The Other Side of the Tortilla

Holidays

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Unknown Mami

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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.

Wordless Wednesday: Las Catrinas

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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.

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Mexican at Heart

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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.

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Muy Bueno Cookbook

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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.

Celebrating Día de los Muertos with friends: Nibbles and Feasts

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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.

Wordless Wednesday: Building my altar for Día de Los Muertos

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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.

Happy National Taco Day!

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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.”

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National Guacamole Day? ¡Órale!

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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?

¡Felices fiestas patrias!

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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!

Tamales de puerco para Día de la Candelaria

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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?

Celebrating Día de Los Reyes with friends and family

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¡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….

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What Las Posadas mean to me

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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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Wordless Wednesday: Nochebuenas by the fireplace

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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.

Crema batida con cajeta

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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.

https://theothersideofthetortilla.com/2011/11/crema-batida-con-cajeta/

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?

Camotes al chipotle: A Mexican twist on a Thanksgiving classic

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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, in my honest opinion.

Now that everyone in my family knows about my culinary skills, I’ve felt the need to give my menu a few new touches to keep things interesting. Though Thanksgiving is not a Mexican holiday, I decided this year to give a few traditional dishes a Mexican twist to surprise my family.

Here’s a recipe I developed to dress up the traditional sweet potatoes we usually serve on our Thanksgiving table. And, with the calorie-rich menus typically served around the holidays, this recipe is a bit healthier than traditional mashed potatoes that may be made with tons of butter and heavy cream. The marsala is a non-traditional ingredient to Mexican cooking but adds an interesting depth and sweet, nutty flavor to this dish. The chipotle should add a smoky flavor, but not be too spicy. If you’re afraid your troops will stage a revolt at the dinner table for doing something too different, you can always cut out the chipotle and add twice the adobo sauce to weaken the chile flavor so they don’t notice too much that you’ve given them the old switcheroo on the sweet potatoes.

Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipQwVjhE7qM[/youtube]…

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Celebrating Día de Los Muertos

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¡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?

Calaveritas de Mondragon para Día de Los Muertos

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

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*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.

 

Tercer año

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On this day three years ago, we took our wedding vows in front of family and friends. First, in a small Catholic church ceremony with our parents and witnesses at the historic Misión de San José del Cabo, and then a beach Mass* with all our family and friends. This is one of my favorite photos from our wedding day, sharing a private moment steps from the deep blue rolling waves in a small cove between two rock crops.

You can read more about our wedding, including details on the church, more photos, the reception… and of course, the menu, in last year’s anniversary post. Lately I’ve been thinking about recreating recipes from our wedding menu, so hopefully I can get in the test kitchen soon.

If I got the chance to do it all over again, I’d do just about everything the same, but in slow motion so it wouldn’t go by as fast! Lucky for me, I have a wedding video to remember every moment by. We’ll be watching it and toasting with champagne over the weekend.

I’ll have to dig out some more photos to share here soon. Many friends reminded us today of their memories from our wedding extravaganza week and it made me want to go searching for photos from different parts of the day and the reception to take it all in and have each and every moment rush back into my memory.

Thanks for reading The Other Side of The Tortilla and following along on our journey. Please join us in toasting to many more years of wedded bliss!

José: te quiero con todo mi corazón. Siempre. —Maura

*Catholic Mass is not typically celebrated outside of the church; we brought our own family priest who agreed to perform a second ceremony on the beach after we had a ceremony in the church. Most beach weddings in Mexico are symbolic or civil ceremonies.

¡Hoy es el cumpleaños de Frida Kahlo!

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Today marks the 104th anniversary of the birthday of my favorite Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo!

If you’re not familiar with Frida’s life, work, or the famous Casa Azul, you can read more about them on the Museo Frida Kahlo website (in English). And if you’re ever visiting Mexico City, Casa Azul is one of the places you absolutely must visit.

It’s a magical place where you can feel her presence in just about every room and in the garden as well.

At the time I last visited Casa Azul, a stunning and thought-provoking private collection of photographs of Frida, Diego and their family and friends, entitled “Frida Kahlo: Sus Fotos,” was on display and many of the photographs were taken by Frida herself. It was an incredibly interesting glimpse into her life and how things looked from her point of view. You can read more about the photo exhibition, which ran through December 2010, on the museum’s website (in Spanish).…

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Semana Santa en Acapulco

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OK, so we’re not spending our Semana Santa in Acapulco–though I wish we were! I could certainly use a trip to the beach after the brutal winter we’ve had this year. Instead, José is in Mexico City for the week visiting his parents and I’m still at home in Chicago. But when I came across this gem a few weeks ago, I knew I wanted to share it at the beginning of Semana Santa.

There’s a movie from the early 1980s called “Semana Santa en Acapulco” (also sometimes known as Viacrucis Nacional) starring Lucha Villa, David Reynoso, Luis Manuel Pelayo and Tere Velázquez. It’s about a Chilango family that heads to Acapulco for a Holy Week vacation that turns out to be more than they bargained for. It’s a rude, crude comedy, but I’m sure it will have you muriendo de risa. I just recently saw it for the first time a few months ago thanks to one of the cine Mexicano cable channels we get at home. DVD copies of the film are not very easy to come by, but if you have the patience to watch it on a small screen, I came across the entire film uploaded on YouTube!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zS9LgUDr92s[/youtube]

  • Have you ever seen this movie? What’s your favorite part?

Cuaresma means Lent

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I’ve been meaning to write here since Ash Wednesday, which begins the Catholic season of Cuaresma, or Lent. For the non-Catholics visiting who need a primer, Lent lasts for 40 days beginning Ash Wednesday and ending Easter Sunday. And if you’re doing a little math in your head right now and have figured out that there are actually 46 days, here’s why we say Lent is only 40 days: Sundays don’t count according to the church’s calendar.

In Mexico, as well as in many other countries, it’s common for Catholics to abstain from eating meat on Ash Wednesday and Fridays throughout Lent, though some observe meatless Fridays year-round. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are also supposed to be fasting days, during which Catholic adults eat only one full meal. Though, depending on who you ask, you might find some who fast on all Fridays during Lent. You may also be familiar with the practice of Catholics giving things up for Lent – and perhaps you’ve wondered what that’s all about. Fasting and giving up vices during Lent are a way for Catholics to connect to Jesus, making a sacrifice that is supposed to help us understand his suffering. Ideally, we aren’t just giving up sin during Lent, but abstaining from sin after Lent as well. For example, giving up your favorite dulces (a particularly popular item for children to give up) but then going back to eating them after Lent is over is not really how it’s supposed to work….

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