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Holidays

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Presley’s Pantry

0 · Nov 4, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Día de los Muertos was this past week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend Nicole Presley from Presley’s Pantry.

Nicole Presley from Presley's Pantry made this altar for Día de los Muertos 2012. PHOTO/COURTESY OF NICOLE PRESLEY

Where in Mexico are your family’s roots?
My family is from Juarez- Chihuahua, and Tijuana. A mixed-bag of Mexican border towns.

Who does your altar honor?
My altar honors my uncle Robert. He’s the first person in my immediate family to pass on. His death strongly impacted all my living loved ones. We miss him dearly and hope that he appreciates his offerings. It also honors my fiance’s father Alfonso, who passed two years ago. 

Any special ofrendas or items on your altar?
I always put a shot of Vodka on the alter for my uncle. He loved having a good time and vodka was his drink of choice. Since he was a figurine artist, I make sure to include one of his pieces of work. His daughter is also a great artist and I include one of her pieces on his altar, knowing he would be so proud of her accomplishments as an artist. For Alfonso, I include coins and cookies. He had a huge coin collection in his days on this earth and they were one of the things that made him the happiest. 

Why do you make an altar for Día de los Muertos? How does it keep your connected to Mexican culture?
I make my alter in remembrance of my Tio. A way to celebrate his life and hope that where ever he is now he is able to know that we love him and miss him. And if all else fails…. At least he can enjoy his vodka. Then a few years ago when my fiances father passed, we started to celebrate his life through the alter as well. On November 2nd we play music all day long to celebrate this honorable men.

For more photos and a story from Nicole about celebrating Día de los Muertos in Los Angeles and a recipe for pan de muerto, click here to go over to Presley’s Pantry.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", "pan de muerto", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, ofrenda

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Mama Latina Tips

0 · Nov 3, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Día de los Muertos was this week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend Silvia Martinez from Mamá Latina Tips.

An altar for Día de los Muertos in Guanajuato, Mexico. PHOTO/COURTESY OF SILVIA MARTINEZ

Where in Mexico are your family’s roots?
My family is from Guanajuato, a beautiful state in central Mexico. Before I moved to the U.S., I don’t recall participating much in the type of Day of the Dead celebrations that have become so popular recently. What we do is this: each year my family goes to the cemetery, with literally thousands of others, to place flowers on the graves of family members and clean up around the grave site. There is usually music and even food—it feels more festive that one might think—and then we go to Mass. Since living in California with my own family, the desire to share this particular part of my culture with my boys has increased. We just spent Day of the Dead in Mexico and it was both fun and fascinating.

Who does your altar honor?
We didn’t prepare an altar this year at home; however, the boys had two at school, and we really enjoyed walking downtown to see all the beautiful altars displayed by both students and families.  At school, their altars honored a patron saint of the school and a friend of the school’s who recently passed. There was a contest in El Jardin (the central court in the city), where we saw everything from pre-hispanic altars, to traditional altars, to modern altars. Many of the students’ altars came with explanations of the symbolism behind their ofrendas and some history of the Day of the Dead tradition, so we learned a lot.
What do you typically put on your altar?
As I mentioned, we didn’t have our own altar this year, but typical items include, an image of a saint dear to the family, bread, salt for purification, fruit, images of souls in purgatory, candles, and favorite belongings of family who have passed.

How has celebrating Día de los Muertos in Mexico this year been different for you than the way you celebrate it in the U.S.? Have you noticed anything interesting or different than what you remember it being like from when you were growing up in Mexico?
I would love to share something that I haven’t seen before, as it seems to be a new tradition in my pueblo. On the night of November 1st, families go out into la calle (what we call the streets downtown) and kids carry bags and ask for candy just like on Halloween in the U.S., but instead of saying “trick-or-treat,” they say “Mi calaverita” (which means “my little skeleton”). Also, a lot of women dress up as Catrinas, some with elaborate dresses and hats. Catrinas have been a symbol of Day of the Dead for a long time and I think it is just beautiful seeing them embrace and expand on this tradition.

For more photos and a story from Silvia about celebrating Día de los Muertos in Mexico, click here to go over to Mamá Latina Tips.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, Guanajuato, ofrenda

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Sweet Life Bake

0 · Nov 2, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Día de los Muertos is this week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend Vianney Rodriguez from Sweet Life Bake.

Vianney Rodriguez from Sweet Life Bake's Día de los Muertos altar for 2012. PHOTO/COURTESY OF VIANNEY RODRIGUEZ

Where in Mexico are your family’s roots?
Both my mom and father are from Matamoros, Tamaulipas.

