The Other Side of the Tortilla

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Wordless Wednesday: Estadio Olímpico Universitario

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I snapped this photo of the Estadio Olímpico while zipping through C.U. (Ciudad Universitaria, the main campus of UNAM) on my last visit to Mexico City. The stadium opened in 1952 and was also used for the 1968 Olympic games. The mural on the outside of the stadium as pictured here, titled “La Universidad, la Familia y el Deporte en México,” was created by the famous Mexican artist Diego Rivera. The stadium is one of our favorite places, especially because it’s the home of the Pumas—our favorite soccer team. Read more about the history of the stadium in Spanish on UNAM’s website.

  • Have you been to the Estadio Olímpico? What’s your favorite part about it?

Flores de calabaza at the farmers market

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I’ve been stalking visiting my local farmers markets lately looking for flor de calabaza. And every week since they started bringing them three weeks ago, I’ve arrived too late because they sold out before 9 or 10 A.M. So this past weekend, I got up early on Saturday hoping to get my hands on some, only to discover I’d arrived just a bit too late.

But my lovely friends at Nichols Farm advised me to show up at another market location they visit on Sunday mornings in Wicker Park and to arrive just before they opened. I got there just before 8 A.M. and was able to get a big bunch (15 flowers!) as well as snap these photos with the bucket still full of florecitas!…

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Wordless Wednesday: quesadilla de huitlacoche

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Over the weekend José and I had dinner at Fogón, an upscale Mexican restaurant that opened this spring in a neighborhood near where we live. I’ll write more about it another time, but I had to share a photo of this earthy-tasting, perfectly over-stuffed quesadilla I ate as an appetizer—it had cheese and huitlacoche (also known as corn smut or corn truffle), epazote, salsa rustica with black beans and was topped with a small dollop of creme fraiche and light greens. It’s the culinary equivalent of black gold! (More on the topic of huitlacoche soon, I promise!)

  • How do you like to eat huitlacoche? Have you ever had it before?

Wordless Wednesday: Taco de cecina

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I ate this incredible taco de cecina last week at La Lagartija Taquería here in Chicago, our favorite changarro. With a homemade tortilla, a light smear of frijoles and a perfectly salted cut of cecina, I was in taco heaven. I topped it with cebolla, cilantro and a drizzle of salsa roja. It’s not on the everyday menu (it was off the daily specials list), but it most definitely should be! If you haven’t had cecina before, it’s a salted and partially dried thin cut of beef (kind of like how some steak houses serve dry-aged steaks).

  • What’s the best taco you’ve eaten recently? We want details!

Mexican Candy: Moritas

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If you haven’t noticed, I have a bit of an obsession with Mexican candies. Here’s another one of my finds, Moritas. They’re soft, sour gomitas that taste like blackberries and strawberries. They’re not the same kind of chewy consistency you’d expect from gummy bears, and they have a sort of crunchy, sweet, flavored coating of sugar dots. I haven’t had these in Mexico, but I’ve eaten something similar there and figured I’d like these too. My instincts usually don’t steer me wrong, and this was no exception–I’m headed back to the store this week to pick up another little bag.

  • Can you think of any other sweet and sour candies from Mexico?

Mexican Candy: Kranky

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I love these candies not only because of their name, but also because I usually love chocolate-covered anything! My cuñada introduced me to this particular candy on a family vacation last year. They’re chocolate-covered cornflakes and they’re crunchy and perfectly sweet. I found them in my local Mexican grocery store over the weekend and had to buy a little bag to show her. Maybe this is one more thing to convince her to come visit me this year!

  • Have you had this sweet treat?

Mexican Candy: Bubu Lubu

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Yesterday my friend Tracy from Latinaish clued me in that the maker of one of my favorite Mexican candy bars, Bubu Lubu, is on Twitter! As we were telling a mutual friend, we both use the same Bubu Lubu buying strategy: one for now and one to stick in the refrigerator for later. At one of the local supermercados where I do my grocery shopping, they have both the room-temperature candy bars and a special little display in the refrigerator case by the checkout line that are already nice and cold. Not familiar with Bubu Lubu? It’s a candy bar with marshmallow inside, topped with a strawberry-flavored jelly and covered in chocolate.

