Category: featured

Desserts, featured

Churros (Unfried)

by Irene39 Comments on Churros (Unfried)
Churros (Unfried)

Churros are traditionally made from a thick paste extruded through a pastry bag with a star-shaped tip, and then deep-fried. The resulting grooves on the churros add surface area, which makes the texture extra crispy and airy.  My recipe for unfried churros starts with the same paste as traditional churros, but they are cooked in a waffle iron with very little to no oil.  The waffle grid produces the same structural effect as the pastry bag tip.  The final result is a treat with the full flavour and crispiness of traditional churros, without the extruding step, and minus the vat of oil ... click on title for more

Celebrations, featured, Regional Cuisine

Oaxaca Style Black Sauce – Mole negro estilo Oaxaca

by Irene10 Comments on Oaxaca Style Black Sauce – Mole negro estilo Oaxaca
Oaxaca Style Black Sauce – Mole negro estilo Oaxaca

In Mexico, a turkey dinner is a popular choice for a Christmas menu, especially in urban areas.  For others, though, stew-like dishes are usually the norm, such as chicken in mole. Mole negro (Oaxaca Style Black Sauce) has a similar ingredient list as red mole, but chosen and prepared to impart a dark colour to the sauce: dark dry peppers, peanuts with their dark film on, and burnt tortilla, are some examples, as well as a good portion of chocolate.  The resulting flavour profile is smoky, deep and slightly sweet ... click on title for more

featured, Mexican Culture, Regional Cuisine

Layered Bean Tamales – A Traditional End-of-the-Harvest Feast

by Irene15 Comments on Layered Bean Tamales – A Traditional End-of-the-Harvest Feast
Layered Bean Tamales – A Traditional End-of-the-Harvest Feast

The bean tamales pictured at the top of the post, put together as layered rolls, and steamed, wrapped in corn husks, are a traditional foodstuff to share at the end of the corn harvest in several farming regions of Central and Southern Mexico, from Tonatico and Tlahuac, to the state of Oaxaca ... click on title for more

featured, Regional Cuisine

Coahuila Style Homemade Chorizo (with Vegan Option)

by Irene22 Comments on Coahuila Style Homemade Chorizo (with Vegan Option)
Coahuila Style Homemade Chorizo (with Vegan Option)

In Spain, chorizo is usually a fermented, cured, and smoked pork sausage, which may be sliced and eaten without cooking, traditionally seasoned with paprika and a blend of other spices.  Mexican chorizos are mostly fresh, or partially cured, and need to be cooked before eating. For Northern Mexico recipes, and most specifically for those from the state of Coahuila, the defining seasonings are ancho peppers and cumin; my mom used them as the basis for her chorizo recipe, and always kept it lean by omitting lard from the ingredient list.  I am following all her teachings for this recipe, and by omitting the lard, I was also able to develop a vegan option ... click on title for more