Birthday Cupcake from Heirloom Bakery

I’m Dr. Perez, an assistant professor at CSUDH in the IDS department. My majors were in English for my BA, MA, and Ph.D. I finished my Ph.D. in 2011 at USC.

My food selfie is one I took of my birthday cupcake from Heirloom Bakery in South Pasadena. It’s a homemade (well, cafe-made), grown-up version of a Hostess Cupcake. It was excellent.

My favorite food, at least for today and coming out of the holiday season is tamales. I seriously love tamales and not only because they are delicious (which they are) but because of their indigenous roots in the Americas and their associations for me with home, family and the Christmas holidays. Unwrapping a tamale, hot from the steamer and almost burning my fingers is a joy. I like all kinds of tamales, sweet and savory, wrapped in corn or banana leaves, meat or vegetarian. That said, when faced with a variety of tamale choices, my first pick is almost always red pork. There’s something about the sweetness of the corn, the meatiness of the pork and the spiciness of the red chile that makes my mouth water.

This is the fourth time I’ve taught this class — it’s my favorite — and I’m looking forward to getting to know all of you.

Sopa de Fideo

History:

Sopa de fideo or sopita de fideo, as my family refers to this bowl of deliciousness, is a staple dish for most Mexican families. No matter how old you are or think you are, sopita de fideo is the ultimate comfort food. It’s a soup that is made with fideo pasta and a tomato broth. It may not sound like much but the simplicity of it makes it special. There has been research conducted to confirm that this is a traditional Mexican food and just as common as frijoles (Smith-Morris, 2016). It is very similar to the chicken noodle soup but so much better and is both a lunch and dinner dish. This dish is a big hit with children, but definitely satisfies the mature palate of adults (Smith-Morris, 2016). Additionally, sopita de fideo is extremely affordable as well as flavorful.

It’s been really interesting to learn now, at my unknown age, that people enjoy sopita de fideo with a variation of ingredients and that there are recipes that are different and original that include adding ground beef. At work, someone shared with me that they add shredded cheese to theirs and that their kids actually enjoy it with a bit of mayonnaise. I think this adds to the significance and greatness of this dish. It is so flexible and adaptable that it can be tailored to fit anyone’s specific preferences or diet needs.

Brief Disclaimer:

You’ll have to forgive me, although the Sopa de Fideo recipe has been passed down from generation to generation in my family it has never been written down onto any paper. I, like everyone else in my family, was taught in person, practicing hands on and conducting many many taste tests. Therefore, there are no exact measurements and I am no chef. I am a mom who cooks for her family. In this recipe you will have to bear with me because my instructions will not be technical nor fancy, they will be in laymen’s terms and as straightforward as possible.

So, with all this said, this recipe is not the original that my great- great- great grandmother once made but that is the great thing about it, it’s flexible and there is really no wrong way. You can improvise and just add any ingredient or remove the ingredients that you don’t care for and enjoy it.

Ingredients:

Fideo Pasta

Onion

Garlic Cloves

Knorr Chicken Bouillon

Cilantro

Tomatoes

Chicken Broth

Cooking oil – for frying

Additional Ingredients:

This list of ingredients can be added to make this soup even more satisfying and filling.

Chicken

Carrots

Potatoes

Squash

And you will not want to skip on having lemons, tortillas, and avocadoes on hand.

Preparation/Instructions: (Makes 5- 6 servings)

Fill the pot you usually use for making soup about halfway with water. Place on the stove with medium heat. Add in one-fourth onion, one clove of garlic and about 2-3 pinches of salt.

Wash your chicken, I like using leg and thighs but use any of your favorite pieces. Only four to five pieces are needed. At this time, I wash all my vegetables that I will be using. Since you are already at the sink it just makes the process flow easily.

Now go ahead and place the washed chicken inside the pot you prepared above. Cook until chicken is cooked, removing dark suds or foam from the top of the water. The dark suds are said to be bad toxins that the chicken released at the time of death. I don’t know if this has any truth to it or if it has been scientifically proven but I choose not to take my chances and try to remove as much of it as possible. This can also apply to other types of meat.

Meanwhile your chicken is cooking, you can prepare the sauce that will be the base of your sopita. Begin by chopping two to three tomatoes into fourths, the more tomatoes the richer the red color of the broth. If I’m making it as a main dish, I like to make it a bit redder than if I’m making it as a side dish. You will also chop about half of an onion and grab two garlic cloves. Blend these three ingredients into a puree. No need to add salt because the chicken is cooking with salt and you will be adding chicken bouillon later.

Since the chicken will take about 30- 40 minutes to cook start slicing all the vegetables you decided on. I don’t like them to small, so I slice them into medium sized pieces. This goes for potatoes, squash, and carrots. I do not chop the cilantro; I leave it whole even with the stems. This will give it a little more flavor and it will be easy to take out if you have a picky eater.

Now right about here, you have about twenty minutes to do something else or get some other stuff done around the house. Check your phone, check on the kids or guest, bathroom break, put the clothes in the dryer or whatever it is that you need to do.

Back to work… grab a deep-frying pan and put in four teaspoons of oil. Let the oil heat for about two minutes then add the entire bag of fideo. Stir it around to make sure all the fideo is covered with the oil and continue stirring until brown. Be careful, the fideo should be turning brown but do not let it burn. Once the fideo has fully cooked, grab colander and your blender that contains the pureed tomato, garlic, and onion. Use the colander to pour the puree into the pan with the cooked fideo. To make it easier, slowly poor the chicken broth from your cooked chicken over the colander.

The aromas of the puree and the chicken broth meeting the fried fideo are so pleasing and appetizing. At this step, you will usually have your family come into the kitchen and inquire what your making and how much longer it will take to be done.

After pouring it all in to the pan, add the sliced vegetables into the soup and roughly two tablespoons of the chicken bouillon. Add in more bouillon if needed, it will depend on the amount of broth. Lower the flame and let it cook for about ten minutes. Meanwhile shred the cooked chicken and add it, along with the cilantro into the fideo. Stick a fork into the vegetables to check that they are cooked, if so, turn the heat off. You are done.

As an entrée:

Sopita de fideo can be very filling and presented or served as the main dish especially by adding from the list of healthy ingredients above. This dish can stand on its own and satisfy any size appetite. Just adding in chicken and vegetables like squash, potatoes, carrots and chicken, sopita de fideo is wholesome and hearty.

As a side dish:

Just like the common American soups, chicken noodle or tomato, the sopita de fideo without the additional ingredient’s pairs perfectly with a sandwich or even a salad. But my favorite combination is carne asada. Serve a nice hot bowl of sopita de fideo, grab a warm tortilla, put the carne asada, a couple slices of avocado, salsa or hot sauce, and squeeze some lemon on top and bite. Then top it off with a spoonful of sopita. All the flavors will blend together in your mouth to create something so humble and savory.

Nutrition:

Sopita de fideo is very nutritious. In fact, this is often made for children who are not interested in eating because they can’t sit still or are finicky eaters. It can be packed with a bunch of important nutrients and vitamins either way you make it, simple or elaborate. Although, since fideo is pasta it is not keto friendly because of the carbs.  Even though, authentically homemade is always the best route, if your pressed for time or haven’t gone to the market sopita de fideo can be made with minimal ingredients and you can substitute things like real fresh tomatoes for tomato sauce and garlic salt instead of fresh garlic but their will be a loss of the good vitamins and nutrients.

Memories:

My connection to this dish started before I was born, I truly believe. This came about because the one craving that my mom had the very first three months of her pregnancy with me was sopita de fideo. She explained to me that it was the only thing that would stay down through her morning sickness. My great grandmother and my other family members would make it for her every other day or so. They laughed when they would tell me the story and said they had to do it so that I wouldn’t come out looking like fideo. This is a myth that is common amongst Mexicans… if you don’t give a pregnant person what they want to eat then the baby will look like whatever that particular food was. So, my appreciation and love for this soup was fate. As soon as I could start eating solids, I was eating sopita de fideo.

As a child, this was a dish that I could not and would not refuse. The smell of sopita de fideo filling the air was enough to get me away from anything that I was doing. Even if I was playing barbies, coloring, or watching television. This soup was and is my favorite. Even back when I couldn’t record the show I was watching on the DVR. If I missed it that was it there was no rewind or pausing like there is now. But it didn’t matter, on top of that, I had to eat at the dinner table away from the T.V. The soup warmed up my belly and hugged me to my core as it has for so many years.

Sopita de fideo holds a special place in heart and I know it might sound silly to some because it’s just food. But this soup has helped to strengthen relationships and bonds, it has made me feel better when I’ve been sick, it gave me peace and comfort when I needed it, it has nourished my body, and it brings back wonderful memories of people that I care deeply about but are no longer here with me in the physical world. I’m thankful that I get to share these memories with those closest to me.

Sopita de fideo now brings joy to my immediate family too. It brings my children to the kitchen even when there busy doing other things. It starts great conversations around the dinner table. I am able to feed it to my family with confidence knowing that it has so much good stuff in it for our bodies. Even more so, it has helped us when we have struggled financially or just needed to make it for a couple of days before payday. This dish reminds me and my family to be humble and grateful for each other and everything we have. I plan to continue sharing sopita de fideo with those I treasure and love the most.

Torta Helada 

Torta Helada is a Peruvian specialty. It roughly translates to frozen cake. You can find this cake in just about every dessert shop in Lima, Peru. These types of cakes are very popular. So much so that my mother was even able to start her own small business making jellos cakes for birthday parties and special events. Not only are we attached to this jiggly dessert through business, but also in personal matters as well. This very simple but very delicious dessert helped create bonds in my family and memories that will never be forgotten. This dessert allowed me to truly open up and accept a new way of life through a difficult time in my adolescence. I know,I know, that seems like alot to ask from one simple cake, right? The reality is, learning how to make this sweet treat gave me a sense of belonging and kinship with my sudden new familial arrangement. When I think back to the first time I had this treat in my new home, I was scared but also, with one bite, still felt like I WAS home. One familiar bite gave me back everything I knew. This isn’t just a dessert to me, it’s a beautiful memory.

