red+cardinal.jpg" /></a></div>Blood and its intense red might be one of the reasons for mans fascination with the color. To be able to create the same shade of red for textile dyes and artists paint has been a millennium quest for man. This brilliant color that is abundant in nature on flowers, animals, the plumage of birds, fire and sun sets, eluded them. Roots, minerals and insects have produced shades of muted red or ochre in the past, they were very labor intensive to obtain and many pounds of these pain strikingly harvested products were needed to dye a small amount of fabric. These often proved to fade over a short period of time. Only the very rich and powerful and successful artists could afford these expensive pigments for their clothing and paintings. <br />
This all changed when the Spanish conqueror Hernán Cortez entered the market of Tenochtitlan (today’s Mexico City). Not only was he and his men dazzled by the never before seen display of foods, but what captured his attention more than anything else were the white cotton gowns the natives wore, interwoven with the most vivid colors they had ever seen. Among them was the brilliant red the old world had unsuccessfully tried to produce. When asked to see the dye, Cortez was presented with a sack of silvery grey granules, the seize of what today we might compare to cracked wheat.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2dNd4VJ1wzAb9ZiErHh0GnIyoQ5Vu4n7AJUrQftPR_LMLpQWnAFBY0LvCyqTXCP6YnaAp51pM-DxaLcwjLMwFTTMb0gxCXmasne7g-ZQHuGF0vXF3ZHunyMSyK-N1NvugLDyW7pQiq38/s1600/mexico22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="142" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2dNd4VJ1wzAb9ZiErHh0GnIyoQ5Vu4n7AJUrQftPR_LMLpQWnAFBY0LvCyqTXCP6YnaAp51pM-DxaLcwjLMwFTTMb0gxCXmasne7g-ZQHuGF0vXF3ZHunyMSyK-N1NvugLDyW7pQiq38/s200/mexico22.jpg" /></a></div>They named the dye “grano cochinilla” or cochineal (dactylopius coccus, a scale insect). The Aztec rulers held the dye in very high esteem and demanded a yearly tribute of 40 sacks of granules and 2000 red cotton blankets. <br />
Mexicans are known for putting what is considered a plight to good use. A very good example is <i>huitlacoche</i>, the corn fungus, considered a delicacy in Mexico. Non-Mexicans have labeled it as corn smut when it appeared on their ears of corn and tossed out in disgust. However, today it is marketed as the truffle of Mexico and served in fine dining establishments throughout the world. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHrI47MbNgD_w-iEYa_Gh8ysmMnRQfsERgymBnvInUmU2QS6f1E4PDGc7aGIcP4l4tyoYLPYd7GyY6Ph5DpWZAf1_3hxsL-vanwi-xbxB8kr1oCKE34xYilmWw13X8BslZJzD1B5gf_X0/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="153" width="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHrI47MbNgD_w-iEYa_Gh8ysmMnRQfsERgymBnvInUmU2QS6f1E4PDGc7aGIcP4l4tyoYLPYd7GyY6Ph5DpWZAf1_3hxsL-vanwi-xbxB8kr1oCKE34xYilmWw13X8BslZJzD1B5gf_X0/s200/images.jpeg" /></a></div>The cochineal female bug sets up house on the nopal, a cactus (opuntia ficus-indica),they then cover themselves with a waxy white coat for protection against the elements and from deadly predators, mostly ants. Its body produces a liquid, carminic acid, which is a brilliant red color. Rather than considering it a pest, chewing away on one of their most important foods, Mexicans scraped the bugs of the nopal, dried them in the sun and used the “grano” to dye their textiles red. This is the amazing red dye the entire world had been searching for. <br />
If the Spanish did not find the riches they had hoped for in their explorations, the red dye became for the next 200 years one of their most lucrative exports from the New World. Upon its first appearance in Europe and Asia the dyestuff caused a major sensation. Nations of the world wanted to find out what grass produced this wonder grain and some of the most ridiculous pursuits followed. Only after the invention of the microscope was the secret bug inside the “grain” revealed in 1694. Spain needed to fiercely protect its cochineal monopoly; the red dye was in big demand. Their ships with the precious cargo were prone to piracy and daredevil spies risked their lives trying to smuggle nopal hosting cochineal bugs out of Mexico. However these attempts all ended disastrously. The bugs did not enjoy the long sea voyage in damp quarters and if they survived, they did not like the new host nopal, the cactus already exported from Mexico to many other countries at an earlier time. Deadly predators who did not mind the carminic acid in their bodies also spelled the end of the efforts of transplanting the desired bug to new places. These failures enabled the Spanish to successfully control the cochineal trade for almost 200 years and the fortune they gained was equal to the export of silver extracted from the abundant mines in Mexico. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXJITDSYasYB5kbPs1ZRgpZwB_CP0vCE1IxCBK7GLUjMVR_pfDbqBmK8BLtPTxAWu0_IgGILYPhs-wlGFsfuB8JgXdowbTeyKDQzFGpN-Z6S_c65v53u30BDuDfFBN8t9j5ulLT9rZ_A/s1600/458px-el_bieta_i_lat_131.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXJITDSYasYB5kbPs1ZRgpZwB_CP0vCE1IxCBK7GLUjMVR_pfDbqBmK8BLtPTxAWu0_IgGILYPhs-wlGFsfuB8JgXdowbTeyKDQzFGpN-Z6S_c65v53u30BDuDfFBN8t9j5ulLT9rZ_A/s200/458px-el_bieta_i_lat_131.jpg" /></a></div>The rich of the world swaddled themselves in brilliantly red clothes, wove carpets, covered furniture and walls in their castles and patrician homes. Artists such as Rembrandt were able to paint portraits of their benefactors in their red finery. <br />
What finally brought the Spanish monopoly to an end was the chaos of the Mexican 1810 revolution. The cochineal production had previously moved into Guatemalan territory, which at that time was part of Mexico, but became independent after the revolution. Spain’s empire was crumbling and they lost control of Mexico. After having been established in Guatemala, the cochineal production rapidly spread into South America, Spain, North Africa and the Canary Islands. Sadly the success for these countries was short lived. With the discovery of the aniline-based synthetic dyes, the cochineal trade practically collapsed over night. Very little demand remained to supply the artisanal dye industry and artists paints. <br />
When in 1970 it was discovered that the synthetic red dye #2 used in many food products was carcinogenic, new demand for the natural and safe cochineal emerged. Today beverages, jam, jelly, ice cream, sausages, pies, cakes, cookies, dried fish, yogurt, cider, maraschino cherries, tomato products, chewing gum, pills and cough drops are some of the food items brightened with it. Cosmetic rouge and lipsticks has cochineal as its main color ingredient. <br />
Happy Red Valentines Day.<br />
<br />
If you would like to find out more about cochineal: in Oaxaca Rancho La Nopalera –Tlapanochestli www.aztecacolor.com in Coyotepec is a showplace for demonstrating how cochineal is produced. <br />
For the complete intriguing history of cochineal you might want to read “A Perfect Red” by Amy Butler Greenfield (Harper Collins).<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2hQc1f7YGudC-eFzTLC60QOXrdsAxGroWJCsg-iBUXXgDIXytwFqS-hI3oX_9KsRYEGwUEye3hLG-KtuBrePh06qPLhCfHd3LRIbsoktknWqGazQyKl2a88T6qbh00H-w4Lui7hGzp4M/s1600/DownloadedFile.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="165" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2hQc1f7YGudC-eFzTLC60QOXrdsAxGroWJCsg-iBUXXgDIXytwFqS-hI3oX_9KsRYEGwUEye3hLG-KtuBrePh06qPLhCfHd3LRIbsoktknWqGazQyKl2a88T6qbh00H-w4Lui7hGzp4M/s200/DownloadedFile.jpeg" /></a></div>Negroni, my favorite red drink is made with Campari, which is as brilliantly red as cochineal gets. <br />
1 oz gin <br />
1 oz Campari <br />
1/2 oz Sweet Vermouth (if too tart, add one ounce of this)<br />
Fill cocktail shaker with ice. <br />
Add gin, Campari and sweet vermouth in cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously (until your hands can’t stand the cold any more) and strain into a cocktail glass. <br />
Garnish with lemon twist or orange twist. kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-76280560851825217582011-03-07T21:25:00.000-08:002012-04-28T20:13:58.199-07:00Do you know this vegetable?The challenge of a quiz always seems to be popular. In order to make food more interesting to my students, I came up with these quizes (is that the plural?). Some were eventually published in our local paper La Atención. Here is one, let me know what you guess.<br />
<br />
