Cremas, or cream soups, are popular all over Mexico, especially as first courses on wedding menus. The addition of sherry at the end makes this a good starter for a festive fall dinner. Ingredients: ½ cup chopped white onion 1 clove garlic, minced 2 tablespoons butter 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped 3 cups chicken […]
Continue ReadingThese have become a kitchen staple, both north and south of the border. Besides using them to make the currently popular “chipotle mayonnaise,” they can be added to sauces, marinades, salad dressings, soups and stews. I like the homemade chipotles adobados much better than the canned because the taste of fresh tomatoes is missing in the canned […]
Continue ReadingPerhaps the most distinctive characteristic of Oaxaca is the tremendous difference between one region of the state and another. The sierras which crisscross it form natural boundaries between enclaves of culture which have existed since pre-Hispanic times. One of the most unique and charismatic of these is a group known as istmeños, inhabitants of the Isthmus of […]
Continue ReadingI like to vary the colors and textures of a comida, and for this meal I would choose a white rice dish such as this one, rather than repeating the red tomato base of the soup course above. This recipe, prepared like a risotto, is made especially flavorful by the addition of cream cheese, called queso filadelfia after the […]
Continue ReadingCalled chispas, chispitas, or in some places just the English “sprinkles,” these colored decorations are fun and festive. They add pizzaz to that favorite Mexican cake — pastel de tres leches. Ingredients For the cake: 1 ½ cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 1 cup sugar 3 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ cup milk For […]
Continue ReadingThis dish, which I first had at a wedding in Atzompa, Oaxaca, is sometimes called barbacoa de pollo. It is flavored with either avocado or hoja santa leaves, both of which have an anise-like flavor. Ingredients: 8 banana leaves 10 guajillo chiles, seeded and deveined 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 10 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped ½ medium white […]
Continue ReadingMexican jalapeños stuffed with cream cheese and smoked fish are a wonderful botana adapted from Susana Trilling’s Oaxaca cookbook, Seasons of My Heart. Just be sure to use the pickled jalapeños and not raw ones, or they will be too hot for most people. Ingredients 6 ounces cream cheese 6 ounces smoked mullet, sable, tuna or salmon, boned and […]
Continue ReadingServe this very easy Mexican yogurt avocado dip with totopos (crisp fried tortillas) or tortilla chips, or with raw or steamed vegetables. Ingredients 1 ripe avocado ¾ cup yogurt ¼ cup mayonnaise 1 fresh jalapeño chile, seed and finely chopped (or include seeds for more “heat”) ¼ teaspoon ground cumin Salt to taste Chopped cilantro for garnish, […]
Continue ReadingThe combination of mangos and avocados gets a colorful and tasty lift from the addition of red bell peppers. Fresh bell pepper ( pimiento morrón) once meant green bell pepper, and red ones were available only in cans, but today the markets sell red and yellow bells year round. The avocado should not be peeled or […]
Continue ReadingThis dish is found on restaurant menus throughout Mexico, but particularly in the western part of the country and in the Yucatan, where it is called zic de venado. This recipe is a good buffet dish, to be piled on tostadas or served with warm tortillas and habanero salsa. It makes an attractive presentation served on a […]
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