  • How do you like your Bubu Lubu?

Wordless Wednesday: Las Bugambilias

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If you’re a frequent visitor here or on our Facebook fan page, then you probably already know that I’m completamente loca about bugambilias. In English, they’re called bougainvilleas, and they’re one of my favorite species of flowers. These particular flowers were photographed on our family trip to Huatulco in December 2010. The bright pink color just stirs my soul.

  • What kind of plant life reminds you of Mexico?

Travel Tuesday: Puerquitos remind me of Aguascalientes

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This past weekend, I ventured into a different bakery in Pilsen than usual when I decided to stop for some bolillo rolls to make capirotada for the last week of Lent. To my delight, this bakery that I hadn’t visited in several years had a tray of puerquitos – a molasses and cinnamon-flavored cookie cut into the shape of a piggy.

Some of you know I gave up eating processed sugar for Lent, something that has not been easy in a house where we love desserts and pan dulce. I was too weak to resist the temptation, though, and bought one to satisfy the craving. I just needed one little bite and I was immediately reminded of a bakery I visited in Aguascalientes last summer with José’s abuelita Ana. It was adjacent to a charming little restaurant downtown called La Saturnina, a place with cotton candy-pink, purple and cobalt blue painted walls, where she loves to eat breakfast (a place she swears makes the best torrejas in Aguascalientes, in part because of the dark, tangy, molasses-like miel de maguey it’s served with). The bakery, called Panadería Los Angeles, was certainly like a slice of heaven with the scent of sugar, cinnamon and freshly-baked breads wafting through the warm summer air….

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Wordless Wednesday: Capirotada

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Who doesn’t love capirotada? This traditional treat, a bread pudding-like dish often served during Lent, is typically made with toasted bolillo rolls (French bread is an acceptable substitute if you can’t get bolillos), a syrupy piloncillo sauce, raisins and cheese. Everybody has their own version and there’s no one way to make it. This version from El Bajío in Mexico City includes peanuts and queso fresco sprinkled on top, and was enjoyed on our last visit to Mexico City during the winter. I’ll be sharing a recipe here for capirotada just in time for Semana Santa and Easter.

  • How do you like to make your capirotada? What kind of cheese do you use and what kind of garnishes do you like?

Wordless Wednesday: Cucharas

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I’ve always loved these little wooden spoons, each hand-carved and unique, that my suegra uses for serving salsa and other condiments. On my last trip to Mexico City, I ran out of time to scour the tianguis looking for a set of my own spoons for my newly-purchased salseras (little hand-painted clay dishes for salsa or other condiments) like the ones my suegra has in her kitchen. She had a few sets of these little spoons and gave me three from her own collection, telling me she could always go buy more. I miss her today. Sometimes it’s so hard to live nearly 1,700 miles away.

  • Has a family member ever sent you home with something that belonged to them because you loved it and they wanted you to have it to make you happy?

Travel Tuesday: Escape to Guanajuato

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It’s no secret that I love Mexican playwright Tanya Saracho’s work. This past weekend I was in the third row of the opening night of her newest show, El Nogalar, playing at the Goodman Theatre through April 24. It was so amazing, I’m going to have to go back to see it again. I cried, I laughed, and at the end I was sad it was over. My only regret about the show is that there is no Act II; despite the 1 hour 40 minute run time with no intermission, I could have watched that story continue to unfold for a few hours longer. You can listen to Tanya talk about the play in a clip from Chicago Public Radio’s Eight Forty-Eight show from last week.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Tanya last year for a feature in Café magazine, in which she was named one of the publication’s 2010 Latino Luminaries – an award for Latino leaders who served as inspiration and for the contributions made in their respective fields and communities. And she’s so brilliant, even the New York Times has taken note.

So suffice it to say that I was absolutely thrilled to see a travel piece in the April issue of Chicago magazine about Guanajuato, featuring Tanya as the trusty tour guide. Originally from Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Tanya is a longtime Chicago resident. The article touts Guanajuato as “the anti-spring break,” a different alternative to visiting Mexico than just heading to typical places such as Cancún….