During hot summer days we seem to be craving salads and vegetables more than any time of the year. This vegetable in question falls into this preferred group. Ever since it was first cultivated, it had its travel bag ready to go. It now spans the globe and there is hardly a county where it is not cultivated, short of areas where it’s too cold for any vegetable to grow.<br />
<br />
It is among the world’s oldest cultivated vegetables and archaeologists have found evidence of it growing around human dwellings near the Thailand-Burma border dating to 7750 BC. —and that places it pretty close to the dawning millennia of agriculture, so at present, it looks like we’ve been intentionally growing it for nearly 10,000 years. Its non-stop voyage continued to India, the Middle East and when the Israelites escaped from Egypt, the Old Testament relates that, among the things they lamented leaving behind was the it vegetable.<br />
It does like a lot of sunshine and even the Romans had to work at growing it. The Emperor Tiberius planted the plant in carts and had his slaves wheel the carts around to keep the plants in the sun. The Sun King of France cultivated it in his Potager du Roi, (the King’s vegetable garden) under glass to make sure it was served at his table every day when it was in season.<br />
Most of southern Europe came to love this vegetable, including Spain. When Columbus set sail for one of his voyages to the New World, he had seeds on board that were planted in what is now Haiti. Here is where the history of this vegetable takes an interesting turn. When the first Spanish explores then traveled to North America with some of the seeds, it was readily accepted by the native American Indians too. By the time the north European settlers arrived they thought the vegetable was indigenous to the Americas. At the time of their arrival it had not reached all of the European countries yet.<br />
The many uses today range from it being eaten raw, cooked, preserved and a favorite diet food as its calorie content is only 13 per cup. It also can be helpful in reducing skin swellings and sunburns. I have found no aphrodisiac attribute attached to this vegetable, as with many former quiz foods, but there is a famous restaurant in Chicago that makes a very delicious --margarita with it.kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-19732790343501691752011-03-07T20:57:00.000-08:002011-03-13T10:11:37.670-07:00A Culinary Phoenix<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDWHPQNjuZ11Y0cA8j5y54t9iGfa0Wy7SXCzBdyAJa1Dtn1QJ9avwsdDGeO2L_JttCD9WHmnzLkd5WIbSt4Ae8cfy1Y5_cwZ_ej3Qp5U9cSFhV_C2jyNF8yHkeb_za_fphp47jM1BKms/s1600/foto2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="253" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDWHPQNjuZ11Y0cA8j5y54t9iGfa0Wy7SXCzBdyAJa1Dtn1QJ9avwsdDGeO2L_JttCD9WHmnzLkd5WIbSt4Ae8cfy1Y5_cwZ_ej3Qp5U9cSFhV_C2jyNF8yHkeb_za_fphp47jM1BKms/s320/foto2.jpg" /></a></div>In 1968, Josefina Velazquez de Leon was the preeminent culinary personality in Mexico. However very few people 42 years later know who she is. She has been likened to having been the Mexican Julia Child but her accomplishments were by far more groundbreaking than Child’s. I believe the most accurate comparison is with Martha Stewart. Both women started their careers as cooks and moved on to become amazingly innovative and successful entrepreneurs. <br />
Born in 1899 on hacienda “El Pabellón” near Aguascalientes, Josefina was the oldest of four daughters born to Juan Luis Velázquez de León and Maria Peón Valdez.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPWhGWUEd7wCg8dma8Hijjh2dj5K00Nd-gSmlFdXybbUbfc5EKeayoWU2IBZ9aDW1e_9Zwj2M4u78IK9iwm-AWDYshW0f88hDRTfuuKHNfUB0_jnmODK1GJnfLYfzo6s9iGwi-LlJ-F0/s1600/foto4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPWhGWUEd7wCg8dma8Hijjh2dj5K00Nd-gSmlFdXybbUbfc5EKeayoWU2IBZ9aDW1e_9Zwj2M4u78IK9iwm-AWDYshW0f88hDRTfuuKHNfUB0_jnmODK1GJnfLYfzo6s9iGwi-LlJ-F0/s200/foto4.jpg" /></a></div>The family enjoyed a very privileged life on the hacienda, as well as a comfortable home in Mexico City where they moved to in 1905. She received an education emphasizing penmanship, respect for the Catholic Church, and French cooking- common practice with the Mexican elite at the beginning of the twentieth century. <br />
