Exploring Mexican Cuisine: BAJA, Southwest, Tex Mex!

While in NM this past month I have had the ability to experiment with dishes from not only NM but also those mexican dishes from other parts of the US. Now then we all know that there are different types of Mexican food. Here is a little breakdown on the Mexican Foods out west.

CALIFORNIA Mexican Foods

Let's take for example Mexican food of the West from California which has a spin on it. They specialize in citrus added to Mexican food with local fresh veggies. Think of the Baja style pepared Fish Tacos recipe below.

Fish Tacos
1 lb Mahi Mahi fish fillets
1 tsp fresh black pepper
1 tsp Old Bay seasoning
1 cup flour
1 cup beer
1 cup oil

Mix beer, seasonings and flour together in a bowl. Mix well.

Dry fish, cut into 6 - 8 pieces. Dunk into the beer batter and allow to drain slightly before adding to heated oil. Do not over crowd the pan with fish. Cook for about 3 minutes or until golden brown and turn. Cook for 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Repeat until done.

Serve with fresh sliced lime wedges, slaw, salsa, corn tortillas and an ice cold beer.

Southwestern Mexican Foods

Now then New Mexico and Arizona have a different view of Mexican foods. NM is known for their Hatch Chilies and the Southwest is known for the different types of Chilies grown by the universities and local Chile growers. That specific type of Mexican food is known as Southwestern Mexican. Enchiladas in other parts of the country are usually rolled, but in New Mexico it is not unusual to find them stacked. Also, there is the issue of Red Sauce, Green Sauce or Christmas.  Green Sauce is Green Chile Sauce, while the red Sauce is that of the Chile Molido it is a rich red color. Finally, there is Christmas - when you cannot make up your mind you get both sauces - personally my favorite. 

New Mexico is where the Green Chile Cheeseburger was brought to an art. Many say the OWL Cafe in San Antonio,NM serves the best Chile Cheeseburgers but my thinking is that the BUCKHORN Cafe in San Antonio, NM serves the best burgers for $6 and a bunless wonder of the same ingredients for $4 which is a deal. Just be sure to "Thank" Bobby Olguin when you are there - as he is usually there, the proprietor along with his wife and eager to trade jabs at you anytime -- when not filiming his NM foodie show. ( http://www.socorro-nm.com/buckhorn.htm) A damn great burger - just check it out for yourself!

Also, in El Paso, TX there is this small chain of restaurants which specialize in flautas in a thin red sauce. It is called "Chicos Tacos". 

Here is the facsimile recipe:

Mock Chico's Tacos

Salsa
5 large Roma Tomatoes
3 - 4 jalapenos
water
salt and pepper

Remove stems, chop coarsely and add to a pot. Add rest of ingredients. Cook until peppers are soft. Add to a blender and puree all together. Set aside.

1 lb chuck, ground
1 Serrano pepper, minced and seeded
2 crushed garlic cloves
pinch of both chili powder, and paprika
1 bay leaf
cup of water
salt and pepper

Next, add ground chuck to a pan, fry with pepper and garlic. Drain oil, add seasoning after pink has fled. Add water and simmer for 30 minutes. Set aside.

Sauce
2 jalapenos, stems removed
1 serrano pepper, stem removed
2 Tbsp lime juice
2 tsp apple cider vinegar (may substitute regular distilled vinegar)Bay Leaf
salt
Bay leaf
Black peppercorn balls

Add peppers to a saucepan. Add lime juice, vinegar and salt to taste. Add bay leaf. Cook until peppers are soft. Add water to make a cup of broth, put into the food processor and blend until liquid. Serve this first, ladle into a bowl.

Assemble

Oil
corn tortillas
shredded cheddar

Next you will fry the flautas. Dip the corn tortillas in oil, fry no more than 30 seconds and roll (use 1 1/2 tbsp of meat) and secure with a toothpick and fry till crispy or about 2 minutes. Add to sauce, top flautas with cheddar or shredded colby plus add some salsa. Enjoy!

Here is the family favorite NM cole Slaw which is oil based.

New Mexican Slaw
2 tbsp Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp cracked black pepper
1 tsp salt
1 hear of finely shredded cabbage

Place cabbage in a large serving dish. Add the oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to a measuring cup and stir  well. Add to the cabbage and toss well. Refrigerate.