Ingredients

2 cups (16oz) of Nestle evaporated milk

2 boxes of Jell-o instant mix – strawberry flavored

1 Pillsbury Moist Supreme White Premium Cake Mix, 15.25 oz

1 packet of colapez (unflavored gelatin) 

1 batch of fresh strawberries 

Tools

3 mixing bowls

1 cake pan/mold for jello

1cake pan/mold for cake 

1 pair of kitchen scissors*

1 mixer (hand held or other)

1 knife 

1 spatula 

*if you’d rather bypass the cutting process, use two small cake pans to create two even layers smaller than the diameter of the mold you will be using to pour the jello 

Instructions 

In order to achieve the best results, we suggest prepping your ingredients the night before. First, bake the Pillsbury cake according to the instructions on the box. We used the white cake mix just so that it does not take away from the main components of the Torta Helada but you can use any cake mix you would like! Chocolate, vanilla, funfetti, whatever flavor your heart desires. You really can not go wrong here. 

One thing to keep in mind is that we want the base (the cake) to be smaller in diameter than the jello that will surround it. You can either use two smaller cake pans to bake your cake in two even layers or take a pair of scissors to cut off the excess of the cake that you no longer need, making sure to cut it as evenly as possible. We decided to just use the pan we currently have and cutt off the excess once it was done. Once you have fully baked the cake to completion, let it rest on the side to cool and refrigerate when cooled. I know, I know, it is almost impossible to resist a freshly baked slice of cake but you must! The reason it needs to cool is because you want the cake to be nice and cold when applying the jell-o. If you were to add it fresh out of the oven, the heat would melt the jello and absorb the mix into the cake, and we definitely do not want that.

Now we can move on to your strawberries.

When prepping your strawberries be sure to wash them really well. Once they are washed, let them dry in the refrigerator overnight. Prepping your strawberries the night before, as opposed to the the same day, ensures that the strawberries will not be too soft or soggy when you’re placing them on your torta helada the next day. This is totally up to personal preference but you can either remove or leave the calyx  on the strawberries. We like to leave it on for decoration but it is not necessary. Do what works best for you. Once you are done with your strawberries and your cake, place them both in the fridge overnight to cool. Put your evaporated milk in the freezer over night so that in the morning it will be almost slushie like.

The day has finally come to complete your torta helada, hooray! 

So now the first thing you want to do is get out all your ingredients and set them in front of you. 

If you haven’t already, cut your cake to the size you’d like to be (remember, it needs to be smaller than the pan you have your jello in because the jello needs to cover it completely). Once that is done, go ahead and cut your cake down the middle to separate the top half from the bottom half, creating two equal layers. Put your halves to the side and let’s pour us some jello! 

Prepare both boxes of jello separately. With one of the prepared jellos, pour it in the pan and then add your strawberries in whichever design pattern you would like. From there you can put that pan in the fridge and forget about for about 30 minutes. While your jello is cooling and solidifying in the fridge, take out your frozen nestle evaporated milk. You can let those sit out for a bit to allow the milk to thaw just a little and get to a slushie-like consistency but not thaw completely. 

Once that has been sitting out for a bit, pour two cups of evaporated milk into a bowl and start mixing it with a mixer. We want to essentially whip the milk into a thick creamy consistency. While whipping the milk, start adding jello from the other bowl you prepared slowly into the bowl with the milk while you are mixing it still. This is going to create the light pink layer surrounding the cake. Once mixed completely you will need to start assembling your cake.

Bring out the layer of jello with the strawberries that we let solidify in the fridge now. Scoop a good portion of your whipped jello and place it over that jello layer. You must work quickly because the whipped jello hardens pretty fast and becomes unmanageable after it stiffens up. Once you place the bottom layer, add your cake piece on top, more whipped jello, then your last piece of cake on top of that. You should now fill in the sides and all areas surrounding the cake. They need to be completely covered with the whipped jello.

Once you’ve covered all sides of the cake, You are all done! Congratulations! You have officially made Torta Helada. Now, place it back in the fridge for a few hours to let it cool for a while and then serve and enjoy with your family and friends,

Before I get into the recipe, I just want to say that almost EVERYBODY has made, at one time or another in their life, a tuna fish sandwich. Okay, now that that is out of the way, let’s talk.  Because my mother was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, she could cook! Or as they say in the ‘hood, she could “throw down.” I like a lot of things my mama made for me for lunch back in the day, the time when you could walk home for lunch and then go back to school. Long time ago, I know. But anyway, here’s the thing. Couldn’t nobody, I mean nobody, make the tuna   sandwich like my mama did! I know what you may be saying, that it’s “just a damn sandwich.” But to me it was more than that. Now mind you, I’m in elementary school at the time.

(This is a younger me. Not quite the age when I first chowed down on my mama’s tuna sandwiches, but hey, you get the point.)

Of course mom’s sandwiches were bomb, but so was everything she made lol. I remember how, when money got low for us, how she would pretend like we were having this lavish meal to eat for dinner lol.   What did we know, we were just kids living in the Jordan down projects in Watts in the 1960’s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watts,_Los_Angeles and it seemed pretty lavish to us.   I mean, we used the `good” plates. Now mind you, the meal consisted of the sandwich, home fried potato chips, or sometimes she would cut the potatoes thick-like and fry them in that Cristo cooking grease.  And what meal would be complete back in the day without, you guessed it, kool-aid, usually the red flavored kind. Soo good. I even remember my dad coming through (which was rare) and giving my mom some money to help feed us until she got paid from the domestic work she did for the white people across town.  I remember those days. Those were some tough times back then. A constant struggle for her raising five girls mostly on her own.

Even back then it was hard but she made sure we had the best that she could provide. Even back then, my sisters and I were envied for our fashion and styles. We learned it from our mother. She made sure we had everything and I mean everything we needed. I know that this recipe is an easy one, but not for me it wasn’t.  I started to reminisce about the life my mother had to live, being uneducated (only going to the 5th grade) because her parents had died (still to this day none of us know what happened to them because she never discussed any of that stuff with us. Back in the day, old folks kept everything “secret” SMH). One thing me and my sisters learned early on is how to work and take care of ourselves at an early age. I could cook, sew, shop for groceries (by myself), iron, wash clothes in the old tub washing machine where you had to take a large wooden stick to take the clothes out, hang the wet clothes on the line to dry (no dryers back then and if they did exist, we certainly didn’t know about them). 

All in all, I chose to do this sandwich because of how the sandwich makes me feel while eating it. Made me remember when neighbors were more like a family — everybody working together, community taking care of one another, and everybody knew EVERYBODY.  Sitting outside on hot summer nights, drinking delicious tangy-ass homemade lemonade (the kids were but some of the adults sitting out on those hot nights was gettin’ liquored up lol), maybe carving up a watermelon (yep, I said it, Black folk did like to eat their watermelon sitting out on the porch on a hot summer night). That’s a no-no now, of course, not politically correct (eyeroll here).  Anyway, now that I think back to those times, it was the love for family and a sense of pride and closeness of the community that probably left a good taste in my mouth. Those were the days I still crave, but alas, they are gone forever. Nowadays, you don’t know WHO is living next door to you. Oh, the memories. Okay, well, enough of that. Now, let’s get crackin’ on this recipe so you too can taste the goodness that I know all too well with my mama’s tuna fish recipe.

I am using just her basics because the mayonnaise they used back then, I can never remember the name, and they probably don’t sell it anymore anyway. The other ingredients are what I have used over the years and tweaked to my liking. I think I like tuna fish because it reminds me of her, not that it’s anything magical or wondrous–It’s just our connection while I am eating the sandwich. Now, let’s get it on.

OK, first, gather all of your food for this fantastic sandwich which will feed between 2 to 4 people. And this is what you will need:  

2 (or 3) 6 oz. cans of Chunk Light Tuna in water (I use Chicken of the Sea, but you can use whatever is your preference. I don’t know exactly what brand mom used back then, her recipe just said tuna. (Simple enough)

3 Large Hard-Boiled Eggs

1 Celery Stalk (I chop mine medium-fine)

1/4 chopped red onion* (not in my mama’s original recipe but added by    me years ago; she used white onions, I prefer red)

2 tablespoons of Sweet Pickle Relish (more if needed after you taste; I really dump in about ¼ of a cup and more if I’m feeling adventurous that day lol

½ teaspoon of Onion Powder *  (more if needed after you taste) 

½ teaspoon of Garlic Powder *  (more if needed after you taste)

¼ cup of Mayonnaise (any kind you choose, I use Hillman’s. I also like my tuna more “moist” so I add the ¼ cup.  If you want yours on the dryer side, start out with a tablespoon and work your way up to your taste)

1 tablespoon of Yellow Mustard (the regular french’s brand kind; more if you prefer after you taste)

Scant bit of smoked paprika *

Fresh Lemon Juice (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste

* not in my mama’s original recipe; added by moi (me).

OK, Let’s Do This: 

• Get the eggs going 
• Start your eggs in room temperature water, with the water completely submerging the eggs in the pot, then bring the water to a slow boil for about 10 minutes.  After that, increase your heat a little higher until you see the eggs slowly start to boil (another 10 minutes or until you see the water mid-rapidly boiling). Don’t boil the eggs too long or it will surely take away from the taste of the eggs;  makes them too dry. Turn off the heat after said time, dump the hot water in the sink and replace the hot water with cold water in the pot. Let the eggs cool by themselves sitting in the cold water while you get crackin’ on the rest of the ingredients:

• Open the cans of tuna and squeeze out ALL of the liquid.  I usually put on those surgical gloves you can get from the .99 cents store and really squeeze away until no liquid comes out.  I mean really squeeze (like you’re trying to choke out that person that has been bothering you all day (just kidding). But for real. And now that you got that out of your system…
• Place tuna in a bowl
• Add your spices-

Smoked Paprika, onion powder and garlic powder (add salt and pepper at the end, not now)  

• Okay, next, add your veggies- 

Celery and red onions

• Now, check to see if your eggs are completely cooled.  If so, chop however you want (mine are medium fine), and add to the bowl (but only if completely cooled because they will cut up better for you)

• Next, Get a clean fork and smush (mix) everything together.  

Now, add the holy grail of sweet pickle relish, mayo and mustard and blend well (one at a time, though)

• Salt and pepper to taste. 
• This is where you add more of whatever you think you need more of after the official taste test. I added more of everything because I like more of a robust flavoring in my tuna (don’t judge me 👀). Oh, and I forgot, just if you want a little “twang,” I squeeze in some fresh lemon juice after everything, and stir it up. You may want to put a small portion of the tuna in a separate container to see if you like it with the lemon, if you don’t like it, the rest of your tuna won’t have it in there. 