When Josefina was born, Mexico was ruled by Porfirio Díaz, the man who would rule the country for 34 years with an iron fist. His corrupt and dictatorial practices in part provoked the beginning of an insurrection which would become the Mexican Revolution. For 10 long years, Josefina witnessed the destruction of the revolutionary battles, endured the “year of the hunger,” in 1915 and lost of the family hacienda as a result of agrarian reform. Her father died in 1921 of a heart attack, likely brought on by the loss of his fortune.<br />
Close to her thirtieth birthday, Josefina married Joaquín González, a businessman twenty years her senior. When her husband passed away after a mere 11 months of marriage, she needed to find a way to create an income.<br />
Post-revolutionary Mexico was not an easy time for women. The new Constitution of 1917 gave women equality before the law with the same rights and duties as men in regard to managing their own businesses. Yet married women still needed their husband’s or father’s permission to work, and were still responsible for domestic chores and care of their children.<br />
As a childless widow, however, Josefina was able to independently pursue her own business goals and deal with authorities without the permission of husband or father. <br />
Of all of the exquisite schooling received, cooking now served her best. In 1933, she converted the lower floor of her home on calle Abraham Gonzales into a cooking school “Academia de Cocina Velázquez de León” (Velázquez de León Cooking School). To do so, she turned to a new business concept for it’s time, she asked for sponsorship from General Electric.<br />
Running a cooking school, however, was an uncertain endeavor for Josefina, given that women had almost no presence in the Mexican workforce of the 1930s. The only cooking school of that time, catering to the upper middle class, was managed by a Spaniard in Mexico City. Furthermore, she didn’t have any formal training in cooking, nor had she received an academic education. Yet despite all of these challenges, Josefina had confidence in her skills and forged ahead. By word from enthusiastic students, she quickly developed a large and loyal following among society ladies. Not only did they learn how to cook and run a proper household in an efficient manner, it was one of the few activities they could enjoy away from their homes without being chaperoned. <br />
Throughout her career, Josefina developed a keen business sense. She understood how to find financial support by advertising various food products and kitchen equipment. She wrote articles for ladies magazines and ventured into her own radio and TV shows. She initiated nutritional programs in cooperation with the government and supported many charities. <br />
In 1946 she started her own press. The first cookbook, she published, <i>Manual Práctico de Cocina y Repostería</i> (A Practical Manual of Cooking and Baking), became a big success. During her lifetime Josefina wrote about 150 cookbooks, including a bilingual volume aimed at North American cooks titled <blockquote></blockquote>Mexican Cookbook devoted to American Homes<blockquote></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSSixlNDtM0WVSkrTMYzP823ofdbXfSP1CCUhsaF3H_H11LBRVv_2UWUblQOPbfazGmixgRZ55XI0kSeXpbre4tllgnoepYVzWBHJcV3fimQxitY2e6mbURj2W9a9-u10sYil9v6Q8T0/s1600/Cover-1971.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="200" width="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiSSixlNDtM0WVSkrTMYzP823ofdbXfSP1CCUhsaF3H_H11LBRVv_2UWUblQOPbfazGmixgRZ55XI0kSeXpbre4tllgnoepYVzWBHJcV3fimQxitY2e6mbURj2W9a9-u10sYil9v6Q8T0/s200/Cover-1971.jpg" /></a></div>She had enormous energy, a life full of long days and few holidays. She taught in the mornings and evenings, tested new recipes in the afternoon and wrote cookbooks until late at night. <br />
When a new sense of national pride swept the country after the revolution, Josefina began to teach less French and more Mexican recipes. It was not an easy hurdle to overcome since tortillas, tamales and many other treasured dishes were considered peasant food and definitely not to be served in upper class homes. Yet she was relentless in her determination, traveling widely in her own car to all regions of the country, documenting recipes.<br />