TEX-MEX

Growing up in central Texas I was accustom to what is called TEX-MEX, that is spicy Mexican food which has a distinctive cheesiness about it. It is a US invention as in Mexico there is no such type of food such as TEX-MEX. I used to go to Tip Top Cafe in San Antonio which served the best handrolled Enchilada dinners, but there were also the Puffy Tacos - something well known in San Antonio and difficult to find elsewhere.

Puffy Tacos

1 lb ground beef
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 jalapeno peppers, minced
1 Tbsp Chile Powder, Mexican Oregano
1 Tbsp Cumin (OPT)
2 Tbsp Cilantro, chopped
1 potato, diced
Cayene pepper to taste
Salt
Pepper
1 cup Beef Broth

Break ground beef into chunks and add onion and garlic, fry until the meat is no longer pink. Drain meat of oil. Add the rest of the spices. I prefer to not use Cumin, if you must use it - add it now. Then add the rest of the ingredients. Cook for 20 - 30 minutes or until the potato is done.

For the PUFFY TACO  - you must use fresh corn masa to make the puffy shell. Suggestion is to buy it in the store and pat out into a 5 inch circle OR use 1/3 of the bag's recipe to make corn tortillas on the Masa Harina bag available in the hispanic section of the store. Cook shells on each side for 30 seconds to 1 min at most or better yet cook it in 1 inch of oil for a really authentic look and taste. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.

Assemble

Break top of puffy taco and fill with beef mixture. Top with Shredded lettuce and tomatoes, add cheese and serve with rice, beans and tortillas and lots of Salsa and Tortilla Chips!

Enjoy!

Artichoke salsa!

Yeah, you heard me right! The big difference between the regular old run of the mill Tex Mex salsa is the fact that the addition of artichokes makes this salsa little bit healthier. There is nothing wrong with that! Artichoke salsa is delicious, satisfying and brings the salsa up to a new level. Great as a snack on tortila chips, on an omlette, with shrimp. Simply heavenly!

Artichoke Salsa
4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 lime, ,juiced
1/4 cup Spanish onion, chopped
1/4 cup Cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup Olives, chopped (I prefer green but try black olives)
6 oz artichokes, chopped
3/4 teas salt
1/2 teas pepper, fresh cracked
3 medium hatch chilies, roasted and chopped
2 seeded Serrano peppers, minced

Place everything in a bowl, mix well.

Serve.

Can be refridgerated for up to 4 days.

Enjoy!

Modifications:  To make regular Salsa omit the Artichokes, add juice of 1/2 more Lime.

Life in the Heart of Dixie

B'Ham can be compared in many ways to Dallas now. The life in the city is fast, the downtown area is considered dangerous. The weather can change at the drop of a hat. The weather is moderate, it can snow at times, but it is a place where the terrain is lush. People in this part of the country are steeped in the traditional values of the old plantation life. While it is composed of a number of smaller cities engulfed by the larger city, as B'ham  evolved there are a few things which remained within the structure of the foundation of the lifestyle in the south. This is an industrial city built on the sweat of the south's iron and steel mills with roots in the model of the captured and dependant labor supply namely that of blacks built squarely upon the plantation life. Once freed the labor supply was able to finally break free of the lowly positions, obtain required education to build better lives for themselves. So while there is excellent education in Alabama, life in the south is steeped in tradition. Life continues to revolve around the church, the local community, family and the local community (yes, this repeated again for EMPHASIS).

"What church do you go to?", is a common question here.

"What brought you here?", is the second question.

There are things which are steeped in life in the south, such as which churches are frequented. If you and others in the south do not cross paths often it is because your churches do not intermingle. The southern hospitality is that of making strangers feel welcome and extending hospitality but not to the extent that they let them into their communities unless they are affiliated with the local church. So, there is a bit of cultural separation if your communities and churches do not intermingle. There are neighborhoods considered better than others as far as local neighborhoods go. Homewood in B'ham is akin to the SMU area in Dallas. There is black side of town as there is a brown side of town. There are places which you do not visit alone or at night if you are a woman. Huntsville is akin to Austin, TX. Mobile, AL and the Gulf Shores areas are aking to Corpus Christi and Port Aransas, TX. There is nothing (no like city) like Houston, TX in Alabama.