And, Voila! That’s it! You can spread this oh so good deliciousness on bread or crackers or rolled in lettuce for you low-carbers.  I prefer mine with celery sticks really (right now I do because I didn’t have any bread in the house when I prepared this lol). And salty chips and Ooo don’t forget that tangy, homemade, fresh squeezed lemonade. Yes ma’am.

Honey chile, enjoy!

Hope you enjoy this just as much as I do. I make this when I want to feel happiness and comfort. 

I pull out the old picture album books (remember those) , eat my sandwich, drink my lemonade and reminiscence.

There’s nothing sweeter.

✌

Hey, Some Fun Facts:

What exactly is tuna?

A tuna  (also called tunny) is a saltwater fish belonging to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the mackerel family.

Who Invented the sandwich and why?

It is said that John Montagu, a gambler and the 4th Earl of sandwich, is the inventer. His reasoning being was that he did not want to leave the gambling table to eat, so he placed all of the meal, consisting of his meat and veggies, in between his bread and chowed down.  Hey, the guy was lazy, but what can I say. 

Who invented the tuna fish sandwich?

It was invented by Henry Tuna in 1944. A tuna fish sandwich, a tuna salad sandwich, or tuna sandwich, is a type of sandwich usually made with tuna salad and includes ingredients such as mayonnaise and celery.

Check out some of the different types of tuna fish (or fishes?) below:

Thunnus obesus (Bigeye Tuna) -Often confused with the yellowfin; has fins edged in black; larger eyes; more robust body shape with striped or streaked liver.

Thunnus alalunga (Albacore Tuna) -has longest pectoral fins and lightest, whitest flesh of any tuna.

Thunnus orientalis (Bluefin Tuna) -Largest and most expensive of tuna, and can live up to 40 years in the ocean.

Thunnus Thynnus (Bluefin) – King of tunas; mature in 6 years, around 300 pounds.

Katsuwonus pelamis (Skipjack Tuna) -Distinct lower horizontal stripes; found in all temperate and tropical seas; forms huge schools; is the most canned of tunas.

Thunnus tonggol (Longtail Tuna) -Popular gamefish in Australia; labeled northern bluefin even though not a species of bluefin.

Thunnus albacore (Yellowfin Tuna) -Bright yellow finlets; fished tropically around the world; grows 200 pounds in 7 years; 

Did you know that canned light tuna is better and lower in mercury than canned white (albacore) and yellowfin tuna? Well it is according to the FDA (Federal Department of Agriculture) and the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). Canned white (albacore) tuna and yellowfin are higher in mercury, but ok to eat sparingly because of the mercury percentage they each have in them. Bigeye tuna, they say, should be avoided completely.

References

Prezi. (n.d.). The History of the Sandwich. Retrieved from https://prezi.com/ybqb7iisthc-/the-history-of-the-sandwich/

https://prezi.com/ybqb7iisthc-/the-history-of-the-sandwich/

The Sandwich That Started It All®. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://earlofsandwichusa.com/who-we-are/

https://earlofsandwichusa.com/who-we-are/

Woodward, C., Migdalski, T., Olander, D., Staley, T., Frederiksen, P., & Waters, S. (n.d.). An Illustrated Guide to Types of Tuna. Retrieved from https://www.sportfishingmag.com/tunas-world-an-illustrated-guide/

https://www.sportfishingmag.com/tunas-world-an-illustrated-guide/

My Mother’s Mole  

Origin of Mexico’s “National Dish”

The name Mole comes from the Nahuatl word for sauce – mōlli – and is the generic name for several variations of rich sauces that come in colors like yellow, red, black and even green (Cocking 2016). Mole is made from various chiles (chilis) especially chiles poblanos. Chile poblano means the chile from Puebla, a city that has played a key role in Mexican history and cuisine (Hansen,2003). Chile poblano is the reason why the Mole is known as Mole Poblano, meaning from Puebla. The two regions best known for their respective moles are Oaxaca and Puebla… Puebla’s most famous mole is without a doubt its namesake mole poblano, the most internationally recognized mole and the variation that is classed as the official national dish (Cocking 2016). Mole is one of the most recognizable dishes in Mexican cuisine. Symbolic of the way Mexico blended European and Aztec cultures in the years after the Spanish Conquest, Mole is made from a unique mixture of chocolate and hot peppers (Benitos).  History provides us with various stories of its origin dating back to Mesoamerica when Moctezuma served it to Cortés on his arrival to Mexico, since he thought Cortez to be a god. Another version reports, approximately 300 years ago, some of the poorest citizens of the Santa Rosa convent were preparing for a visit by the archbishop. Struggling to come up with a dish worthy of him, the nuns… mixed stale bread, nuts, chocolate, chili peppers, and spices to season the meat and make it more edible (Benitos). From Moctezuma and the nouns to now, the preparation of Mole is not easy, as many moles (particularly those originating in Oaxaca) are known to have 30+ ingredients (Cocking 2016). 

 What Mole Means to my Family 

Mole is part of my culture, not only do we enjoy eating it but mostly making it. My childhood celebrations, from my sister’s Quinceanera to my children’s baptisms, all involved my mother making Mole. Mole is like our family’s religion; it’s practiced and passed down from generation to generation. My favorite mother-daughter moments were spent with my mother teaching me how to cook, I not only felt pampered (having a personal teacher) but felt loved by having my mother pass down her Mexican recipe wisdom on to me. Even though Mole is not something we could make from scratch, due to its intense labor in preparation of various dried chiles, almonds, peanuts, chocolate and many more ingradients that are grounded into a paste then thinned with broth, Mole is our favorite rich, spicy sauce that we enjoy with chicken at many festivities. Mole can take up to two days to prepare, however, that the same Mole paste can also be purchase by the pound in traditional Mexican outlets like El Mercadito. El Mercadito, located in the heart of Los Angeles, El Mercadito comprises countless food options from various international cuisines, including Mexican snacks (Tiber 2019). Huge buckets of mole paste come from México to be sold at the market. Mole verde and rojo from Guerrero, mole negro or colorado from Oaxaca, mole poblano, and many others (Marrero 2016). El Mercadio is my favorite local ethnic place to shop for my favorite Mole. It’s difficut and not often but I sometimes get home made Mole from family members who travel to Mexico. I cherish the few times that I get Mole in a paste bases from those family members.  

Cultural significance of Mole for Mexicans 

Mexican cuisine is an important aspect of the culture, social structure and popular traditions of Mexico. The most important example of this connection is the use of Mole for special occasions and holidays…(en.wikipedia.org). Mole to me represents the hard work of an indigenous group of cooks who harvest, gather and prepared a unique sauce that is loved by so many including myself. Their teachings were too shared with their children as my mother shared with me. The tradition and knowledge of Mole is a special moment shared from generation to generation that can be said to be a cultural experience. My mother has shared her Mexican traditional recipes from Mole to enchiladas, pozole, menudo, tamales, enchiladas, birria, and barbacoa among others. Even though Mole is one of Mexico’s traditional dishes, Mexico has a diversified list of foods that varied from state to state.  

 Family Traditions 

My family’s favorite times involve food as part of a social gathering. My family, like many families, share their current life events at the dinner table to bring everyone up to date on their current status of happiness. The food served plays a big role at the dinner table too because is delicately prepared by the women in the family, who gather and share their cooking skills. I consider the preparation of food as a family to be one of my family’s traditions. Mole served with rice is one of the many, if not our favorite, foods to prepare as a family. My family’s favorite mole is the Mole Poblano, a rich less spice sauce infused with chocolate. After all, food is the common ground to join people together, and as my family would say, at our dinner table everyone is welcome and ” Donde come uno come dos”, meaning, where there’s enough for one, there’s enough for two. 

Mexican Rice 

Rice is the bond to many dishes within the Mexican cousin. Rice, unlike Mole, does not include too many ingredients nor takes days to prepared. Rice was introduced to Mexico via the Philippines, then transported to Acapulco…The Spaniards later found the lush tropical climate of Veracruz region of Mexico to be a perfect growing ground for rice (Bowman 2013). Rice can be enjoyed with beans and choice of meat as seen in Mexican restaurants. Rice is not only reserved as a savory dish, but it is also used in desserts, cakes, vegetable puddings, tamales, atoles, and even the well-known rice drink, horchata (Bowman 2013). Rice is also cooked in a few ways, my family’s choice of rice to accompany the Mole Poblano is the “Pilaf” style. Pilaf style is where the rice grains are browned and then simmered in broth (Bowman 2013). Rice is a must at my dinner table, since rice goes well with mostly all Mexican dishes. However, rice has been one of my most challenging dishes to make due to its water ratio that is not always perfect no matter how accurately you follow its recipe. Because of that, don’t feel bad if your rice does not looks exactly as the picture.  

RECEPIES 

Mole with Chicken and Rice 

Total Time: 1½ hours Serves: 6 

Ingredients/utensils 

Mole: 

1 lb Mole Paste (from El Mercadito) 

Chicken broth. 

Salt 

Sesame seeds 

One 6 to 8-qt pot with a lid 

Chicken: 

3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 

½ medium onion 

3 large garlic cloves 

6 cups of water 

salt 

One 6 to 8-qt pot with a lid 

Mexican Rice: 

1 cup of rice 

2 cups of chicken broth 

¼ small onion (sliced) 

4 tablespoons of virgin oil 

2 garlic cloves (peeled) 

2 medium tomatoes 

½ cup of water 

1 to 2 tablespoons Knorr chicken flavor bouillon powder  

One 6-qt pot with a lid 

PREPARATION 

 Chicken: 

1. Place chicken, ½ medium onion, 3 large garlic cloves and 6 cups water in a large pot over medium-high heat, add salt to flavor about 10 minutes after. Boil until chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes. Save chicken broth for Mole and rice’s preparation.  

1. While the chicken cooks, rice can be prepared.  

1. When the chicken is done, just set aside.   

Rice: 

1. In a 6-qt pot add oil, sliced onion and peeled garlic over medium fire stirring it until grilled/browned.  

1. Remove browned onion and garlic and add rice, stirring it until it too it’s golden brown.  

1. In a blender add tomatoes, water, and grilled onions and garlic, liquify items on high to make a tomato sauce/paste.  

1. Once the rice is golden brown add tomato sauce/paste from the blender and 2 cups of chicken broth from the cooked chicken.  