I asked my friend and the foremost authority today on Mexican cuisine, Diana Kennedy, if she had a chance during her stay in Mexico in the 1960’s to meet Josefina. Although she had not, through Josefina’s cookbooks, then widely sold, she became aware of the distinct regional culinary differences, inspiring her for her own 50-year long odyssey in Mexico, resulting in the publication of eight cookbooks. As a foreigner Diana did not look at Mexican food as peasant food and celebrated it’s flavors as “peasant food raised to an art”. For her efforts, she was decorated with the highest honor that Mexico bestows on foreigners, the order of the Aztec Eagle. Regretfully Josefina got none of such highly deserved recognition. <br />
During a fundraising appearance in Veracruz, she became ill and died shortly after at the age of 68 on September 4. 1968, four weeks before the devastating student uprising in Tlatelolco, the former site of the spectacular Aztec market in the city of Tenochtitlan (now Mexico City). <br />
Josefina’s sisters to tried to continue in her spirited efforts but did not succeed. The cooking school was closed down and the equipment placed out in the street for whoever wanted to take it.<br />
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Puplished in La Atención, San Miguel de Allende, Friday, April 30, 2010<br />
<br />
When I was working with Rick Bayless, testing recipes for his cookbooks, I first discovered Josefina in his amazing collection of Mexican cookbooks. It was interesting to see how she started publishing mostly French recipes at the beginning of her career. However, as national pride in Mexico grew after the revolution, her recipes became more and more Mexican. <br />
Last year, when Mexico celebrated its bicenntenial year of their revolutions, I was asked to create a historical menu for a gala dinner for the Young Presidents Organisation, to be held here in San Miguel de Allende, the cradle of the revolution for independance. I suggested to honor Josefina, the Phoenix that rose out of the ashes of the revolution.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwxuPrGUcMi3q5wz0M7ctI9poXvFJErPt8DRqWalQ8y3J5CecIOiGNBFQKFctB_jOaQvRMDoPThmBFMPM4db9XDQgtnRut-t-lzvKhiONBb3hLdJw5-vZFCFK3ofpyjiM5QhFgJg1kUU/s1600/CIMG0423.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="150" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwxuPrGUcMi3q5wz0M7ctI9poXvFJErPt8DRqWalQ8y3J5CecIOiGNBFQKFctB_jOaQvRMDoPThmBFMPM4db9XDQgtnRut-t-lzvKhiONBb3hLdJw5-vZFCFK3ofpyjiM5QhFgJg1kUU/s200/CIMG0423.JPG" /></a></div>On one of my snooping trips in the wonderful San Miguel antique stores I had the good fortune of finding 10 of Josefinas small booklets featuring monthly menu suggestions. They were hidden under a stack of magazines form the 40ties that I had amelessly shuffled through. I was just about to put them back when my heart jumped as I spotted a familiar cover. I could hardly contain my excitement as I went to pay for them. They were 10. dollars the bunch, less that half of one book on the market, if one can find them.<br />
<br />
Here is the menu that was served for 150 guests.<br />
<br />
<b>Soup</b><br />
<i>Sopa cemoso de calabaza de Castillo con chile ancho fritos</i><br />
A creamy squash soup accented with the nutty flavor of the ground squash seeds, garnished with fried chile ancho strips and soft boiled quail egg <br />
<br />
<b>Main Course</b><br />
<i>Pollo en Mole Verde Exquisito</i><br />
Of the many moles, this recipe is generally not very well known but very popular in the Bajio. The combination of fresh poblano chiles, tomatillos, romaine lettuce and parsley, accented with rich Moorish nuts and spices sets it distinctly apart from other moles <br />
<br />
<i>Papas Fritos con Tocino</i><br />
Roasted potatoes with crisp bacon<br />
<br />
<i>Acelgas con Zanahorias a la Mexicana</i><br />
This wonderful sautéed meddly of swiss chard, carrots and tomatoes are a perfect compliment to the dinner plate.<br />
<br />
<i>Tortillas de Nixtamal</i><br />
House made tortillas from ground corn<br />
<br />
<b>Dessert</b><br />
<i>Mousse de cacahuate y jarabe de tuna<br />
Galletas de ajonjoli</i><br />
