Chipotle Cherry Tomatoes Pop With Tang
Greet springtime with bite-size chipotle cherry tomatoes. Pop ’em into your mouth for a blast of bright flavor: tart, smoky herbal. Thesy make great appetizers as well as additions to dishes of grilled vegetables and meats.
Chipotles are ripened jalapeños that have been dried and smoked. The chile chipotle is a pre-conquest culinary delight that the is prominently described in The Florentine Codex, originally entitled Historia general de las cosas de Nueva España (General History of Matters in New Spain) written by a Franciscan friar, Bernardo de Sahagún with the collaboration of native artists and writers. It is a bilingual Nahuatl – Spanish encyclopedic text, composed between 1545 and 1590.
The state of Chihuahua, with El Paso, Texas on its border, is the principal producer of the chipotle chile. Chipotle cherry tomatoes are great for an outdoor cookout.
Recipe for Chipotle Cherry Tomatoes
Adapted from the best-selling Cookbook,
“Don’t Count The Tortillas: The Art of Texas Mexican Cooking”
4 ounces cream cheese (1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon chipotle chile in adobo (canned or make your own with my recipe)
1/8 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
2 cloves
1⁄4 teaspoon fresh rosemary
Salt, to taste
2 tablespoons cilantro, minced.
Method
1. Slice the tomatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out the pulp with a melon baller or small spoon. (I save the pulp in the fridge because I can always use it later to make fresh salsa ranchera). Lay the halves cut side down on two layers of paper towels and place in the fridge for an hour so that the insides can drain and dry. If you are pressed for time, you can dab the cavity of each tomato with a paper towel to remove excess juice.
2. Using a molcajete or other mortar, grind the oregano, cloves, and rosemary into a fine powder. Then add the chipotles en adobo and grind again to form a smooth paste. Add the cream cheese and combine thoroughly. Taste and adjust the salt.
3. Spoon the chipotle cream cheese into each tomato half. Sprinkle generously with the finely minced cilantro.
4. Chill for at least one hour.
Sources:
Chipotles in pre-conquest Mexico by Fray Bernardo de Sahagún: https://www.wdl.org/en/item/10096/
Chiles Chipotles, Sahagún: https://tesis.ipn.mx/bitstream/handle/123456789/22788/Identidad%20y%20Cultura%20Mexicana%2C%20El%20chile.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Chiles in Mexico: http://web.ecologia.unam.mx/oikos3.0/index.php/todos-los-numeros/articulos-anteriores/221-chiles-en-mexico
Chihuaha, Chipotle: https://sonorastar.com/2020/11/19/5-cosas-que-no-sabias-del-chile-chipotle/
Hi. Saul,
Most of what you write in your long post is not what I would agree with. I find it mainly wrong in its nationalisticm, “Mexico,” centered view. I’m glad that you are asking those questions.
Would you please watch this new documentary? I think you will find it interesting. trulytexasmexican.com
Also, please read this in the New York Times (Spanish and English versions): https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2019/04/22/dining/texas-mexican-food.amp.html
Good luck
Thank you for answering. I must mention that I’m not Chicano nor Tejano, I’m Mexican and live in Mexico. I’m a fan of history, especially Mexican history and one of the topics that I’m most interested in is Mexican cuisine. So when I heard the that there was a cuisine called Texas-Mexican I was thinking it was Tex-Mex.
From what I’ve read in Mexican books there is no historical evidence for a cuisine called Texas-Mexican, I supposed it’s because Texas was never really under the control of Mexico and very few people migrated there. Plus the Indians there were not very welcoming to the Mexicans. The Indians were really in control. From looking at the dishes many of the dishes are southern Mexican dishes, many of which were actually invented in post-Hispanic Mexico. So I’m assuming most of this dishes were brought to Texas through migration, at least, in the last 150 years. But by what you explained in the article you sent me there is a probability that some dishes may have arrived during the pre-Hispanic era. Although you have to remember, as I mention before, that most Mexican dishes were actually created in post-Hispanic Mexico. Plus food was different among the different indigenous people.
My original question was actually about if there were any dishes that were actually invented in Texas. But now that I remember you did post about Pan de Campo. Pan de Campo is only found in Texas, so it is a Tejano only dish. There is no evidence of Pan de Campo in Northeastern Mexico, where I come from, nor in any other area in Mexico as far as I know. There is Pan Ranchero in Michoacán, Jalisco, Zacatecas and Durango, but that is Avery different type of bread. So Pan de Campo is one dish that was invented within the territory of Texas.
Thanks
This piece that I wrote in Atlas Obscura will help you with you question: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/texas-mexican-food
Just one more question. Are there any dishes that are originally from Texas? Dishes that don’t come from Mexico. Are there any dishes that can only be found in Texas? Dishes that were even eaten in the region before independence, like in colonial times.
Gracias.
Chilpoctli or Chipotles come, as most Mexican dishes do, from the south. Are there any Chicano/Tejano dishes originally from Texas that use chipotles?
I’ve added some resources to the post. Thank you so much for asking. I hope this helps. The Codex Florintino is the mention by Sahagún, quoted later.
am
I am 70 years old. Born and raised in El Paso, Tx and Chihuahua< Chihuahua, Mexico where most of my family still resides. My kitchen is that of my mother circa 1947 and her kitchen was reputed to be, of 4 sisters, the continuation of their mother.
I would love to know the sources for your research on items such as "chipotle" in your latest newsletter.
Lucia Prieto
915.491.3475