Who does your altar honor?
My altar honors my Uncle who died in Vietnam and both of my grandfathers.

Any special ofrendas or items on your altar?
I have a small metate which represents the one given to me by my grandfather, and whose mother gave it to him. I also have original Día de Los Muertos artwork by local Texan artists from San Antonio, McAllen, Edinburg and Houston. My main is altar is very small, but in every room I display objects or art that family members, my husband and children have gifted me over the years. Dia de Los Muertos is my favorite holiday and they shower me with gifts they find along the way in their travels.

Why do you make an altar for Día de los Muertos? How does it keep your connected to Mexican culture? And do you involve your kids to pass on the tradition?
I make my altar to honor my family. My altar keeps me connected to my childhood summers spent in Mexico with my grandfathers. I did not have the honor to meet my uncle, so every year as I begin to display my altar I read the letters he wrote from Vietnam to my daughters. I involve my daughters in every step of putting together our altar. We make papel picado, paper marigolds and they help me to decorate the table, arrange the flowers for the grave sites and help me in the kitchen as we prepare the meals that will honor our loved ones.

For more photos and a story about how Vianney celebrates Día de los Muertos, click here to go over to Sweet Life Bake.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, Matamoros, ofrenda, Tamaulipas

How to celebrate Day of the Dead

46 · Nov 1, 2012 · 17 Comments

Day of the Dead (aka Día de los Muertos) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico, the changing landscape of the United States means that a lot more people are celebrating outside of Mexico, too.

Day of the Dead altar

According to a study released in 2012 by the Pew Hispanic Center about Hispanic origin profiles of those living in the United States (whether U.S. born or foreign born), people with Mexican ancestry or who are Mexican by birth make up nearly 65 percent of all Hispanics in the U.S.

In 2013, a third of Mexicans in the United States were foreign-born, while 42 percent of immigrants from Mexico have been in the U.S. for more than 20 years. About 26 percent of Mexican immigrants were U.S. citizens.

Of course, this makes me happy because it means there are a lot of people like us who are looking to stay connected to their heritage whether by food, culture or traveling to Mexico (or at least reading about it). Here’s a guide with information on who celebrates this holiday in the United States, and how they celebrate it.

…

Read More

Cultura/Culture, Day of The Dead, Holidays "altar de muertos", "pan de muerto", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, ofrenda

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Unknown Mami

1 · Nov 1, 2012 · 2 Comments

Día de los Muertos is this week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend C. from Unknown Mami.

Unknown Mami's altar for Día de los Muertos 2012. It's the first time she's ever made one.PHOTO/COURTESY OF UNKNOWN MAMI

Where in Mexico are your family’s roots?
My family is from Mexicali.

Who does your altar honor?
My altar honors my daughters’ grandfather, two friends, my tía, my tío, two primos, and my nana (abuela).

Any special ofrendas or items on your altar?
There is cerveza for my tío (he wasn’t picky, so any will do), cards for solitaire for my nana, cologne for my daughters’ grandfather, mazapan and eyeliner (she was out of it the last time I saw her) for my tía, and flowers and candles for everyone.

Why did you make an altar for Día de los Muertos? How does it keep your connected to Mexican culture? And do you involve your kids to pass on the tradition?
This was my very first Día de los Muertos altar and it made me feel more connected to my culture and family because it brought back memories of my youth and it helped me bond with loved ones I’ve missed. It was a joy to remember them and share their stories with my daughters. My daughters are very young and never got a chance to meet any of the people we are honoring, but now they will hear about them every year.

Any other details you want to share about your altar?
It never occurred to me that I would have so much fun putting together an altar, that I would remember the idiosyncrasies and likes of my departed.

For more photos and a story about Unknown Mami’s altar for Día de los Muertos, click here.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, Mexicali, ofrenda

Wordless Wednesday: Las Catrinas

0 · Oct 31, 2012 · Leave a Comment

In September, I went on a quest for some new decorations to add to my altar for Día de los Muertos. I headed to the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood, where I also do most of my grocery shopping in the Mexican markets. The Tzintzuntzán gift shop at the museum never disappoints me and this time was no exception. I’ll be sharing more photos in a few days from the museum, which also has a Día de los Muertos exhibit running through December 16, but here’s a photo of the little Catrinas that I bought to place on my altar.

They’re modeled after Mexican artist José Guadalupe Posada’s la calavera de la Catrina and stand about three inches tall, not including the little feather plume that sticks out of the hat.