Women in the south are homemakers, caretakers of the family, home decorators, nurses, gardeners, very good cooks, maids, volunteers, seamstresses, baby sitters and jacks of all trades while maintaining a cool, calm stylish demeanor. Add to this mix when a woman works -- the additional role of professional, or out of the home worker. They are much more resilient that they appear, and yes appearance is everything here.

"Simply put", as a friend of mine in Austin, TX used to always say, there is an unwritten code of politeness in the south. People are always stylish, calm, and composed. They travel locally, not much outside of the state as the state is not a wealthy state. The rural people you will find are salt of the earth people.

Barbeque in this part of the country is PORK.

In Texas we all know it is Beef.

But in both places you will find also Chicken Barbeque.

Below you will find a link for a great link to a traditional style recipe for a southern favorite: Cornbread. (southerners consider cornbread with sugar to be a northern style cornbread, So much for Texas cornbread which contains sugar):

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/cat-cora/southern-cornbread-recipe/index.html

Hispanic folks enjoy making  barbeque too, but it is called ASADA. In San Antonio, TX there are these FABULOUS Anticuchos which are grilled shish-k-bobs served at this great huge Fiesta called NIOSA (Night in Old San Antonio). I grew up eating these, and learned how to make them. They are PERUVIAN shish-k-bobs. Delicious and virtually foolproof.

Here is the basic recipe.

ANTICUCHOS


1 part red wine vinegar
3 parts water
2 Serrano Peppers
Salt
Cubed Meat
Whole Black Pepper
1 teas garlic salt
Pinch of Oregano
Pinch of Comino


Add all ingredients in a blender, but hold off on adding meat for a bit. Blend well, pour over meat. Cover 1 -2 lbs cubed meat. Marinate 24 hours. Skewer meat cubes with Bamboo skewers. Do not reserve the Marinade as it will contaminate.

Cook over hot coals, baste skewers with butter.

Serve immediately.

Basic Sofrito

So what is Sofrito?

Think chopped seasoned vegetables which are seasoned and lightly sauteed. This is used in cooking many Latin American foods as the "base". Try this simple Sofrito. Other cultures use this cooking method, also known as epis (Haitian), Guiso (Colombian), it is also used in Mexican, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, as well as Cuban, Puerto Rican, Caribbean cuisines and so forth.

Once you have learned to make Sofrito. Add vegetables to your taste and proceed to make the recipe your own - based on your likes, dislikes, local fresh vegetables available and recipes you wish to incorporate the Sofrito in.

1 T vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, seeded, devoid of membrane, chopped
1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded, devoid of membrane, chopped (may substitute an orange bell pepper)
1 large red bell pepper, seeded, devoid of membrane, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
1 t salt
1 t fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 - 1 t fresh cumin, ground
cilantro to taste, chopped or crushed (about 1/3 to 1/2 cup)

Heat the oil, add the peppers and onions. Cook until onions are translucent, add salt and pepper. Stir and mix well. This will take about 10 minutes. Add your cilantro and allow it wilt. Stir and use immediately, or you may keep in the fridge for about 4 days or better yet, freeze any you are not using for up to 2 mos.

Here are a few options to consider:

• Tomatoes
• Bay leaf
• achiote (annato seeds)
• pork
• ham
• lard
• capers
• turmeric
• cardamon
• Oregano 
• Habaneros or other chile

Makes approximately 2 cups of Sofrito.

Fusion cuisine of the south and the resurgence of southern food

Living in the heart of Dixie has introduced me a few new foods, better renditions of old time favorites and introduced me to a melding of cuisines.

With the recent changes in laws in Alabama many Hispanics have left the state for neighboring states with less strict immigration laws. So, Alabama is going the way of Arizona and other states cracking down on illegal immigrants. Migrant workers have made their exodus out of the state state of Alabama and taken their labor to other states. This course has led to a civil uprising of sorts in the state, much as what happened to the blacks in the 70's. Hispanics are congregating in capital cities, meeting amongst themselves and the lessons learned of the southern civil rights movements the blacks faced in the south are being brought forward yet again. Some of those moments of civil right bursting forth into the light of attention worldwide such as the bombings in Montgomery, Dr Martin Luther King and the freedom riders are etched in our history, locally as well as nationally.

Some people do not wish to dwell on what is happening in America. Uneducated Americans are stating that the Hispanics are taking their jobs. But as we all know, those are jobs others feel themselves too superior to take on - as they are service related jobs. Hence fruit and vegetables are rotting in the fields of states taking this stand, and service jobs have been affected around the nation. Hispanics are fearful of reprisal and ugly confrontations with people who wish them harm.

