On Food & Culture
Pecan makes these stuffed mushrooms a crunchy treat. Pecan stuffed mushrooms are a favorite for parties and, yes, football games. Both the nut and the word, “pecan,” are Native American. European immigrants were not familiar with the pecans, which reminded them of walnuts. In fact, […]
The cod that we have in the Texas Mexico Gulf is “Southern Hake” (Urophycis floridana). It doesn’t have the large, firm flakes of Atlantic cod but rather has a tighter texture, and it is fairly soft and delicate. When fried with this featherlight beer batter, […]
Food is an aesthetic practice that injects beauty and relationship into our everyday life, into our “Lo Cotidiano.” New Year’s eve was always festive, exciting, and Amá would mark and celebrate every new year by making buñuelos. They are delicious, crisp, light. I recall having […]
Make some “Chocolate Caliente” the way that the original inventors of this beverage enjoyed it, with absolutely no lactose. There were no cows roaming about in the Aztec and Mayan empires of Mesoamerica, where chocolate has its origins and was first enjoyed. The earliest use […]
Bean tamales are traditional all the way from Texas to Puebla to Oaxaca and other regions of Mexican cuisine. I love them because historically they pre-date the arrival of European immigrants who after 1528 started importing pigs and thus lard. All tamales are the occasion […]
Mole Poblano and variations are commonplace in Texas and just south of the Rio Grande for special events like weddings and holiday family celebrations. You eat the mole as the principle dish, and in Texas we serve it mainly with chicken, cut up. But you […]
Sacred to the Mayas, and enjoyed at banquets by the Aztecs, the Guajolote (Melagris gallopavo) is our Thanksgiving turkey. It was domesticated in Mexico and the Américas before the arrival of the Spaniards. The name is from the nahuatl word, “huexólotl,” which translates as “big […]
One of the recipes that I especially like in my book, “Truly Texas Mexican,” is Chile Con Queso. But you will be surprised to learn that my recipe (page 67 in the book) is not the “Queso” dish that is served in many restaurants that […]
Not only is this a quick breakfast for those weekdays when you want to hit the road in a good mood, but it’s got protein, complex carbs and lots of vitamins. It’s a Mexican celebration. All of the ingredients in this breakfast were enjoyed in […]
Here’s a Crock Pot beef dish that you can assemble before your workday and it will be ready by the time you get home. There are many unheralded culinary creations of working class people that rarely get the type of recognition given to expensive restaurant […]