1. Add Knorr chicken flavor powder to taste, starting with no more than 1 tablespoon.  

1. Mix ingredients and cover to cook over medium fire until water evaporates, avoid mixing once water is almost evaporated, this will make the rice consistency into a paste.   

Mole: 

1. Transfer paste to a medium pot over low heat and pour in chicken broth, stirring, to form a thick sauce, about 3 minutes, add salt to taste if needed.  

1. Add chicken thighs, bring to a boil, removed and cool off for about 5 minutes. 

1. Serve Mole with sauce and sprinkle sesame seeds on top, add rice and enjoy.  

References 

A guide to the 7 Moles of Mexico (“n.d” ). Gourmetpedia, retrieved March 3, 2020: from https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&id=CEABC9FD784F0C8193A640CCDFE5988477D58CB6&thid=OIP.wqmxDW2wou5YLjlRV02TPAAAAA&mediaurl=http%3A%2F%2Fgourmetpedia.net%2Fmedia%2Fupload%2Fsaveurs%2F343.jpg&exph=307&expw=440&q=pictures+of+mexican+mole&selectedindex=199&ajaxhist=0&vt=0&eim=1,2,6 

 Bowman, B. (2013, September 22). Mexican Rice History And Recipes. Gourmet  Sleuth, retrieved: March 4, 2020: from www.gourmetsleuth.com/articles/detail/mexican-rice#section0 

 Cocking, L. (2016, November 10). A Brief History of Mole, Mexico’s National Dish. The Culture Trip, retrieved March 2, 2020: from https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/a-brief-history-of-mole-mexicos-national-dish/ 

 Hansen, B. (2003, September 10). Cooking; A true mexican aristocrat; the poblano chile isn’t just fiery — it’s complex and flavorful too. and lately, it’s been making bold appearances in dining rooms all over town.: [HOME EDITION]. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved Mar. 2, 2020: from https://search.proquest.com/docview/421836859?accountid=35804 

Image of Mexican Mole. (“n.d” ). Bing, retrieved March 3, 2020: from https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=El+Mole+Poblano&FORM=IDINTS 

 Images of Mexican Rice. (“n.d” ). Bing, retrieved March 3, 2020: from (https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&id=3CA1AF78B43A1C02F54E0C42F2CCC77691620809&thid=OIP.L_YWgiRByOVcm-_R8uPkLwHaLH&mediaurl=https%3A%2F%2Fthestayathomechef.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F09%2FAuthentic-Mexican-Rice.jpg&exph=825&expw=550&q=pictures+of+mexican+rice&selectedindex=9&qpvt=pictures+of+mexican+rice&ajaxhist=0&vt=0&eim=1,2,6 

 Marrero, P. (2016, Sep. 13). Boyle Heights’ El “Mercadito”, Still Mexican to the Core. Kcet.org, retrieved March 4, 2020: from https://www.kcet.org/food-living/boyle-heights-el-mercadito-still-mexican-to-the-core 

Mole Poblano: A Traditional Mexican Dish. (“n.d” ). Benitosmexican.com, retrieved February 26, 2020: from http://benitosmexican.com/mexican-food/mole-poblano-a-history-of-the-traditional-mexican-dish/ 

 Mole Poblano (“n.d” ). Gourmetpedia, retrieved March 3, 2020: from https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&id=C3BEF105910A21C5BEF9D9AA6829B871AEA562CD&thid=OIP.58xysMNsrjPVrPrPI24v2QHaFj&mediaurl=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.shopify.com%2Fs%2Ffiles%2F1%2F2246%2F4291%2Fproducts%2FMole_w_Spices_Table_2_2000x.jpg%3Fv%3D1511411534&exph=755&expw=1008&q=pictures+of+mexican+mole&selectedindex=83&ajaxhist=0&vt=0&eim=1,2,6 

 Tiber, C. (2019, May 21). Eating L.A. before it eats itself: El mercadito de los angeles sells chile-coated memories. University Wire, retrieved March 4, 2020: from https://search.proquest.com/docview/2228562062?accountid=35804 

 Wikipedia (“n.d” ). In Mexican cuisine. Wikipedia. retrieved March 2, 2020: from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_cuisine 

Imagine a recipe where it takes you back to your fondest childhood memories, where you sit among your friends and family enjoying oversized portions of food and share how thankful you are for one another. Imagine that recipe and being able to share that fondest memory with people who are eager to hear. The recipe is beyond the taste, texture, or even nutritional value. It reminds me of the morning of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Although, Christmas was slightly different due to the overexcitement of presents, toys, and stockings that hung over the mantle. Christmas still had my mother’s macaroni and cheese, yet it was preciously warming in the oven preparing for its day. However, Thanksgiving has a different meaning to my memories. Thanksgiving did not drown out the cooking of food with its allure of gifts and sweets. Thanksgiving was all about the food, it is not Thanksgiving without the food. It was more than dinner. It was more than the ham or the deep-fried turkey (our family’s specialty). It was my mother’s mac and cheese which every Thanksgiving morning sat unprepared on the table waiting to be mixed together in my mom’s vast cauldron. Thanksgiving was the macaroni and cheese’s day. It was its moment to shine. I remember the mornings my mother woke up earlier than the birds to prepare her part for Thanksgiving. I watched her dump ingredients into her pots and pans without a second thought. Effortlessly, she combined the ingredients of macaroni noodles, cheese, milk, and her heavy-handed seasonings. She stirred it carefully making sure not to break or bruise the soft noodles. Her hand twisting her spoon masterfully against her pot careful not to touch the hot edge of it. When she was finished with her skillful tossing, she tasted it. Her head nodding against the taste. She dumped it into her pan coating it with handfuls of cheddar cheese like snow piles against a mountain of noodles. She smoothed it laying it flat against its bed of tin, careful not to smash it. Her wooden spoon gliding over the bright glow of the sharp cheddar cheese. When she places it in the oven, she looks over at her table of ingredients, sighing to herself.

“I forgot the butter.”

Easy One-pot Mac ‘n’ Cheese

In the 14^th century, a cheese and pasta casserole was said to have been made in an Italian cookbook called Liber de Coquina. This recipe was the start of the famous dish macaroni and cheese.  The original recipe of macaroni and cheese included hand-cut pasta, parmesan cheese, and butter. The recipe then evolved into a more modernized version by a woman named Elizabeth Raffald, an English innovator in 1770, she included the recipe in her cookbook titled, The Experienced English Housekeeper, Raffald’s innovated recipe included a type of roux sauce mixed with cheddar cheese commonly known during that time to the French as a Mornay sauce. She, then, adds parmesan and baked it until golden. After Raffald’s personal recipe, it later became a popular dish in the United Kingdom. The dish’s migration to the United States started with Thomas Jefferson and James Hemings, who was a slave who cooked for Jefferson. Jefferson and Hemings found out about the recipe in Paris and brought it back to the United States. After the introduction to the U.S, the recipe was later named, macaroni and cheese. Its first appearance under its new name was in 1824 by Mary Randolph in her cookbook titled, The Virginia Housewife, Randolph’s recipe was similar to the others before; macaroni, cheese, and butter mixed together like a casserole and baked until golden.  Macaroni and cheese later became a staple food for many people globally because of its convenience. Macaroni and cheese can be bought, boxed, frozen, or homemade. It was mass-produced by Kraft’s in 1937 because of its availability in times of economic hardships. During the Depression and World War II, macaroni and cheese were eaten quite regularly between soldiers and citizens. The recipe was no longer reserved for just cheese, butter, macaroni, and baking. It became a specialized recipe with the ability to adapt to all new varieties of ingredients and cultures.

Many cultures have turned the cheese casserole into a traditional dish. The traditional side dish could be considered soul food with the right seasoning and spices. Soul food is a type of cuisine that is ethnically known to be prominent in African American cultures. In the 17^th and 18^th centuries, the newly formed United States had slaves from West Africa who practiced the making of this new dish. It later became a traditional food for African Americans living in the United States. The term soul food was coined in the 60s and 70s due to the civil rights and black power movements. Soul food can be traced back to slavery. It was the foods like fried chicken, collard greens, hushpuppies, chitterlings, cornbread, and macaroni and cheese that was made with little ingredients and a lot of heart. Soul food came from slavery and mistreatment, yet it also brought people together who enjoyed each other’s company and endured the neglect of white slave masters together which unified African people of different places. The introduction of soul food created its own recipes using a blending of cultures around African and Europe. Marconi and cheese in the modern age could be considered soul food to some because of its ever-changing recipe that had been practiced through generations.

With the little adaptions from recipe to recipe we see how much has changed between the original recipe to the present. Macaroni and cheese is no longer a simple recipe that includes just noodles, butter, and parmesan cheese. It has become a challenge to provide your own type of macaroni and cheese with an individual twist. These individual twists create food that is revolutionary in its own way. There are a million different types of macaroni and cheese that include, bacon, broccoli, lobster, hot Cheetos, shrimp, cauliflower, butternut squash, truffles, pumpkin, vegan cheese, chili, spinach and artichoke, and many more. It is a recipe where you could add anything and still have it taste good. In the book, L.A Son, by Roy Choi, we follow the author who redefines food and cooking for himself.  Choi was a Korean immigrant who grew up tempted by the allure of gambling and addiction. He later found a passion for cooking and become an inspirational figure for innovating common cultural foods. His innovation provided a new twist on beloved foods from all different cultures and traditions including his own. Choi found ways to urbanize Korean foods and fit them into everyone’s palate. “I had to write this book. To tell the story of my journey from immigrant to latchkey kid to lowrider to misfit to gambler to a chef answering his calling. To tell a story of Los Angeles and the people who live here. And to preserve it all on wax.”(Choi, 1). Choi takes us through neighborhoods and streets most people never see when they visit L.A. Choi’s experiences differ because of his passion for cooking interesting food for the residences of Los Angeles. Choi’s interesting twist on many foods like his kimchi and pork belly stuffed pupusas or his Pho for Dem Hoes reminds me of my mom’s signature macaroni and cheese. Choi’s spin on the pupusas was inspired by a close friend of his who was from El Salvador and worked with him.