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Wordless Wednesday: Todos los sabores

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TAMARINDO | PIÑA | MANDARINA | MANGO | GUAYABA | FRESA

This past weekend I noticed that one of my local (non-Mexican) grocery stores carries an impressive selection of flavors of Jarritos! They have almost every flavor that exists – in fact, I couldn’t even fit all of them into one photo. I love these fruity refrescos, especially the limón-flavored one with a taco! Que rico, ¿no?

  • What’s your favorite flavor of these refrescos Mexicanos?

¡Feliz cumpleaños, Benito Juárez!

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Feliz cumpleaños to one of Mexico’s most famous presidents, Benito Juárez, who was born on this day in 1806. This monument pictured above, gifted to the city of Chicago in 1977 by Mexican president José López Portillo, stands along Michigan Avenue in the Plaza of the Americas next door to the Wrigley Building and across the street from the Chicago Tribune.

Often regarded as Mexico’s greatest and most-loved leader, Juárez died of a heart attack in 1872. If you need to brush up on your Mexican history, read about Benito Juárez and what he did for the Mexican people both before and during his presidency. You might also be surprised to know that he spent a short time living in New Orleans from 1853-1854. Juárez came from a Zapotec family in Oaxaca and served in a variety of political positions during his career. Today, there are numerous monuments and locations dedicated or named in his honor. In Mexico City, the international airport is just one of many, many locations named after Juárez.

Check out some additional photos and details about the Chicago monument on the Public Art in Chicago blog.

  • Do you know of a monument or location dedicated to Benito Juárez? Leave a comment with where it’s located!

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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Wordless Wednesday: Garabatos

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We’ve been talking a lot about guilty pleasures since last week and there have been many great answers about your favorite Mexican guilty pleasures in the comments, on our Facebook fan page and sent to me on Twitter.

But one that nobody has mentioned and I feel is extremely worthy of the title is a little cookie called the garabato. So please forgive me, but we’re about to get a little wordy this Wordless Wednesday because these galletas are worth knowing more about!

They’re made with two shortbread cookies, a smooth dark chocolate fudge center and drizzled with dark chocolate. Paired with a café con leche, it’s like pure cookie bliss. And they come in two sizes, mini and regular. Or, as I like to say: naughty and extra naughty. Why? Because I’m certain these cookies are loaded with butter and sugar, which is why they are such a delicious temptation to begin with. I may actually attempt making them in the Tortilla Test Kitchen later this year – there’s only so long I can go with a craving before I must satisfy it, even if it means experimenting in the kitchen!

The establishment that sells these amazing little treats is, appropriately, called Garabatos, and besides having an array of artisan pastries (I’m also a big fan of the dedo de novia, a tube-shaped sort of baklava) they also have a cafe menu with typical botanas, sandwiches, salads and the like.

On our last trip to Mexico, José was craving garabatos before he even arrived. Since I got there a few days in advance, I picked up a small box with a dozen mini garabatos just for him. I’m not going to incriminate myself here and tell you how many trips we made to Garabatos over the few weeks we were visiting, but let’s just say we had our fair share. On the day we headed back home to Chicago, I found a Garabatos in the airport and I had to have one last fix. As you can see from the photo, I couldn’t even wait to photograph my treat before taking the first (er, and second) bite.

  • Have you had garabatos?

Wordless Wednesday: Guilty pleasures

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I saw Mundet manzana verde in the grocery store last week in glass bottles and though I tried to resist because I’m trying to quit drinking sugary sodas and juices, I just couldn’t help myself.

This bright green and slightly tart apple-flavored refresco is a serious guilty pleasure for me. It’s a bit different than the regular Sidral Mundet apple-flavored soda that has more of a light caramel color and a mellow taste.

  • What are some Mexican guilty pleasures that you like to indulge in?

Wordless Wednesday: La Iguana

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When we were vacationing in Huatulco this past December, we found our hotel had another kind of guest… It’s hard to tell from the photo, but this iguana was rather large and lived in a little sinkhole between the grass and the concrete along the path to our room.