Quite frankly, the Hispanic population has been exploding over the past few decades. More and more Hispanics or Latino numbers are growing and will continue to grow. The unrest experienced in the states adjacent to Mexico is spilling into the neighboring border states. As of 2011, or even as early as 2010 it is not safe to go as a visitor to the border cities in Mexico which in our youth we visited to buy cheap Mexican jewelry, kitchen ware and for weekend vacations during summers. Mexican Americans with families in Mexico now must fly into cities further in Mexico or risk being shot at in border towns of Mexico and the US.

This exodus of Hispanics in Alabama has left the remaining Mexican - Americans, "born in America" Hispanics, South American's or Latin American's facing daily challenges of dealing with prejudiced outrage and unusual scrutinization of darker skinned peoples. School children are dealing with the changes in laws at school as well, which should be a place of learning not separation because of their skin color. Announcement of pedigrees is common place in the South when meeting new people as is the faith/church you attend.

I am going to intersperse recipes belonging to the South American peoples this year to document some of the recipes being shared with other Hispanics and people born in countries outside of America as I have been invited to some of these gatherings. Learning that some of the ingredients may be somewhat the same but some much different than the Tex-Mex we are familiar with.

There are a large number of Mexican-American's, Guatemalan and El Salvadorian communities remaining in Alabama. As I am exposed to their recipes I will be posting them starting today with the recipe(s) below.


Salvadorian Enchiladas

1/2 c corn oil
2 large eggs
2 medium white onion
1 medium bell pepper
3 cloves garlic
8 corn tortillas
2 T olive oil
3/4 teas Chipolte Chili powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 head Iceburg lettuce
3 Roma tomatoes
12 stems of cilantro
8 oz ground Pork
3 oz Pecorino Romano (or Monterrey Jack)

Heat Corn Oil in pan. Line baking sheet or big plate with paper towels. Dip tortillas into the hot oil, and brown for about a minute, transfer to pan with paper towels and drain. Repeat for each tortilla.

Place eggs in small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a rolling boil. Then turn off heat and let them sit for about 15 minutes.

Dice onions, bell pepper and mince garlic cloves with a bit of salt.  In a separate pan heat the diced onion, bell pepper and garlic with olive oil add chili powder and cook for about 5 minutes or until fragrant and onion is soft. Add pork to the mixture, cook until the no pink remains, chopped the meat as you cook it, stir it into the mixture. Discard the fat and taste seasoning with sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper.

Shred the lettuce, slice tomatoes into 16 slices. Coarsely chop Cilantro. Drain eggs, crack them under cool water and let them cool. Then slice eggs into 8 pieces.

Arrange two tortillas on each plate. Divide pork among them. top with lettuce, egg, tomato slices, pecorino and cilantro.

Makes 4 servings, serve with black beans, sopes (similar to a gordita) and fried plantains.

Desert Anyone?

As the winter months have been mild, it nevertheless has catapulted me into the kitchen as cooler weather always does. My husband has been on a "behavior modification" but this does not deter me from preparing sumptuous foods and deserts. I have a couple to share and a few more which I am still in the process of testing. Enjoy!

SCARLETT O'HARA's BROWN SUGAR POUND CAKE

 

3 Cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

1 pound brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

5 eggs, at room temperature

3/4 cup milk

1/4 cup dark rum (plus 2 T more)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup chopped pecans

Sweetened whipped cream 

Sliced berries (add 2 T rum and let them sit for 30 minutes)

 

Preheat over to 325 degrees F.  

Grease and flour a 12 cup Bundt pan.  

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt; and set aside.  In mixer bowl cream butter until light.  Gradually add sugars and continue beating until very light and fluffy.  Beat in eggs one  at a time, beat well after adding each additional egg.  Combine milk, rum and vanilla.  Add to batter alternately with dry ingredients.  Fold in nuts last.  

Pour into prepared pan.  Bake 1 hour 45 minutes, or until toothpick  inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on wire rack 30 minutes; remove from pan and cool.  

Wrap and store at room temperature 24 hours before serving.  Before serving combine 1 cup of powdered sugar with 2 T rum and stir till smooth. Drizzle over the cake. Serve with sweetened whipped cream and sliced berries.  