Roy Choi

“I had known about the pupusas game before, but she taught me a few things, and I’ve never looked back.” (Choi, 305)

When I asked for her recipe and who originated it, she told me of her combination of ideas from her mother, my father’s mother, and the back of an elbow noodle package. She told me how she picked her favorite ingredients from each recipe and created her own. She used her mother’s incorporation of a tablespoon of flour, my father’s mother’s incorporation of chicken broth, and the incorporation of her seasonings. My mother constantly improved her recipe each year by adding less of somethings or adding more.  It became her specialty. Her ever-improving specialty. Looking throughout the history of the macaroni and cheese recipe from, Italy to the United Kingdom to Paris and then later to the United States we see how much has changed. The recipe became boxed, microwaved, mass-produced, and even a cultural staple. There is no perfect way to make the recipe. There is no perfect way to combine them. There is not a standard order that must be followed to ensure the validity of macaroni and cheese. It could take three simple ingredients butter, elbow noodles, and cheddar or parmesan cheese. Or it could be complex by adding, bacon or truffles.

There is no first memory of my mother’s mac and cheese the side dish grew up with me along with my sisters and cousins. The side dish was a family member we brought to Thanksgiving and Christmas making sure to keep her warm and cozy in the oven. We never forgot about her even in the chaotic morning after the macaroni and cheese were finished and it was my mother’s turn to round up the children to get them dressed. We never forgot about the side dish even when we were running late to dinner on Thanksgiving every year because of my father’s inability to leave the house on time. Some years when life got too hectic my mother would forget some of the ingredients, yet no one would notice and still eat piles and piles of the cheesy goodness. The recipe survived through many improvements and altercations. It survived from generation to generation which emphasized my culture and the meaning of soul food. I remember the years my grandfather would ask my mother for a personal pan, so he could have it all to himself without sharing with his sons or daughter. I remember my aunt driving four hours just to get a taste of my mom’s recipe. My family all around the United States called my mom just for her side dish. I wish this was just an exaggeration, yet the phone calls she had with my aunts and uncles, nieces and nephew sharing her recipe was real. Her recipe included parts of her mother’s recipe and my father’s mother recipe. My mother revolutionized macaroni and cheese for my family making sure to include generational traditions. It reminds me of Roy Choi and how he constantly tries to alter and improve traditional foods. He revolutionizes recipes that have been stuck in a certain way. Roy Choi and my mother have something in common, their ability to make ordinary recipes into a seemingly perfect one that still appreciates the original.

Her recipe included:

½ bag of large elbow noodles

1 to 3 cups of sharp cheddar cheese

1 stick of cream cheese

½ cup of chicken broth

¼ cup of whole milk

1 tablespoon of flour

1 stick of butter

Seasoning salt

Ground pepper

Garlic powder

Onion powder

The recipe should be fit as to how you want it. If you, personally, like your macaroni and cheese moist, you would add more milk or chicken broth or both to make it to the consistency you want. If you want it dry, like a baked casserole, you would add less milk or chicken broth or both.

First, boil water and add salt. Once the water is boiling fully, add noodles and cook for 7 to 8 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Note: cooking the noodles too long will make the noodles too soft during the baking section.

Strain water from noodles, add cream cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, and butter, stirring it gently together until fully melted. Add chicken broth, seasoning salt, ground pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder, then stir until thoroughly mixed. Carefully mix to avoid chopped noodles.

After mixed, add to deep baking pan and put it in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Do not forget to stir gently occasionally and ensure no burning on the bottom. Adjust heat accordingly.

Add more sharp cheddar cheese to the top of macaroni cheese and make for 10 to 15 minutes until it is golden brown or bubbly.

Let rest for about 10 to 15 minutes, to stiffen. Serve and enjoy!

 

“I’ll always order macaroni and cheese, but I don’t want it to be fancy.” – Drew Barrymore

References

Choi, R., Nguyen, T., & Phan, N. (2013). L.A. son my life, my city, my food. New York, NY: Ecco.

Grasso, C. (2018, July 12). Quotes About Mac & Cheese For National Mac & Cheese Day. Retrieved from https://www.bustle.com/p/national-mac-cheese-day-quotes-that-will-have-you-wishing-for-a-bowl-of-the-good-stuff-68955

Kombol, S. (2018, February 9). 25 Mac ‘N’ Cheese Recipes. Retrieved from https://tasty.co/compilation/25-mac-n-cheese-recipes

Macaroni and cheese. (2020, March 5). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaroni_and_cheese

Rhodes, J. (2011, March 22). Marvelous Macaroni and Cheese. Retrieved from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/marvelous-macaroni-and-cheese-30954740/

Soul food. (2020, February 24). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_food

Trap-A-Man Recipe

My sister was once told by a lovely little old lady that if she wanted to stop being single, she had to develop and perfect her very own Trap-A- Man recipe. It wasn’t enough to be funny, attractive or intelligent. Matter of fact, this sweet little lady said she didn’t even have to be pretty so long as she approached a man through his biggest weakness. For most men, that’s their stomach. “I got this!” she told her, and she hit the ground running. My mother has tried her hardest to teach me her amazing cooking skills and secrets, but I have never been and never will be gastronomically inclined! I don’t have the patience for cooking nor do I have the passion that people like my mom and my little sister have. Don’t get me wrong, I can whip up things that are edible. Some might even call my quick fix meals good or tasty, but I really just cook so that I don’t starve on days that I don’t go to my mom’s house. I prefer cleaning, cleaning is more relaxing, more satisfying to me. Cleaning a kitchen or a bathroom is very… controllable. Bleach sitting in a bathtub for a bit before I scrub it thoroughly won’t burn when you leave it unattended.  You can’t over-mop a floor, but you can definitely oversalt a dish! So l leave the overly complicated trap-a-man cooking to my mother and sister, married 41 and 5 years respectively.

Dad’s Cold Leftover Burritos 

The one thing I did learn how to cook well and is my favorite dish of all time is costillitas (spare ribs) de puerco en salsa verde, or pork chile verde. Growing up, I looked forward to those nights that my mom would cook this delicious meal for my dad either for dinner or for his lonche. That’s the beauty of this dish, you can eat it for lunch in the form of a burrito or you can have a hot bowl of this green deliciousness along with a generous serving of white rice and beans. On days when he took pork chile verde burritos to his construction or demolition, lead and asbestos abatement job, my mom would wake up early in the morning and fill the house with intoxicating smells. Sometimes my dad wouldn’t eat all his lunch and he’d come home with one or two cold burritos in his lunch pail; I would always try to be the first to greet him so that he could hand me his lunch pail, ensuring that I’d get first dibs on one of his cold burritos. It was later in life when he let it slip that he would often stay a little hungry because he’d save a burrito for me and one for my little sister. It was completely unnecessary because my mom always made a big pot of chile verde and she could have made us 10 burritos, but he’d do it anyway because he loved how excited his little girls got over his cold leftovers

THE INGREDIENTS

Pork Chile Verde is what people call a guiso or guisado, a stew or cooked dish, usually a meat or protein of some sort cut into small pieces and slow simmered in a sauce, usually one with a bit of spicy kick. So this could be chicken in chile verde, or beef chile verde. If pork is the preferred protein, it can either be costillitas (pork ribs), spare ribs, or pork shoulder chunks. My son doesn’t like anything with bones so I make mine with pork chunks but if it were up to me, I’d make only costillitas. There is also my personal favorite, chicharrón en chile verde, made with the deep fried pork rind.  Gonzalez-Northgate Market sells this guiso which in my opinion is the 2nd best, my mom’s version obviously being the absolute best. My sister recently introduced me to pork belly chile verde. My kid sister is a total game changer!  

Tomatillos are of the nightshade family, sometimes called Mexican ground cherry or Mexican husk tomato. Tomatillos are a good source of dietary fiber, vitamin C and K. They have a husk that’s usually dry and resembles parchment paper. The fruit is green or purple with small seeds inside and they have a tart flavor. Tomatillos are native to Mexico and Central America. There is a smaller type of tomatillo called tomatillo milpero

so when mom finds a good sale, she’ll use the milpero kind instead. Some people can’t tell the difference but I can. When she makes this dish with tomatillo milpero, the sauce seems more delicate and authentic. The salsa is less acidic and if the tomatillos are roasted, it takes your dish to a whole other level! Tomatillo and tomatillo milpero can be dated as far back as 800 B.C. where excavations in the Mexican state of Puebla have shown that tomatillos were used as far back as that time.    

The way my mother roasts her ingredients is by placing a sheet of foil paper directly on her comal (smooth flat griddle) and constantly turning the whole tomatillos and other ingredients until everything is soft and has char spots here and there.

I have learned a slightly lazier (I chose to see it as a more effective, less time consuming) way of doing it, a “non-latino” or non-traditional way (my mom would call it a “gringa” habit) to reduce the cooking time as well as the possibility of burnt fingers and that is to cut the tomatillos in quarters, place them on a cookie sheet and stick it in the oven on broil for about 10-15 minutes. I take them out of the oven, turn the ingredients over a couple of times, and I put them back in the oven for another 10 minutes, depending on the amount of ingredients I am using. Sometimes I might leave them in longer or take them out sooner, this is one of those “Tu te vas fijando” situations that a lot of Latina moms like to use. This term in mom’s kitchen is like chef Roy Choi’s “Sohn Mash” flavor in the fingertips.  In her kitchen it literally translates to “you’ll observe along the way” so this is where your sense of smell, taste, and most importantly sight kick in since real measurements are almost non existent here. Pretty much if it looks like the picture above or the picture below, you’re doing alright!

The other ingredients on my roasting pan are chiles serranos, onion, and garlic. Again, this is another little trick I learned along the way. I used to add raw white onion and raw garlic to my blender just like my mom taught me, but somewhere along the way, I discovered that if you add the garlic and the onion to the baking sheet along with the tomatillos, it gives the salsa a slightly sweet and smoky taste. Just think about it, sure raw garlic will still give your food a great taste, but roasted garlic is just plain magical! And slightly caramelized onion is bound to play quite nicely with the sweet and sour taste of roasted tomatillos. 

As far as the types of chiles you use is completely up to you. You can go with jalapeno peppers which can be low to mildly spicy or you can go with serrano chiles which tend to be more on the spicier side. The great thing about a salsa verde guiso is that you can tweak it here and there to make it your own. Sometimes instead of adding cilantro and white onions to my salsa, I use roasted green onions. I do this for some of my poor, unfortunate friends who were born with an enzyme that makes cilantro taste like soap to them. I call my friends unfortunate because I love cilantro and couldn’t imagine hating the taste of it! 

