Good Morning.
The following Cinco de Mayo recipes are easy. To forget that they are but a reasonable facsimile of the dishes that take days to prepare south of the border, we suggest you begin your celebration with a CHICO. We assume you have a fine recipe for a Margarita should you be so inclined or a supply of Mexican beer in your fridge. Here, however, is a CHICO.
2 oz. tequila
1 oz. blackberry brandy
1/2 oz. Rose's lime juice
Club soda
Fill a great big glass with ice. Add the tequila, blackberry brandy, and lime juice. Top off with club soda. Stir. Garnish with a slice of lime.
I should fix up a jug of these libations and take them to the store of the same name to thank them for sizing their garments 0 to 4. This means someone who buys a 14 somewhere else buys a 3 at Chico's. This is brilliant marketing for women.
Have your beverage with CREAM CHEESE ROLL UPS.
1 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 cup chopped black olives
6 green onions, chopped
8 10 inch flour tortillas
In a bowl, mix the cream cheese, mayonnaise, olives, and green onions. Spread some of this mixture onto each tortilla.
Roll up the tortillas and chill in the fridge for 2 hours. Sliced the roll ups into 1 inch pieces and serve with the following smoky, roasted SALSA:
12 Roma tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
3 shallots, peeled and rough chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded
1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. ground cumin
Dash of salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Tabasco sauce, optional
Preheat the broiler. In a baking dish, place the tomatoes, unpeeled garlic, chopped shallots and jalapeno. Drizzle all of this
with olive oil. Broil until the outsides of the vegetables are brown, almost charred, maybe 8 minutes, but watch carefully. Remove from broiler and get rid of the tomato core things, jalapeno stem, and garlic skins. In a food processor or blender, chop but do not puree the vegetables. You want chunky here. Place in a nice bowl and stir in the cumin, salt and pepper, lime juice, and fresh cilantro. Taste and add a dash of Tabasco sauce if desired.
For the entree we bypass the enchiladas, burritos, and fajitas for PUERTO VALLARTA STEAK.
4 filet mignons or any cut you prefer to serve 4 people.
Salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder
6 tbsp. cold, unsalted butter
1/2 cup beef broth
1/2 cup poblano peppers, rough chopped
1/4 cup tequila
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp. Mexican crema - a version of sour cream or creme fraiche
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Juice of 1 lime
Let the filets come to room temp. Sprinkle them with salt and chili powder. Heat a large, cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and then the meat. Cook to desired doneness. Remove from heat and let rest under foil
on a platter. For the sauce, drain most of the fat from the skillet, add the broth, poblano, tequila, onion, and garlic. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is reduced to about a fourth of a cup. Whisk in the crema, bring to a boil, and cook until slightly thickened. Add the rest of the butter, a bit at a time, and stir constantly until the butter is melted and the sauce is thickened. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice and remove from heat. Spoon the sauce over the filets.
You could, of course, grill the steaks outside but then you won't have the fat in the skillet for the sauce. This would be healthier but only slightly so with the crema and butter.
Many years ago I had dinner at a splendid little restaurant in Puerto Vallarta where the waiter served baked potatoes tableside. He cut them open, loaded them up with butter, sprinkled them with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, and squeezed a fresh lime on top. They were fantastic and so was the octopus salad I had at a quaint little beach restaurant reached by swimming from a boat that couldn't get particularly close to shore. That was one of the more daring things I've done in my life along with parasailing and almost landing on the roof of the Holiday Inn. I am not known for my physical prowess but I'm reportedly a fairly good driver. Not that day.
Do this. Worth it.
Serve the steak with MEXICAN RICE.
2 cups chicken broth
2 very ripe tomatoes, cored and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small white onion, chopped
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup long grain white rice
Salt and pepper
Place broth, tomatoes, 1 clove garlic, and chopped onion in a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside for later. Heat
olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the rest of the garlic and rice. Cook until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir
in the tomato mixture, taste, and add salt and pepper. Cover the pan and cook on very low heat until the rice is tender and
has absorbed the liquid, probably close to half an hour. Remove from heat and let rest for 10 minutes.
Or have those baked potatoes with the fresh lime. I am not one for refried beans for a variety of reasons, so I suggest a CORN SALAD.
6 ears corn stripped of their kernels of 1 bag of frozen corn, completely thawed
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup cotija cheese. Use feta if you can't get the cotija.
Juice of 2 fat limes
3 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp. chili powder
Salt
In a bowl, toss the corn with the mayonnaise, most of the cheese, lime juice, 2 tbsp. cilantro, and chili powder. Season with salt. Top with the rest of the cheese, and the other tablespoon of cilantro.
Mexican street corn is admittedly a better treatment, but corn isn't in season right now in chillier places, hence the notation about using frozen corn. We do what we can.
For dessert we have PALETAS, or Mexican ice pops. Here we have them flavored with mango.
1 cup mango nectar
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. lemon juice
1/2 cup water
Titch of chili powder
1 large mango, peeled, seeded, and diced
Heat the nectar, sugar, lemon juice, and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves. Transfer this mixture to a bowl and put in the fridge until chilled. Stir in the chili powder and diced mango and pour into 3 ounce
popsicle molds. Put a popsicle stick into each mold and freeze for several hours until solid. To release from the molds,
run under cold water for a few seconds. Should make 8 popsicles. If you don't have molds and sticks, use clear plastic cups in a pinch and give everyone a spoon.
These are Mexican street sweet treats or sweet street treats. Try saying either three times.
Adios,
Elisabeth
Comments