This unusual peanut mousse is quintessential Mexican since the peanut and prickly pears is are indigenous. The delicate sesame cookie elevate the dessert from delicious to divine.<br />
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Buen Provechokirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167062929125348391.post-60486738990880380892011-02-21T22:16:00.000-08:002011-03-12T16:35:33.934-08:00El Nopal, the Miracle Plant<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGxwel5aE-tlzC9Dngvpo9tr734XoiuuIj_E3WWnulscaeYDBykHT371RFNWRhfJNl0iKOW6b5u4KJkLc2byjm8-Im23GbKvYoKZJ63DoNocq7UHFJBj5r9pAS9N_H-aNiorAP0DSr9Y/s1600/DSC03589.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGxwel5aE-tlzC9Dngvpo9tr734XoiuuIj_E3WWnulscaeYDBykHT371RFNWRhfJNl0iKOW6b5u4KJkLc2byjm8-Im23GbKvYoKZJ63DoNocq7UHFJBj5r9pAS9N_H-aNiorAP0DSr9Y/s320/DSC03589.JPG" /></a></div>Mexico is probably the only country in the world which features one of its healthiest plants in its national emblem. We all know the ubiquitous image of an eagle with a snake in its beak, wings still spread wide and ready to land on a nopal, the cactus indigenous to the New World. Its name comes from the nahualtl word nopalli. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo0NIVlcHmAZZ_L0GZSKHk11HWMw0bJ_4vsKF96WcPhjuf8DupVUH2DqGJA_cJAyAEuHQJ4hngF62Gu504QVwAcjNK4TevYbzysMh5ZByLCaESvRqJafI8SYnQEBt6ROsZohpMRzEjFN8/s1600/mexican-flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear:right; float:right; margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="150" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo0NIVlcHmAZZ_L0GZSKHk11HWMw0bJ_4vsKF96WcPhjuf8DupVUH2DqGJA_cJAyAEuHQJ4hngF62Gu504QVwAcjNK4TevYbzysMh5ZByLCaESvRqJafI8SYnQEBt6ROsZohpMRzEjFN8/s200/mexican-flag.jpg" /></a></div>The eagle seems to be landing on this inhospitable plant with its sharp needle like thorns with ease as if it would be the most comfortable place to devour its catch. What made the ancient inhabitants of Mexico think the plant was good to eat? Desperate need for food in a barren environment, ancient wisdom, instinct or some higher connection? We will probably never know. We do know that the nopal has been cultivated for millenniums and treasured as a special gift of nature. With modern science we have learned that the plant is a nutritional reservoir like no other plant for which the Aztecs, besides food and beverages, had many other uses as well. Building materials, fire wood, glue, stiffening cloth, strengthen mortar, fences and religious ceremonies. Diego Rivera famously mixed the colors for his murals with nopal sap. Dishes containing game eggs, wild meats, fish, seafood and the New World stables, without we can not imagine the culinary world today, tomatoes, corn, potatoes, chile and squash were prepared with nopal much in the same way we find today.<br />
500 years after the Spanish conquest, what was once an amazingly healthy nation now sadly has one of the highest cases of diabetes and obesity in the world. To understand the full impact of this statement, consider this scenario: When Hernán Cortéz arrived in Tenochtitlan, what is now Mexico City in 1519 his crew of Spaniards were quite a sorry lot to look at. The long sea voyages without fresh food left them in a poor state of health. Plagued by chronic nutritional deficiency diseases had left them balding and nearly toothless. Personal hygiene, such as bathing or clean clothing was not something they practiced. And here they came face to face with a people that had shinny black hair, beautiful taut completions and a splendid set of teeth and high standards of personal hygiene that involve bathing at least daily. Their clothing was dyed in brilliant colors, many never seen before. When news of these very healthy people reached Spain’s, King Phillip, he dispatched his trusted personal physician, Dr. Francisco Hernández de Toledo (1514-1587) to the New World to find out what was the special medicine that made these people so healthy. After 7 years of travels and documenting indigenous plants and foods with the help of his artist-traveling companion, Dr. Hernández concluded there was no medicine; it was the diet that made the people so healthy.kirstenwesthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05249457511891607776noreply@blogger.com0