Now, this next ingredient is a bit controversial for some people. My mom’s not-so-secret ingredient is a generous amount of Knorr-Suiza brand chicken bouillon. The reason why I think it is controversial is because this is a beef or pork dish so why would you add chicken bouillon? This is always a question that comes up when I teach my non-Latino friends this recipe. They ask, ‘Why not use beef or pork bouillon?” First of all, “is there such a thing as pork bouillon?” The answer is probably yes,  but I have never seen it in my mother’s, my grandmother’s or my numerous aunts’ kitchens so that’s not an option. I feel like beef bouillon just makes my food taste too salty so that is also not an option. I simply tell them what my mom told me, which is “Do you want your food to taste good or no?” Just don’t question it and add as much or as little as your batch of chile verde needs. “Tu te vas fijando.”  

It’s the most widely used ingredient in Mexican moms’ kitchens! Don’t use any other brand or you will offend your antepasados, your ancestors! Also, if you feel like your dish (chile verde or any other guiso) is missing something but you’ve already added enough salt, gradually add a bit of Knorr until it tastes just right. My Grammy taught me that!

The final ingredient in my opinion is optional and that is cumin. I am not a fan of too much cumin and cumin is one of those spices that one sprinkle too much and it overpowers your entire guiso. Too little and you can’t taste the difference. I would say to tread lightly with this spice.

TIME IT TAKES TO  COOK CHILE VERDE

Time it takes to cook this can vary by the amount you plan on cooking. When my mom makes it for the entire family, it can be a bit time consuming because you have to take the husk off of the tomatillos, pull the tails off the chiles and, the most time consuming part, cut the pork shoulder in small to medium pieces. When made with spare ribs, the carnicero (butcher) usually cuts the ribs for you so that saves time. However, pork shoulder takes less time to thoroughly cook than spare ribs. Spare ribs, you have to allow them to release all the fat and then you allow that same fat to essentially burn itself out, allowing the ribs to pretty much deep fry without adding more fat which gives them a nice, crispy outer layer while keeping the meat fall-off- the-bone tender. Sometimes when my mom is in a hurry, she cuts corners and drains the fat but that doesn’t allow for enough crispiness, in my opinion. Pork shoulder on the other hand, has less fat and will not need to cook as much, but you do have to add a little bit of fat or oil to get the browning of the meat. Once the meat is done and the salsa is well blended and added to the pot, it really only has to simmer on low to medium heat for about 15-20 minutes. Obviously the longer you allow it to simmer at low heat, the better this guiso comes out. Patience is truly a virtue with Mexican cuisine. It took hundreds of years for this recipe to be perfected, I think the man I’m trying to trap can wait a few extra minutes.

SIDE DISHES TO GO WITH PORK VERDE

Plain white rice was and continues to be a staple in my household. Especially when a guiso like this is on the menu for the day! In fact, you’re kind of expected to eat rice along with chile verde. If money was extra tight and mom only had enough to buy a small amount of meat, sometimes your plate mostly consisted of white rice generously smothered in salsa verde with like 4 or 5 chunks of meat. If money was extra, extra tight, a hearty portion of frijoles de la olla, fresh cooked beans, went a long way! And you can’t forget tortillas! I always chose flour tortillas over corn but every once in a while, when my mom would make handmade corn tortillas to go along with this savory piece of heaven, I’d make an exception and happily take my two (or more) corn tortillas!

LET’S GET STARTED!

I chose to make pork shoulder because that is the cut of meat that I had on hand. 

I used about a 3lb piece.

3lb pork shoulder (cut in small to medium chunks)

2 1lb packages of tomatillo milpero

½ of a white onion cut in quarters

4 medium to large cloves of garlic (less or more according to your preference but I recommend 2 cloves minimum)

1-1 ½ cups of cold water

7-10 Serrano peppers or about 10-15 jalapeno peppers

½ or a little less than ½ of a cilantro bunch 

½ teaspoon of oil or lard (if needed)

A pinch and 1tsp each of salt and pepper or to taste

Approx. 1 tbsp. or to taste of Knorr Chicken bullion

1/8 tsp. of cumin (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to broil setting.

Cut pork shoulder into small to medium sized pieces and season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper and set aside. 

Remove husks from tomatillos and pull the tails off of the chiles serranos. Rinse thoroughly. 

Since you’re using tomatillo milpero it isn’t necessary to cut them in quarters.

Peel garlic cloves.

Spread the tomatillos, quartered onions, garlic cloves and chiles serranos on a baking sheet and broil for 10-15 min. 

While the tomatillos broil, brown pork chunks until golden brown. Add additional teaspoon of salt and pepper to taste.

When tomatillos are done roasting, add ingredients to a blender that already has 1 cup-1 ½ cups of cold water. Note: Be very careful when using a glass blender because the hot ingredients can shatter the glass if you add them before the cold water. If possible, allow the roasted ingredients to cool down a bit before blending.  Also, be mindful of your chile amount. I would say to add a few at a time and stop when you achieve the level of heat you can tolerate. Sometimes you will use all your chiles and sometimes you might leave 4 or 5 behind. Along with tomatillos, chiles, onion and garlic, add the cilantro and blend to your heart’s content.

Once the salsa is blended, you will see that you made way too much. I don’t know how to fix this problem and neither does my mom. No matter how much I try to adjust the amounts, I always end up with way too much salsa. You can save part of the salsa for tacos or chilaquiles verdes (another one of my all-time favorite Mexican dishes!) later in the week or you can bless your other single friends so they too can have the base for their Trap-A-Man recipe. Add the salsa you are not keeping to the pork chunks, add a bit more salt, and slowly start adding the chicken bouillon. Allow it to simmer on low to medium heat for a few minutes and keep tasting to see if you need to add more salt or bouillon.

Once you achieve the level of yummy worthy of the praise of our Aztec ancestors, serve your man and watch him fall madly in love with your cooking.  I’ve yet to find the gentleman worthy of being served my very own trap-a-man recipe but if it worked for my mother and sister, it will work for me and you, dear reader. 

Works Cited

Choi, R., Nguyen, T., & Phan, N. (2013). L.A. son my life, my city, my food. New York, NY, NY: Ecco.

Young-jin, K. (2014, December 14). A chef’s dramatic LA journey. Retrieved March 07, 2020, from https://www.pressreader.com/korea-republic/the-korea-times/20131214/281964605531660

Unknown. (2018, December). Milpero Tomatillos. Information, Recipes and Facts. Retrieved March 07, 2020, from https://specialtyproduce.com/produce/milpero_tomatillos_8674.php

As I sat at the table surrounded by family members, I stared at the bowl full of hot stew in front of me. I looked around and could see adult family members enjoying this soup that was new and strange for me. As a kid, I was convinced it was one of those foods that only adults enjoy. My mom encouraged me to try it and with a deep breath, I grabbed my spoon and filled tiny drops of this broth. It wasn’t enough to get the full taste so I took another sip, this time filling the spoon. Instantly and unexpectedly, this dish named pozole had just become my favorite.

A bowl of prepared red pozole.

The fact that it was a popular dish in our Mexican culture had me confused as to why it took seven years for my mother to introduce this dish to me. I even felt a little resentment that I was not told about it a lot sooner. From then on, I had pozole as many times I could with the belief that I would be making up for all the times I missed out on it. My mom then started making it on my birthdays and soon, it became a necessary tradition for me to celebrate each year. My most memorable birthday with pozole was when I turned 15. It was a rainy day in February during my freshman year in high school as I walked home from school cold and soaking wet. I tried my best not to allow the weather to literally “rain on my parade”. As I opened the front door to my house, my cousin stood in front of me holding pink and purple balloons as I heard my mom and friends yell, “Happy birthday!” The smell of pozole instantly filled my nose and convinced me my birthday was in fact, not ruined at all.

From then on, whenever the topic of pozole was brought up between me and my friends, I would argue that my mother’s pozole was the best and that no one could top hers. Of course, my friends felt the same about their mother’s pozole and would argue the same. To settle this debate once and for all, I would invite my friends over for pozole whenever my mom made it. My friends would always ask, “What’s the special occasion?” since pozole is usually known to be served during celebrations but at this point, my mom was making it “just because”.

Once, I attended a friend’s birthday party where pozole was served. People around me saw that I was hesitant to try it as I only trusted my mom’s pozole. They tried convincing me it was delicious. To my disappointment, it wasn’t as great as my mother’s but I held back from arguing to avoid being rude and so I politely agreed. Ever since I have not tried other people’s pozole except for my mother’s. There was an exception though when my boss had someone make all the employees pozole as a gesture of gratitude during the week of Christmas. As much as I hate to admit, that pozole was better than my mother’s that I did not bother telling anyone that this pozole was better. This pozole was different though: it was green as opposed to my mother’s whose dish was red because of the sauce she used. I was amazed that there were other kinds of pozole! This green version of my favorite dish instantly took me back to 1^st grade when I had just finished reading Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham.” I had begged and convinced my mom to make me green eggs and ham at the time. Unfortunately, she can’t make me green pozole since she doesn’t know how to cook it.

Green pozole.

Although pozole is a popular Mexican dish served on special occasions, people still enjoy it on any typical day. If you’re lucky enough, you may even have a Mexican restaurant nearby that serves pozole freshly made on weekends. Usually Sundays after church many Mexican families go out to eat it. Sundays also became the time of the week that my aunts, uncles, and cousins would go over my Abuelita’s house to enjoy a bowl. I would wake up to the smell of pozole as it filled the house with its scrumptious scent. The smell was the best thing to wake up to.

The table was covered and full of napkins, soda, bowls, cups, tostadas, condiments, and of course, loved ones. It always seemed that we did not have enough chairs for everyone because of how crowded it was with family members. So, when one person was done eating, he or she would offer their seat to someone who was standing. Usually, the kids would sit at the same table in order to allow the adults to sit together and chat away. Even little cousins who were picky eaters liked pozole and would always ask for seconds. Our neighbors from different races and ethnicities would enjoy it as well. Every time pozole was made, we would invite them over or send some their way.

Table with pozole and garnishes.