Que lindas las Catrinas, no?

  • Do you have any unique decorations for Día de los Muertos? Tell me about them in the comments and where they came from.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays, Wordless Wednesday Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, José Guadalupe Posada, La Catrina, National Mexican Museum of Art

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Mexican at Heart

1 · Oct 31, 2012 · 1 Comment

Día de los Muertos is this week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend Jessica Seba from Mexican at Heart.

Altar for Día de los Muertos by Jessica Seba

What is your connection to Mexico that makes you participate in this tradition?
I love Dia de los Muertos and everything it represents, not to mention papel picado and cempasuchils are my some of my favorite Mexican things! I thought this year it would be good to make my first altar instead of Halloween decorations.

Who does your altar honor?
My altar is dedicated to my grandpa, who passed away earlier this year.

Any special ofrendas or items on your altar?
I put bars of Irish Spring soap on my altar because that scent has always reminded me of my grandpa. I happen to find Walmart selling the soap—which is not a normal shelf item in Mexico—so I grabbed a few boxes. I also put a donkey on there because my grandpa once told the family that if he were to be reincarnated into an animal after he died, he “would be an ass.” He was a real jokester. Other than that, it’s quite hard to find my grandpa’s favorite Polish foods here in Mexico so I didn’t put too much food.

Why do you make an altar for Día de los Muertos? How does it keep your connected to Mexican culture?
I made an altar because I thought it would be interesting to learn the significance behind what everything meant (the water, the colors, the levels, etc.). Mexico has been overtaken by Halloween celebrations in recent years, so I wanted to do something more traditional.

For more photos and a story about Jessica’s altar for Día de los Muertos, click here to visit Mexican at Heart.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, ofrenda

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Muy Bueno Cookbook

0 · Oct 30, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Día de los Muertos is this week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack from Muy Bueno Cookbook.

Día de los Muertos with Muy Bueno Cookbook
Muy Bueno Cookbook's altar for Día de los Muertos 2012. PHOTO/COURTESY OF MUY BUENO COOKBOOK

Where in Mexico are your family’s roots?
Our grandmother was born in Chihuahua, Mexico.

Who does your altar honor?
Our grandmother, Jesusita—the matriarch of our familia who inspired us.

Any special ofrendas or items on your altar?
The belief is that visiting souls may be hungry from their long journey and the food and drink is nourishment for their journey back. This year our altar included pan dulce (sweet bread), Mexican candies and veladoras (religious candles). I knew I needed to buy all these goodies to let grandma know I was thinking of her and to welcome her spirit.

Why do you make an altar for Día de los Muertos? How does it keep your connected to Mexican culture? And do you involve your kids to pass on the tradition?
It’s a perfect way to honor our grandmother. We are thrilled to educate our children about traditions that are part of our culture. We retell memories of our grandmother to our children and reminisce in the times we shared with her.

For more photos and a story about Yvette’s altar for Día de los Muertos and a recipe for marranitos, click here to visit Muy Bueno Cookbook.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", altar, Chihuahua, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, ofrenda

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Nibbles and Feasts

0 · Oct 29, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Día de los Muertos is this week and as a special treat, I’ve asked some of my friends to send me photos and descriptions of their altars to share here on The Other Side of The Tortilla to show the variety of ways that people celebrate this holiday.

Today, I’m sharing the altar of my friend Ericka Sanchez from Nibbles and Feasts.

Altar for Día de los Muertos by Ericka Sanchez of Nibbles and Feasts
Altar for Día de los Muertos by Ericka Sanchez of Nibbles and Feasts. PHOTO/COURTESY OF ERICKA SANCHEZ

Where in Mexico are your family’s roots?
Ericka: Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico

A Día de los Muertos altar by Ericka Sanchez
Ericka's altar. PHOTO/COURTESY OF ERICKA SANCHEZ

Who does your altar honor? 
Ericka:
It honors the loved ones our family has lost throughout the years.

Any special ofrendas or items on your altar?
Ericka: Most of the items displayed on the altar are artwork we’ve collected from our trips to Mexico City, Guadalajara, Oaxaca and Torreon. From a paper-mache catrina to clay luchadores, we love bringing home something that we know will have a special place on our altar.

Why do you make an altar for Día de los Muertos? How does it keep your connected to Mexican culture? And do you involve your kids to pass on the tradition?
Ericka: We love the time we spend together building the altar, talking about the friends and family we are honoring, the items on display and what they symbolize culturally. This year is special because it is the first year my son is old enough help arrange the cempazuchitl (marigold) blooms throughout the display.