Each morning, the hotel staff set fruits and vegetables by the opening to the iguana’s little cave. José tried to bribe his sister with $200 USD to stick her fingers into the cave but her answer was “¡ni de chiste!” and rightly so.

Still, we were all fascinated with this iguana – who seemed to be molting quite a bit and the end of his tail was bare, which really gave me the willies when I saw him crawling around – and he was a topic of daily discussion during our visit.

  • What kind of animals have you seen in Mexico that you don’t normally get to see where you live?

Feliz Día del Amor y la Amistad

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Today in some parts of the world, it’s Valentine’s Day. But in Mexico, it’s called Día del Amor y la Amistad. While Valentine’s Day is mostly a celebration of romantic love, Día del Amor y la Amistad encompasses love and friendship.

We don’t really celebrate Valentine’s Day in our house, and in fact, this past weekend we sort of forgot about the fact that all the restaurants were going to be full of people celebrating Valentine’s Day when we called to see if we could get last-minute reservations at one of our favorite places. Of course, we couldn’t get a table, so instead we cooked dinner together at home. If you ask me, as much as I love eating at restaurants, there’s something special about cooking together that makes a meal truly enjoyable.

And as any of my friends and family will tell you: a home-cooked meal is how I show my love best. Whether it’s rajas con crema for José, salsa de tres chiles (video recipe coming soon!) for my mom or Crock-Pot cochinita pibil for my best girlfriends, I love cooking for the special people in my life.

Take a few minutes today to remind your friends and family how much you love them. Whether it’s a hug in person, a phone call, an email or a big ol’ batch of Mexican comfort food like papas gratinadas to go with dinner, there’s no better feeling than to know how much others care about you, so don’t forget to spread the love as liberally as you’d add queso to those papas!

If you’ve got escuincles, check out these adorable print-and-color valentine cards from our friends at Spanglish Baby and Viva Greetings.

And head over to our Facebook fan page if you have a chance – today we’ll be talking about the foods we love – including non-Mexican foods, just for one day – including linky love to recipes from some of our favorite food blogs.

From our home to yours, ¡Feliz Día del Amor y la Amistad a todos! We’ll be celebrating by reminiscing about our recent trip to the beach in Oaxaca (pictured above) over a home-cooked meal.

  • I’d love if you’d leave a comment below to let me know which recipe from The Other Side of The Tortilla you’ve served to your family to show them how much you love them or what your favorite recipe is that you’ve seen here and why.

Wordless Wednesday: The Best Carnitas in Mexico

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When I dream about carnitas – and yes, I do dream about carnitas – this is the place where I’m always eating. This little hole in the wall has the best carnitas in Mexico City, if not in the entire country, according to José.

I’m not about to challenge his ruling (after all, he is the king of carnitas), and though I’ve not eaten them in every state yet, I will say that Rincón Tarasco has the best carnitas I’ve ever eaten in my life.

Be sure to get there plenty early, though, or else risk them having nothing left but riñones. They’re only open until they sell out of everything and then they close to prepare for the next day all over again.

Those truly dedicated to their carnitas know to show up around 10 a.m. to have the best pick of available meat. They’re closed on Tuesdays.

VISIT RINCÓN TARASCO:

Av. Martí No. 142 K
Col. Escandón
Distrito Federal, México

  • Where is your favorite place in Mexico to eat carnitas?

Eating strawberries on the highway in Irapuato

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I can’t help but feel a little jealous. This past weekend my suegros and my cuñada took a road trip from Mexico City to visit Abuelita Ana in Aguascalientes. I’m jealous for two reasons: one obviously being that they spent time with abue, whom I absolutely adore, but two, that they stopped for strawberries in Irapuato on the way back to El D.F. yesterday.

One of my favorite things from our road trip to Aguascalientes this past summer for abue‘s 90th birthday was the quaint little strawberry stands alongside the carretera in Irapuato. It was my first time road-tripping anywhere more than a a few hours outside of Mexico City, and I absolutely loved being able to see so much of the countryside, passing through towns I had previously only ever read about or heard about in stories from family members….

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