Makes 20 servings, ~ 400 calories each without sweetened cream.

Fast and Dirty Lava Brownies

1 Box your favorite brownie mix

3 eggs, room temp

3 egg yolks, room temp

3 Tablespoons coffee or coffee liqueur

1 stick butter

1 cup chopped chocolate, good quality (you may substitute Toll House)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put butter in microwave bowl and nuke for 1 minute in your microwave. Stir mixture well and melted and creamy. Set aside.  

Using an electric mixer add eggs and egg yolks to a medium bowl. Beat for 6 minutes. Add brownie mix to the eggs and mix, add coffee and stir in the chocolate mixture. Grease 12 muffin cups and add mixture 3/4 full. Bake for 12 minutes.

Brownies should be soft, warm and gooey in the middle. Serve with ice cream and more chocolate.

Soup fundraiser

What have I been doing lately???
 
In January I've been working on pulling together recipes for my next cookbook, that being based on delectable cupcakes. I have a friend helping me with photos and have had my writing groups (NM and TX) review sections as well as my editing muse feeding me ideas. The book undoubtedly needs to be a COLOR cookbook. The photo shoot will be sometime in the next few months as this month I am finishing up the cook-booklet for the Assistance League of Birmingham.

Last month was a whirlwind of testing multiple recipes for a soup fundraiser in Alabama. Below are a few southern basic recipes along with AL's rendition of Chili. In testing these recipes I have determined the palate of the southern people in the US is much different than the palate of the Southwestern people. In AL Pork is a favorite, beef is not as much a favorite and Turkey is found in stores but not really used in many restaurants or cafes.

Peppers, hot or not. That could be considered a bad word in the southern states. Where as in NM and Texas it was not uncommon to use plenty of peppers and1 teaspoon of Cayenne pepper and 8 or 9 chopped Medium Hatch chilies to spice up the chili - in Alabama I can barely  use 1/4 teaspoon for a batch of Chili and only MILD chopped green Chile.  What a difference it makes here in AL, they also like Chile a little sweeter and their cornbread has no sweetness to it (the other bread served in the south is biscuits). I myself prefer a sweet cornbread as is served in Texas and in NM.

The first two recipes come from a friend who came by these recipes through family members in AL, the last one is a hearty health conscious heavily laden veggie chili recipe adapted by yours truly.

Corn Chowder

Saute 1 cup chopped onions and chopped celery in 2 T. butter.

Add:  1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream style corn

2 ½ cups whole milk

1 cup diced cooked ham

1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup cooked diced potatoes

1 T. parsley flakes or fresh parsley

Create your flavor base by sauteing onions and celery in butter with drizzle of olive oil. Cook for about 5 minutes, add remaining ingredients and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with Hot Cornbread.

Indian Hash (never heard of this before but it was tasty)

2 pounds of ground round

2 cans cream style corn

1 can regular kernel corn

1 lg. can crushed tomatoes

1 lg. bell pepper, chopped

½ cup chopped onion

½ cup chopped celery

Salt and pepper

Worcestershire Sauce to taste

Tabasco to taste

A pinch of Cayenne to taste

Brown meat, add pepper, onion, celery and cook until tender (about 5 minutes).  Add remaining ingredients and simmer for about 30 minutes. 

Serve with Cornbread.

Hearty "Skinny" Calorie Conscious Chili

10 oz Turkey, ground

1 T olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 (28 oz) cans of diced or crushed tomatoes

1 (15 oz) cans of Black beans, rinsed

32 oz Turkey broth, low sodium

1 onion, diced

2 zucchini, diced

2 yellow squash, diced

4 ribs celery, diced

1 Green bell pepper, diced

1 Red bell pepper, diced

1 Yellow bell pepper, diced

2 Carrots, diced

1 Teas Coriander

1 8oz can Tomato Paste

3 Tablespoons Chili Powder

1 T Paprika

1 Teas Cumin

1/4 - 1 Teas Cayenne

2 Tablespoons Cornmeal or Masa Harina

Brown onion, celery and peppers in Olive oil in a large dutch oven or soup pot. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a fast boil and turn heat down to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes adding the cornmeal the last 30 mins of cooking. Stir occasionally.

Serve in big bowls with a large side salad. This makes over 20 once cup servings or 10 generous servings. Great for football crowds.