For more photos and a story about Ericka’s altar for Día de los Muertos, click here to visit Nibbles and Feasts.

  • Share your altar with us! Fill out this form by Nov. 10 to participate and your altar could be featured here.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays "altar de muertos", altar, cempazuchitl, Coahuila, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, ofrenda, Torreon

Wordless Wednesday: Building my altar for Día de Los Muertos

0 · Oct 24, 2012 · 2 Comments

Día de los Muertos is next week and we’ve begun setting up our altar at home. On Sunday, we started gathering our ofrendas and hung papel picado. It’s nowhere near finished yet, but here’s a sneak peek from a few days ago.

I’ll share more details about the items on the altar as well as who it honors next week.

  • Are you making an altar for Día de Los Muertos? Let me know in the comments what kind of ofrendas you like to include. You can also share more about your altar with us and submit photos for your Día de Los Muertos altar to be featured on The Other Side of The Tortilla by using this form.

Cultura/Culture, Holidays, Wordless Wednesday "altar de muertos", altar, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, papel picado

Happy National Taco Day!

0 · Oct 4, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Because we love you, and because October 4 is National Taco Day, here are some of our favorite taco recipes from The Other Side of The Tortilla and our friends.

See below the slideshow for the links on where to find each of these 10 recipes that will make you say “Que rico.”

[imagebrowser id=2]…

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Holidays, Tacomiendo tacos

National Guacamole Day? ¡Órale!

1 · Sep 18, 2012 · Leave a Comment

So, we didn’t know this was a thing… but it is! Apparently, Sept. 16 is also National Guacamole Day. Not that we need a holiday or an excuse to prompt us to eat guacamole, pero bueno…

Since we missed it by a day and we don’t have time (or any ripe aguacates) to whip up a fancy guacamole to celebrate, we thought we’d just remind you of the resources already available here on The Other Side of The Tortilla for all your guacamole needs if you feel like celebrating this week:

Simple guacamole recipe                                               The best how-to guide to keep your guacamole green
    

Mark your calendars, because we read that November 14 is National Spicy Guacamole Day!

  • What’s your favorite non-standard ingredient to put in guacamole?

Best of The Tortilla, Holidays aguacate, avocado, guacamole

¡Felices fiestas patrias!

0 · Sep 15, 2012 · Leave a Comment

Felices fiestas patrias to all our friends celebrating Mexican Independence Day in Mexico and beyond!

About a year ago, I did a photo essay and wrote about exploring Mexico for a photography magazine based in Singapore. It occurred to me that I’d never shared it here so I thought it was fitting to do so today. It includes photos I’ve taken on travels to Mexico City, Teotihuacán, Cancún and Aguascalientes.

Here’s an excerpt:

Mexico is my home away from home. Every corner I turn, every meal I eat and every new place I explore is a source of inspiration to me. And I never go anywhere without a camera so I can be sure to capture every experience I come across, see and feel. From the moment the plane approaches the runway and I can see the vibrant colours of the homes below to the lush, jungle-like vegetation I’ve admired in places such as Cancun and Huatulco, Mexico always takes my breath away and has me fumbling for my camera before I even touch the ground.
I’ve laid down in dirt, sand, and on a world-famous soccer field to get a shot. I’ve climbed high above the 1968 Olympic stadium and to the top of Aztec pyramids toting my cameras for an eagle’s eye view, and into the ocean, carrying my camera high above my head until the tide receded enough to safely photograph marine life. But usually the biggest thrill comes from the simplest of things: family and friends.
As we celebrate Mexican Independence Day this year in our home, we hope you’re doing the same with friends and family wherever you may be. We’ll be celebrating by eating plenty of Mexican antojitos. And of course, we’ll be watching El Grito tonight and probably tweeting about it too. If you’d like to watch El Grito from past years, click on the El Grito tag at the bottom of this post.

VIVA MÉXICO!

Cultura/Culture, Holidays, Travel día de la independencia, El Grito

Tamales de puerco para Día de la Candelaria

0 · Feb 2, 2012 · 4 Comments

It’s Día de la Candelaria and I have to confess: I’ve been so busy with non-bloggy things (you know…normal life, work, family obligations, Mr. H’s birthday, etc.) that I just haven’t had a chance to make my own tamales yet, let alone photograph and write up my recipe to share. But I promise I will soon.

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you a very special recipe from my friend Leslie that really touched me when I read it this morning. I immediately asked her if I could share it with all of you. Gracias, Leslie, for sharing this story and your abuela’s recipe, and for letting me borrow this photo to show everyone your beautiful tamales de puerco.