As I got older, I realized soon my mom would not be able to cook pozole when she got as old as my grandmother who couldn’t cook pozole at her current age. I never learned to cook, not even my favorite dish. I was worried that my family’s recipe would be gone if I didn’t learn. So, at Christmas of 2019, I learned how to make my very first dish. It was easier than I thought but my mother made it difficult with her style of teaching. You see, most Mexican mothers do not use measurements when cooking. When explaining how to make something, they will always say to just “tanteale” which means to put however much of an ingredient you think is needed to cook the dish well. My mother explained to me that “you just feel it”. Since I never cooked in my 27 years of life, it was hard to sense when enough was enough but I managed to pull through. I was proud of myself for making a decent pozole that tasted very similar to my mom’s. I also felt relief knowing that I got the recipe down to pass down to our family’s future generations.

The History of Pozole (Warning: Not for the Weak Hearted)

The only thing I knew about pozole was its delicious taste, but I learned that there is more to it than just that. The term pozole comes from Nahuatl words such as pozole, pozolli or pasole. These words mean foam and it refers to the foam that is made when cooking pozole. In pre-colonial times, Aztecs were one of the many indigenous people of Mesoamerica that cooked pozole. Just like today, the Aztecs cooked pozole to celebrate special occasions such as a celebration for their god, Xipe Totec, who is said to have fed his first people with his own flesh. Because of this, Aztecs included a very unique ingredient in their pozole: human meat! Prisoners and slaves were sacrificed to obtain their flesh. When Spanish conquistadores arrived, they did not allow the practice of their cannibalistic rituals, so the Aztecs started substituting their human meat for pork or Xoloitzcuintles meat, a famous Mexican dog (sounds a little bit better than human meat, right?). Ok, but let’s not let these historic details keep us from enjoying a bowl of my mom’s pozole. Below is her recipe, human-meat free (insert sigh of relief here).

Ingredients

 Go to your nearest grocery store and get:

• 1 can of white hominy
• 2 lbs. of pork neck bone
• 2 lbs. of pork shoulder chunks
• 15 California chili pods
• 1 head of garlic
• 2 large onion
• Salt
• Radish
• Lemons
• Bag of tostadas

Recommend popular hominy that is commonly used in pozole.

Chili Sauce

First, you’ll need to make the chili sauce. My mom likes to make red pozole so this red sauce will help do just that. Devein the California chili pods. You can do this by using a knife to cut down the middle and scoop out the seeds using a spoon. Next, you’ll want to rinse the chili pods and soak them in hot water. Make sure to use enough water to cover all chili pods. Once they become soft, blend the chili pods in a blender with the garlic and 1 chopped onion.

Pozole

Fill a pot with 1/3 of water and bring water to a boil. While you’re waiting for the water to boil, rinse all of the pork meat and hominy. Add chili sauce, meat, and hominy once the water is ready. Don’t forget to add salt, (“tanteale”) and put as much salt as you’d like to achieve your desired flavor. Leave the stove on High and cook for 2-3 hours. Cut radish, cabbage, onion, and lemons and add to your bowl of pozole. Top off pieces of tostada with pozole if desired. Enjoy the smell of pozole as it fills your home.

Tostadas, cabbage, radish, and lime.

Prepare to join the debate of who’s pozole is better.

References:

Berkman, J. (n.d.). What Is Pozole? How to Make Delicious Mexican Corn Soup. Retrieved from https://blog.prepscholar.com/pozole-recipes

Cocking, L. (2017, February 28). A Brief History of Pozole, Mexico’s Take on Traditional Stew. Retrieved from https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/a-brief-history-of-pozole-mexicos-take-on-traditional-stew/

Lopez-McHugh, N. (2012, May 21). Mexico On My Plate: Red Pozole and Its History. Retrieved from https://honestcooking.com/mexico-on-my-plate-red-pozole-and-its-history/

Mazatlan Post. (2018, July 17). Dark origin of pozole an emblematic Mexican dish. Retrieved from https://themazatlanpost.com/2018/07/16/dark-origin-of-pozole-a-emblematic-mexican-dish/

The sacred, religious, and cannibalistic origins of pozole. (2019, September 9). Retrieved from https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english/sacred-religious-and-cannibalistic-origins-pozole

The Chocotorta is a very decadent and delicious Argentine chocolate cake dessert that is served during special occasions, birthdays and parties.  The Chocotorta, which is very similar to the Italian Tiramisu, was created sometime in the 1980s by Marité Mabragaña.  Ms.  Mabragaña, an advertising executive, is credited with coming up with the idea for the Chocotorta recipe so that she could combine two of her accounts, Mendizábal, makers of Mendicrim cream cheese, and Bagley, the makers of Chocolinas chocolate cookies, in one commercial.  The Mendizábal and Bagdley accounts were skeptical of the idea at first but were eventually able to be convinced by Ms. Mabragaña to join forces.  The idea

worked better than they had expected, turning the silky Chocotorta into one of the most beloved desserts.  Additionally, Ms. Mabragaña has also been credited with coming up with the concept of cobranding in Argentina.

Even though the Chocotorta has not been around for as long as other better-known desserts, I feel like I have been eating the Chocotorta for as long as I can remember.  I have eaten many versions of the cake but the one I always remember the most is the one my mother would make for us when I was a young child.  It was this silky, chocolatey, dulce de lechey party on my mouth.

My Mother

My mother is an amazing baker.  She makes really beautiful and elaborate cakes.  Family and friends are always asking her to make them cakes for all sorts of special occasions.  The interesting thing is that out of all of her awesome cakes, I always want her to make the very simple Chocotorta.   My mother would make the Chocotorta, and various versions of the dessert, for birthdays, holidays and many other festive occasions.  I have many wonderful memories of her mixing up the dulce de leche with the cream cheese in our small kitchen in Buenos Aires.  I would eagerly await to be able to lick the spoon and the mixing bowl after she was finished lathering the frosting on the cake.

            I reached out to my mom to discuss making this cake for my class project as well as ask for her help in putting this recipe together.  She found it interesting that, out of all of the different recipes that I could have chosen to make for this assignment, I would choose to make the Chocotorta.  This very simple, no bake cake is the one thing that takes me back to being a child, eagerly hanging around the kitchen waiting for my mother to allow to finally lick the spoon and mixing bowl.

My version of the Chocotorta did not come out as pretty and delicious as the ones my mother used to make.  I think it’s going to take some time for me to perfect the recipe and have it taste as good as my mother’s cake.  Maybe I’ll never make it as good as her and I am truly okay with that.  The upside is that I will keep eating my mother’s Chocotorta as long as she keeps making it.  I will also continue to shamelessly keep calling first dibs on that spoon and mixing bowl.

So, What Goes In The Chocotorta?

            Now that I have gotten your attention about how delicious this dessert is, I will discuss the ingredients that go in to the Chocotorta.  In order to have as many of the original items for the cake, I drove to an Argentinian market located in the City of Redondo Beach.  I was able to find the chocolate cookies, Chocolinas, and the dulce de leche made by the brand La Serenisima.  La Serenisima is my preferred brand of dulce de leche and so I was very happy that they carried this brand.  Unfortunately, the cream cheese made by the brand Mendicrim is no longer available, so I settled for the Lucerne brand.

For my version of the Chocotorta, I mix Kahlua in to the cups of coffee used to moisten the cookies.  This gives it an extra something that was not there in the original recipe.  I also sprinkle ground espresso beans in between the layers in order to balance out the sweetness from the dulce de leche.

Ingredients

1. 16 oz. dulce de leche (La Serenisima)
2. 16 oz. cream cheese
3. 18 oz. chocolate cookies (Chocolinas)
4. 2 cup freshly brewed coffee/espresso
5. 1/4 cup of Kahlua

For garnishing

1. grounded espresso

Dulce de Leche

The most important ingredient of the Chocotorta is the dulce de leche.  Without this ingredient, you are unable to have a proper Chocotorta.  My preferred brand of dulce de leche is La Serenisima.  I was able to locate this item from an Argentine market located in the City of Redondo Beach.

Mendicrim

The original recipe called for Mendicrim.  Mendicrim is a type of cream cheese that was made by The Mendizabal Company.   Mendizabal is no longer in operation.  The original recipe was purchased by the SanCor Company.  Sancor currently sells a similar version of the product.

For my recipe, I was unable to obtain Mendidrin, so I utilized the Lucerne brand of cream cheese.  The Lucerne cream cheese worked very well with the La Serenisima dulce de leche.  I was able to locate this item at an Argentine market located in the City of Redondo Beach.

Chocolinas

Chocolinas are simple chocolate cookies from Argentina. The cookies are not very great on their own. The cookies are chalky, dry, and leave crumbs everywhere; however, they are the perfect cookie for this recipe.  I was able to locate this item at an Argentine market located in the City of Redondo Beach.

Coffee

Coffee is also another very important part of this recipe.  It helps balance out the sweetness of the dulce de leche.  The coffee is utilized to moisten the Chocolinas before layering them into the pan.  You also use the coffee grounds in between the layers of the Chocotorta.  You are able to purchase this coffee at most supermarkets.

Kahlua

The original recipe did not include Kahlua; however, mine does.  The Kahlua gives it an extra something.  It makes the cake taste extra delicious.  This item is available at most supermarkets.

Directions

Chocotorta is incredibly simple to make. The only ingredients needed are dulce de leche, cream cheese, chocolate biscuits, Kahlua, coffee and a sprinkling of ground espresso.  Different versions of Chocotorta can be created, some use chocolate milk instead of coffee, others prefer to use heavy whipping cream, while others have their own favorite cookies to use.

Instructions

1. First, the dulce de Leche (I personally prefer La Serenisima) is mixed with the cream cheese in equal parts (I used 16 oz of each for this recipe) in a large bowl.  I would recommend using an electric mixer until smooth. Make sure that the mixture is not lumpy. Put the frosting aside once you finish mixing.
2. In a small bowl, mix the coffee with the Kahlua.
3. The chocolate biscuits are then soaked in the coffee/Kahlua mix.
4. Once the chocolate cookies are fully soaked, arrange them in a rectangular mold, forming a single layer, covering the entire surface of the mold.
5. Next comes a layer of the dulce de leche/cream cheese combination.  Make sure to slather it onto the layer of chocolate biscuits.  Spread evenly with a spatula.
6. Arrange another layer of the moist chocolate cookies.
7. Add more of the dulce de leche spread.
8. Make sure to sprinkle some of the ground espresso in between the layers.
9. You should repeat this process until it reaches your preferred height.
10. For garnishing, sprinkle the ground espresso over the last layer of dulce de leche.
11. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate overnight. It is really important to refrigerate for at least 8 hours.  The Chocotorta needs to set in the fridge in order for the layers to merge.