Photo courtesy of Leslie Limon

 

Head over to La Cocina de Leslie for her abuela’s recipe for tamales rojos con puerco; she’s provided an awesome step by step guide with photos to help you through the recipe—especially great if you’re making tamales for the first time ever. Bet you can’t guess her abuela’s secret ingredient!

  • What are your favorite kind of tamales?

Cultura/Culture, Holidays Día de la Candelaria, La cocina de Leslie, tamales

Celebrating Día de Los Reyes with friends and family

1 · Jan 6, 2012 · 5 Comments

¡Feliz Día de Los Reyes a todos!

We took a long vacation with family for the holidays and part of our trip included a day in Ensenada, located on the West coast of Mexico in the state of Baja California (the northern part of the peninsula, a little more than 70 miles south of Tijuana).

Since we wouldn’t be together on Día de Los Reyes, we found a little rosca to celebrate a few days before. And guess who got el niño Jesus… again. I swear it’s a conspiracy because I get the baby in my piece of cake every single year. The rosca was so small that I didn’t even think there would be a baby inside, but there he was when I broke my piece off. Guess I’ll just have to make tamales for Día de La Candelaria on February 2!

Read more about how we celebrate Día de Los Reyes here on The Other Side of The Tortilla and check out the links below to see how some of our friends celebrate as well. If you haven’t celebrated yet, it’s not too late. Even if you can’t buy a rosca, you can certainly try making one on your own! You can also serve Mexican hot chocolate or champurrado alongside your cake….

Read More

Algo dulce, Baja California, Cultura/Culture, Dessert, Holidays Día de Los Reyes, Ensenada, Los Reyes Magos, Rosca de Reyes, The Three Kings, Three Kings Day

Nochebuenas for Nochebuena

0 · Dec 24, 2011 · Leave a Comment

Check out these beautiful pink and white nochebuenas I spotted in the grocery store last week. They’re a variation of the traditional all-red poinsettias but just as lovely.

¡Feliz Navidad!

Holidays Christmas, Christmas Eve, flores, flowers, La Navidad, Nochebuena, nochebuenas, poinsettia

What Las Posadas mean to me

1 · Dec 16, 2011 · 5 Comments

December 16th begins Las Posadas, the nine days of celebration leading up to Christmas Eve, also known as Nochebuena.

It’s customary for families to gather together, eat, sing and have a piñata at the party. Sometimes people celebrate posadas by going from home to home, singing the traditional song to ask for lodging the way Mary and Joseph did. But whether you travel around to different homes or stay in one place, there are certain elements of your family’s posadas that you inevitably love more than anything else, and will always try to recreate as you grow older, and especially as you have children so you can teach them your family’s traditions.

For me, the most beloved posadas tradition is making ponche Navideño. Every year, even if I don’t have access to fresh ingredients, I do my best to find canned, jarred or frozen ingredients for the things I can’t easily find in the U.S. Even though I know I’ll have it when I get to Mexico, I feel it’s really important to perfect the recipe at home with available ingredients.

I want our future children to know that it’s a Mexican Christmas staple and always have memories of the smell and taste. I want them to think of love and family and La Navidad when they think of ponche, just the way that I do. I always look forward to spending time with family in Mexico City during the holidays, and I know there will always be an abundance of ponche Navideño. It’s present at almost every family gathering but the most special thing about it for me is that it’s become a family tradition to make it together with my suegros, whom I adore con todo corazón.

We stand around the kitchen, my suegro chopping the caña (sugar cane), while my suegra takes care with the liquid measurements. I slice the guayabas and juice the oranges, add the canela and core the tejocotes. And before a few years ago when I finally put it on paper, our family recipe wasn’t officially written down anywhere with any information other than what should go in it. Learning how to make this family recipe with my suegros meant a lot to me in being able to eventually pass down this tradition.

So, last week when I was grocery shopping in a store I don’t usually frequent and I found a box of fresh tejocotes, I had tears in my eyes as I stood in disbelief in the middle of the produce aisle. This was the very first time I’d ever seen fresh tejocotes in a market near Chicago (also grown in the U.S., according to the box). Tejocotes have long been prohibited from being imported fresh from Mexico as a precaution due to the possibility of harboring exotic pests. Only in recent years have there been growers in the U.S. (mostly in California) who’ve begun cultivating crops of tejocotes, also known in English as Mexican hawthorn. I was surprised and overjoyed to see them in a local store. Though I was tempted to buy the whole box, I painstakingly picked through it to find the most perfect ones to add up to half a pound, just enough for one large pot of ponche.

This year, our family is still headed off on a vacation together as usual, but not within Mexico. As excited as I am to go somewhere new and experience new things, I can’t help but feel a little sad that I won’t be attending Tía Annette’s big posada Navideña in Mexico City.

I’ll miss sipping ponche and café con rompope and eating galletas with my other tías while catching up on all the gossip I’ve missed since my last visit. I’ll miss our tío dangling the piñata over the garden for the kids from the second story window, laughing and smiling as he tugs it just out of their reach. I’ll miss seeing how much some of the younger cousins have grown up this past year. I’ll miss Tía Nene and her famous pastel de dátil (something I still need to learn how to make). I’ll miss the nochebuenas, which are much more beautiful and exotic-looking in their native Mexico. I’ll miss posing for a huge family holiday photo, comprised of four generations of our beautiful family.

As I write this, my kitchen is perfumed by the scent of ripe guayabas, waiting to be made into ponche this weekend. There are oranges, tejocotes, canela and ciruelas pasas. I still need to find some fresh sugar cane; I have a good idea of where to get it locally, but I’ve still got some in a jar as a backup. And though there will be no cousins, tíos, piñatas, pidiendo posadas or certain favorite holiday foods this year, the memories will swirl steadfastly in my heart and my kitchen as I stew a big pot of ponche before I jet off to my holiday destination.

›› GET THE RECIPE FOR PONCHE NAVIDEÑO

›› WATCH A VIDEO OF HOW OUR FAMILY CELEBRATES LAS POSADAS (Includes lyrics to the piñata song and canciones para pedir posadas)

  • What makes you think most of las posadas? This post is part of a blog hop about posadas. I encourage you to check out some of the other related posts about how others celebrate the holidays in Mexico. If you’ve written about posadas, please feel free to add a link to your post!…

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Cultura/Culture, Finding Mexico in Chicago, Holidays, Mexico City, Mexico Today, Sponsored La Navidad, Las Posadas, Mexican hawthorn, Mexico City, ponche, ponche Navideño, posadas, Posadas Navideñas, tejocotes, Tía Annette, Tía Nene

Wordless Wednesday: Nochebuenas by the fireplace

0 · Nov 30, 2011 · 1 Comment

I spotted my first nochebuenas of the season last weekend and couldn’t resist buying some to decorate by my fireplace!

Learn more about poinsettias and how they came from Mexico in my post from last year.

  • If you love nochebuenas, take a photo of yours and post it to The Other Side of The Tortilla’s Facebook fan page and check out our photo album of nochebuenas from last year! We hope to add to it with more photos and more varieties.

Holidays, Wordless Wednesday Christmas, flores, flowers, Nochebuena, poinsettia

Wordless Wednesday: Vienen las posadas

0 · Nov 23, 2011 · 9 Comments

How do I know posadas are almost here? One of my favorite ingredients in ponche Navideño showed up on the shelves at my Mexican mercado this past weekend… tejocotes!

  • What’s the one ingredient you see in the grocery store that makes you think of the holidays?

Finding Mexico in Chicago, Holidays, Wordless Wednesday ponche Navideño, tejocotes

Crema batida con cajeta

3 · Nov 22, 2011 · 7 Comments

I love, love, love homemade whipped cream. So, when I figured out a way to improve upon a classic by giving it a little Mexican touch, I knew it’d be a hit at my table. I’ll be serving this version of homemade whipped cream on my pumpkin pie later this week for Thanksgiving. Check out the video to see how easy it is!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPdEPyIaF9c[/youtube]

Print
Cajeta whipped cream

Goat's milk caramel (cajeta) gives classic homemade whipped cream a Mexican touch, perfect for topping desserts for the holidays.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (1 pint) of whipping cream
  • 2 teaspoons of granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cajeta

Instructions

  1. Chill the whipping cream in the freezer for up to an hour, making sure to shake the container every 10-15 minutes so that the cream doesn’t freeze. Some ice crystals will form along the sides. After an hour, pour the whipping cream into your food processor and secure the top.
  2. Run the processor for about a minute, then add the 2 teaspoons of granulated sugar. Keep running the processor for another minute or two. You may want to stop the motor briefly and open the lid to make sure that the cream is beginning to thicken. If necessary, use a spatula to push any whipped cream down the wall of the bowl.
  3. Turn the processor back on and let it run for about 30 seconds. Begin to slowly add the cajeta. I prefer about 2 tablespoons so it’s not as sweet, but you can add up to 3 tablespoons if you like. Run the processor until the cajeta is fully incorporated. Unplug your food processor and use a rubber spatula to spoon the whipped cream out of the bowl.