Notes

1. You can substitute the coffee mix for chocolate milk, especially if you are preparing it for children.

After waiting for what seems like an eternity (8 hours), you may take the cake out of the refrigerator and cut yourself a slice of heaven.  You can enjoy your piece of Chocotorta with a glass of milk, or as I do, a nice cup of espresso.

References:

An Argentinian Classic: Chocotorta. (2015). Retrieved from https://www.elebaires.com/an-argentinian-classic-chocatorta/

Chocotorta. (n.d.).  Retrieved from https://www.tasteatlas.com/chocotorta

Chocotorta. (n.d.).  Retrieved from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocotorta

Chocolinas? Forgettable: Chocotorta? Extraordinary. (2019).  Retrieved from https://heated.medium.com/chocolinas-forgettable-chocotorta-extraordinary-c2a0b79242fd

Chocotorta – The Real Argentine Dessert. (2016).  Retrieved from https://vamospanish.com/discover/chocotorta-the-real-argentine-dessert/

A Little Sauce History
Whether it’s pasta with red, white or butter sauce, I think everyone will agree that Italian is a good old-fashioned comfort food! There are a couple names given to spaghetti sauce; Italians with roots straight from Italy call spaghetti sauce; ragù, sugo and salsa.  American Italians from the East Coast call it “gravy” as discussed in Lorraine Ranalli’s book, Gravy Wars: South Philly Foods, Feuds & Attytudes.  One thing is for sure, that Italians don’t have word or use “gravy” in Italian.  Italians only say salsa, or ragù or sugo, which mean “sauce,” regardless if it contains meat or not.

The differences:

Ragù implies that the sauce was reduced, i.e. the flavors are concentrated, and the ingredients are usually cooked for a long time. The resulting sauce is used to dress pasta, fregola, polenta, rice.  The Italian expression ‘ragú’ is derived from the French ‘ragout’-it is a thick stew of meat, poultry or fish with or without vegetables.

Sugo is often used interchangeably with ‘ragú’- different regions of Italy prefer one term above the other, but generally a ragú is cooked on low heat for a long time and the flavors are concentrated.

Photo by C.Gonzalez

Salsa or Pomodoro Salsa is an alternative to a long cooking sauce.  This simple type of spaghetti sauce is made with very few ingredients; fresh tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, onion, and fresh herbs (such as basil, oregano, and parsley) with a pinch of salt and pepper.  There is no meat or vegetables are added to this sauce.  This is an easy, fragrant and perfect summer sauce poured over any pasta.

Fettuccini Alfredo sauce is a big Italian myth along with its most famous use in Fettuccini noodle. The name “Alfredo sauce” is almost completely absent in Italy.  However, there are plenty of pasta sauces which are similarly based on the combination of butter and Parmigiano that are known as “al burro” with butter. In Rome, egg noodles with butter and Parmigiano are often called “alla Romana”, Roman style.

Did you know…

• A little history behind Fettuccini Alfredo is a bit of a mixed legend. In 1914, Alfredo di Lelio, a Roman restaurateur who was popular among American tourists, named his butter and cheese linguine after himself. According to the legend, the dish caught the attention of early Hollywood actors Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, who were in Rome for their honeymoon. When they returned to the US, the actors introduced the dish to their Hollywood friends, making it famous. In 1943 Alfredo di Lelio sold his restaurant, but the new owner kept the menu and is still in business under the name “Alfredo alla Scrofa“. In 1950, Alfredo di Lelio and his son opened a new restaurant in a different location and called it “Il vero Alfredo“, the real Alfredo, which is now managed by Alfredo’s nephews. Both restaurants are popular with North American tourists that want to taste the original Alfredo recipe. Besides these two restaurants, in Italy, “Alfredo” is just a first name (Alfred).
• Spaghetti with meatballs is an American invention. Yes, that right, only American Italians eat their spaghetti and meatballs.  If you ever get the opportunity to visit Italy, NEVER ask for spaghetti and meat balls. Spaghetti and meatballs are practically non-existent in Italy, instead, meatballs are eaten together with a side dish of  some type of vegetable or salad on their own.  There are  many variations of meatballs or as the Italian call them ‘polpette’, are found almost everywhere in the Italy. As the Italians assimilated into the American culture, they also began to switch to a large single course (as opposed to multiple smaller courses). This resulted in the combination of spaghetti and meatballs in a rich tomato sauce, which turned into the iconic dish we all know today; spaghetti and meatballs.
• When it comes to cuisine, Italians take things quite seriously. The main meal of the day occurs at lunch, also known as il pranzo, or ‘the lunch’. This mean starts with antipasti, commonly referred to as appetizers in America. Antipasti consists of hors d’oeuvres such as olives, cheese, and salami. The first course, il primo, follows with delights such as pasta, or minestrone; a type of soup. Afterwards, il secondo, and the main course, arrives. Meat, fish, and a vegetable-dominated salad are served during this period. To conclude the overall meal, fruit, dessert, and espresso are served.

My story

I grew up on the Eastside of  Los Angeles with my big Italian family.  Most of our family lived within a block and a half radius from each other.  As I grew into a young girl, I hung out in the kitchen with my mom, aunts, and grandmother; where life was shared, and recipes were passed down over the years.  Understanding who we are and where we came from is important in how we pass down those special traditional dishes.  My sisters’ brother, and I are first generation born here in the United States.  My grandparents and my parents, and their siblings were all born back in Italy.  At times it felt like a little Italy when were all got together, which was all the time.

The one dish I loved the most was my grandma Nani’s pasta with red sauce.  This was our family favorite dish and still is.  We all knew when she was cooking her sauce because we could smell it while we all played outside.  The smell of simmering spaghetti sauce still takes me back to the great days of when we would all run it and fight for a seat about the table to eat her pasta with meatballs. Tutti a tavolo (everyone to the table)! Is something my grandma and mom call out when our meal was ready.

But, aside from my family, our neighborhood, especially on my block; there were families of various nationalities; Polish, Japanese, German, but majority were Mexican.  I loved growing up and hanging out at each other’s houses.  That’s how I was introduced to spicy Mexican food.  I love the heat of the spicy peppers.

When I got married and had a family of my own, I learned how to make my mother’s spaghetti sauce.  I wanted them to enjoy that rich flavorful taste that I grew up with and loved.  As the years passed the recipe took on a new tradition; my new tradition.  I tried to stay as close to their recipe as possible but growing up on the Eastside of Los Angeles my taste for spicy foods became a part of my life which extended into my cooking the kitchen.  Not only did my taste change my life did as well.  When my household went from a two-parent household to a one parent household, which meant I had to cut down on meal preparation time to cooked meals for my kids.  As a single working mom, with two kids, homemade spaghetti sauce and meatballs from scratch was a very time-consuming process and I had to restructure and prioritize my time.  I found that some canned tomato sauces had good flavor and began to use them in my sauce.  One weekend was making my sauce and did not have enough canned diced tomatoes so I decided to substitute one can with RO*TEL green chilies. My kids also like spicy food so this was a bit of an experiment as I did not know how my kids would react to this little surprise.  I served it to my kids, and they loved it.  Now, I know it would have to pass the “mom” test.  I invited my mom over to sample my “new and improved” sauce, and much to my surprise my mom loved it.  As a matter of fact, my mom and sister use my recipe when they make their Sunday dinners or when we have our family get together, they always ask me to bring the pasta with my sauce.  Maybe this easy recipe will inspire you to create your own new traditions.

Ingredients

1 – 24 oz. can Del Monte  or Hunt’s Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce

1 – 14 oz. can Del Monte Diced Tomatoes with Basil, Garlic & Oregano

1 – 10 oz. can RO*TEL Original Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilies

6-10 large leaves of fresh basil, torn, or 1 Tbsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried oregano or Italian seasoning (optional)

Salt and pepper to taste (optional)

10 – 12 Meatballs (Costco or any type of cooked meat)

1 lb. pasta or spaghetti

Grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese

Directions

1. 

   Photo by C.Gonzalez

   In a medium/large saucepan pour in the canned pasta sauce, diced tomatoes, and the RO*TEL green chilies, Basil or you favorite Italian spices, and simmer on a medium heat.

   At this point you can add in the meatballs or half cooked sausage (I usually partially cook them in the microwave to cut down on the cook time) into the simmering tomato sauce for 30 – 40 mins.  Until the meats are completely cooked.

2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta in the boiling water, stirring occasionally, until cooked through but firm to the bite, according to the direction on the package. Drain.
3. Stir tomato mixture into pasta and season with salt and pepper. Toss warm pasta with Grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese to taste cheese in a large bowl.

The nutritional benefits of spaghetti sauce:

Photographer unknown

If you’re like me and don’t have a lot of time and the inclination of how to make your own pasta sauce there are some types of canned pasta sauce are relatively healthy.  Check the fat, sugar, sodium and calorie contents on the nutrition facts label to find the healthiest variety of the type of sauce you are considering.  Red sauces are low in saturated fat and all offer plenty of vitamins A and C and lycopene, an antioxidant. Adding extras such as cheese, meats, and cream add calories, salt and saturated fat.  Look at the daily value percentages too. A daily value (DV) of 15 per cent or more for vitamins A and C mean that one serving is a good source of those nutrients.

One last tip: Although nutrition information typically provided for 1/2 cup of pasta sauce, most people pour at least one cup on their noodles. So you’ll need to double the numbers.

References:

Author, Speaker, Voice-over. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://lorraineranalli.com/

Bowen, D. (n.d.). Ragù Around Italy. Retrieved from https://www.saveur.com/article/Kitchen/Ragu-Around-Italy/

Duggan, T. (2012, January 20). SEDUCED BY SUGO / Long-cooked Italian sauces captivate chefs and diners. Retrieved from https://www.sfgate.com/recipes/article/SEDUCED-BY-SUGO-Long-cooked-Italian-sauces-2647395.php

Blair, Blair, Wallace, W., Finkle, J., Sullivan, R., Sheila, … Chelsea C. (2019, May 27). 5-Ingredient Pasta Pomodoro Sauce. Retrieved from https://www.theseasonedmom.com/5-ingredient-pasta-pomodoro-sauce/

Ristorante di Roma – Alfredo alla Scrofa. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.alfredoallascrofa.com/chi-siamo

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