Notes

Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

3.1

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You can head over to the Kenmore Genius Blog for the full story and my recipe for cajeta whipped cream, the perfect pie-topper for your holiday.

  • What kind of special touches do you add to the holiday dinner table?

Algo dulce, Dessert, Holiday dish, Holidays, Kenmore Genius Blog, Recipe, Video cajeta, caramel, crema batida, Kenmore, Kenmore Genius Blog, Thanksgiving, whipped cream

Camotes al chipotle: A Mexican twist on a Thanksgiving classic

6 · Nov 21, 2011 · 19 Comments

If you’ve spent even one Thanksgiving at an average American dinner table, you’ve likely encountered sweet potatoes or yams with some kind of brown sugar or maple syrup and a marshmallow topping. I’m not knocking the tradition—in fact, I grew up eating it and usually get a craving around this time of year—but there are lots of other interesting things you can do with sweet potatoes.

…

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Holiday dish, Holidays, Recipe, side dishes, Sponsored, Video #MizkanLatino, camotes, chile chipotle, chipotle en adobo, piloncillo, sweet potatoes, Thanksgiving

Celebrating Día de Los Muertos

0 · Nov 2, 2011 · 13 Comments

¡Feliz Día de Los Muertos!

Today is a day to celebrate the lives of our deceased loved ones. We keep the tradition alive in our house by constructing an altar to honor them, and leaving ofrendas—offerings—to entice the souls home.

You can visit my Día de Los Muertos post from last year if you’d like to see the altar we made in 2010.

This holiday goes back more than 3,000 years to the time of the Aztecs. Originally, it was celebrated in the ninth month of the Aztec calendar (what is now August). When the conquistadores arrived from Spain and felt the month-long celebrations of Día de Los Muertos mocked death, and being that they wanted to convert the native people to honor their own religion, they tried to put a stop to the ritual. But they were met with resistance and instead, the ritual was moved to coincide with the Christian calendar’s All Saints Day (Nov. 1) and All Souls Day (Nov. 2).

Today, many who celebrate this holiday use el Día de Todos los Santos to honor deceased children and Día de Los Muertos for honoring adults. There is no wrong way to do it, though, and you can honor whomever you like on both days if you wish. In some places in Mexico, families visit cemeteries, clean and decorate grave sites and leave their ofrendas there. Many families, like ours, build an altar in their home.

There’s also no wrong way to make an altar—there are common methods (constructing three levels) and typical ofrendas (offerings that represent earth, wind, water and fire), but the point is that you make the altar personal and meaningful to you to honor your deceased loved ones.

I haven’t talked about it here on the blog, but in September, José’s last living grandparent, my suegro‘s mother, passed away in Aguascalientes. Abuelita Ana was 91 years old, and we flew to Mexico to be there with family for the velatorio and entierro. It has been a sad time for our family, but being together with everyone in Mexico made it a little easier. This year our altar is especially dedicated to her memory.

It was difficult when I was going through photos trying to decide which photo of her to use, but definitely therapeutic in a way once I was finished. This year, I even purchased special sugar skulls for my ofrenda from the famous Mondragon family of Toluca; they are one of less than a dozen families in Mexico still dedicated to the art form of alfeñique, and you can read more about them on my post from the other day.

To me, el Día de Los Muertos is one of the most beautiful and meaningful holidays not only in Mexico, but in the world. Tomorrow, I’ll share more about the individual elements on my altar and what they mean, but for today, just a few photos and a short video so you can check it out.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loSmJckBfYc[/youtube]

  • What do you leave as ofrendas on your altar de muertos?

Cultura/Culture, Historia/History, Holidays, Religion, Video Abuelita Ana, Abuelita Elda, Abuelo Pepe, Abuelo Sergio, alfeñique, All Saints Day, All Souls Day, calaveras, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, sugar skulls

Calaveritas de Mondragon para Día de Los Muertos

0 · Oct 31, 2011 · 10 Comments

I recently visited the National Museum of Mexican Art, located in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, on a special mission: I was hoping to buy calaveras de azúcar for my altar de muertos. But not just any calaveras—I was hoping to buy handmade and hand-decorated calaveras from the famous Mondragon family.

Sugar skulls are truly an art form and the Mondragon family from Toluca, Mexico, has been making hand-decorated sugar skulls for around 150 years, spanning five generations. They’ve been coming to the museum to make them in Chicago since 1995 as a way for people to hang on to their culture so far from home and to share Mexican tradition and culture, they told me.

Sugar skulls are often used as a decoration for an altar de muertos or given as gifts for Día de Los Muertos. It’s common to also put the names of family members on the forehead of the sugar skull. Some families only put names of the deceased, while others put names of the living on them as well.

Alejandro Mondragon Arriaga and his wife Elvira Garcia Zinzu travel with one of their daughters to Chicago to make their famous sugar skulls at the museum every year while the rest of the family stays behind in Mexico to make them there. Their family is one of less than a dozen left who are dedicated to this traditional craft, Elvira told me. At one time, she said, there were dozens and dozens of families who made them and sold them all over Mexico….

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Cultura/Culture, Finding Mexico in Chicago, Holidays, Mexico Today, MexMonday calaveras, Day of the Dead, Día de Los Muertos, Mexico Today, sugar skulls

El mes de la patria: Few things are more Mexican than mariachi!

0 · Sep 15, 2011 · 12 Comments

*Note: This post is part of a Blog Hop among the Mexico Today Ambassadors in celebration of el mes de la patria and el Día de la Independencia Mexicana. If you’ve written a tribute post for this patriotic Mexican holiday, I encourage you to leave a link in the comments on this post in addition to checking out the posts from the other ambassadors participating. The official blog hop is set to only accept entries from the ambassadors.

 

I love mariachi music like I love tacos, and if you know me well, then you know that I love tacos and mariachi music to the end of the world and back. We have a storied relationship and yes, even my iPod is full of mariachi classics.

Nothing quite stirs my soul like mariachi music. I wish I could put my finger on an exact reason, but I can’t. It’s a bit like how Mexico has always felt like home to me even though I was born in the U.S. Whenever I’m having a bad day, a little mariachi music always cheers me up. Or sometimes when I’m really missing Mexico and it’s been too long since my last visit, a few classic tunes always do the trick to make me feel better and look forward to the next visit.

Recently, I had an opportunity to attend a special dinner in Chicago hosted by the Jalisco Tourism Board. The food was fabulous, the company genuine, and the after dinner entertainment… yep, you guessed it: mariachi!

But not just any mariachi band; this group was all the way from Guadalajara! It was such a surprise and a treat and most of the people I was seated with at my table were singing along. It was the birthday of someone at my table so they even played Las Mañanitas!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJgJicDoQfk[/youtube]

A few weeks ago, the 18th Annual International Mariachi Conference (yes, this really exists!) took place in the state of Jalisco, and one of our cousins from Mexico City shared a link with me of a BBC World News report about a new Guinness World Record set for the most traditional Mexican dancers on the floor at the same time. To be exact, there were 457 dancers and 300 mariachi musicians from all over Mexico and other countries, including the U.S.—and some came from as far away as Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina to participate and play in the record-breaking ceremony. I was amazed watching the video. Click through to the link to watch it—I know you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!

No Mexican celebration is truly complete—especially las fiestas patrias—without mariachi music. So put on some tunes (I recommend anything by Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán), wave your Mexican flag and don’t forget to watch El Grito tonight! I’m even pulling out my papel picado to decorate. I hope to see the zócalo of Mexico City on TV, filled to the brim with people like last year and the year before.

For past years’ celebrations, check out my posts on chiles en nogada (with a video of Calderón giving El Grito), and my two posts from last year’s Mexican bicentennial: guacamole y papel picado and how I celebrate Mexico every day.

¡Viva México!

  • How are you celebrating Mexican Independence Day this year?

 

Marca País – Imagen de México, is a joint public and private sector initiative designed to help promote Mexico as a global business partner and an unrivaled tourist destination. This program is designed to shine a light on the Mexico that its people experience every day. Disclosure:  I am being compensated for my work in creating content for the México Today program. All stories, opinions and passion for all things México shared here are completely my own.

 

Cultura/Culture, Holidays, Mexico Today día de la independencia, Guinness Book of World Records, mariachi, Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Mexican Independence Day, Mexico Today, Mexico Tourism Board, music, musica

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Hi, I'm Maura Hernández. Welcome to my kitchen! I'm an award-winning food and travel blogger, recipe developer, and former journalist sharing my passion for all things Mexico. Married to a Chilango, I've traveled Mexico extensively over the last 15 years. Here, you'll find a mix of traditional and modern Mexican cooking, along with my advice on where to eat, stay and play on your visit to Mexico! READ MORE

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