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egFoodblog: EatNopales


EatNopales

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It is Gravenstein apple season here in Sonoma County, and we harvested a bucket from my daughter's pre-school.

It also happens to be Sunday which is Pancake day at our house. When we think of food traditions in other countries we often have the tendency to reduce them to endemic dishes as much as possible.. but modern national cultures are highly porous. We think of French cuisine as being something deep rooted & unique but many of its dishes were heavily borrowed from Florentine & Ottoman cooking and wasn't that long ago.

Pancakes.. almost universally called Hot Cakes (pronounces Haute Kays... Mexicans have a hard time with hard consonants at end of words) have been in Mexico for a long time now (there were on the menu at Sanborn's during the roaring 20's), they are a common breakfast item, and I can guarantee most young Mexicans would not know their origin is anything other than Mexican. Further, there are now Mexicanized pancakes such as the classic Hotcakes with Cajeta, with Honey & Bananas, with Condensed Milk, with Spiced Piloncillo Syrup, with Guava Rolls & Jocoque, with Natas (Clotted Cream) etc.,

Today in Mexico you can get Hotcakes from Street Vendors... of course not all as accomplished as this pancake stylist at the Coyoacan Saturday morning market:

My parents made hotcakes at least once a week and now I am continuing this trans-border tradition. Although not a stylist like the guy in the video, I did invent (as far as I know) a style of pancake specifically for my wife who wanted something between a fluffy pancake & a crepe.. something eggy but not as eggy as crepes that could hold chocolate chips in the center.. but at the same time thin enough that she could roll after a sprinkle of sugar, or jam etc.,

So for breakfast I made sauteed Gravensteins with Cajeta.. and our house Pancrepes... unfortunately I am rushing around so I didn't get a pic of the fully plated breakfast, just the left overs.

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I will post a recipe later (this is one of the few things I am a recipe slave on... baked stuff as well).

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I don't think I've ever made a meatloaf probably because of unpleasant childhood memories. You have inspired me to move on.

Happy Anniversary to you both. Are there deep-rooted cunilary traditions from Mexico we can look forward to?

Thanks and yes it will be a Mex centric dinner

Is this where the frog legs come in?

Peter Gamble aka "Peter the eater"

I just made a cornish game hen with chestnut stuffing. . .

Would you believe a pigeon stuffed with spam? . . .

Would you believe a rat filled with cough drops?

Moe Sizlack

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I don't think I've ever made a meatloaf probably because of unpleasant childhood memories. You have inspired me to move on.

Happy Anniversary to you both. Are there deep-rooted cunilary traditions from Mexico we can look forward to?

Thanks and yes it will be a Mex centric dinner

Is this where the frog legs come in?

Funny that you would ask that... Frog Legs are either the most or 2nd most traditional & iconic protein used in tonight's main dish.

Kalypso... since you know you can figure it out please don't give up the dish :unsure:

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For lunch I have two things to post...

Our Summer Sunday tradition is to walk over to Oliver's pick up some smoked baby back ribs (which the kids adore as much as we do), some Corn on the Cob, a little local French bread, seasonal fruit... lunch!

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Today's fruit was Canary melons... oh yeah I am saving the seeds for a future preparation :wink:

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However with leftover Sopa de Milpa in the fridge, i couldn't let the opportunity pass to make Salpicon. One of the most frequently consumed dishes in Mexico that is almostly completely unknown north of the border... is really a technique for leftovers with a huge variety of different versions.

Basically, you take any leftover that would not be that good reheated, chop it up to bite size pieces (the name Salpicon means a whole lot of chopped stuff), then macerate with lime juice (or other citrus or vinaigrette), onions & herbs (cilantro, marjoram, mint, tarragon, parsley, epazote, papaloquelite are the most common).. once the flavors have penetrated your leftovers you can toss them with a wide range of fresh vegetables... lettuces, radishes, tomatos, avocado slice etc.,

Here is my Salpicon from the leftover Sopa de Milpa & Meatloaf:

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And speaking of Sopa de Milpa leftovers... the Corn on the Cob? Those of you who have purchased an Elote Preparado from a street vendor know the magic of slathering Mayo, Butter, Cotija / Parmesan, Chile Powder & Key Lime Juice on Corn. For those who've never had it... try it... the flavor combination is really great on a wide range of blanched or roasted vegetables... I use it on Fennel when corn is not in season.

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Edited by EatNopales (log)
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Good looking ribs and nicely charred corn. Looking forward to the next life of the melon seeds.

I noticed a pureed style sauce much earlier on the pork chop plate, and now on the rib plate. Do you make/keep a variety of hot sauces?

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I don't think I've ever made a meatloaf probably because of unpleasant childhood memories. You have inspired me to move on.

Happy Anniversary to you both. Are there deep-rooted cunilary traditions from Mexico we can look forward to?

Thanks and yes it will be a Mex centric dinner

Is this where the frog legs come in?

Funny that you would ask that... Frog Legs are either the most or 2nd most traditional & iconic protein used in tonight's main dish.

Kalypso... since you know you can figure it out please don't give up the dish :unsure:

My lips are totally sealed. This is your blog not mine and I am not going to hijack it. (Although I will tell you that the Oaxaca Old Fashioned mentioned up thread is very good and worth trying. But that's it, this is your week to do your thing)

But, you are hitting all high notes here. Loved the Coyoacan street vendor, well actually I love most street vendors, but this guy was really fun to watch. And Salpicon, so glad you mentioned that, such a practical way to use up leftovers. And the corn...love it...corn, chile, lime, cotija, what's not to love :laugh:

Edited by kalypso (log)
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Good looking ribs and nicely charred corn. Looking forward to the next life of the melon seeds.

I noticed a pureed style sauce much earlier on the pork chop plate, and now on the rib plate. Do you make/keep a variety of hot sauces?

Yes, that is a reduced Chipotle version of A la Diabla (which you probably see a lot of in restaurants in L.A. i.e., Camarones a la Diabla etc.,). A la Diabla is typically whole garlic cloves & crustacean shells slow cooked in butter... they are removed, pureed Arbol or Chiletepin chiles are added and cooked down into a smooth sauce that thickens with the "gel" given off by garlic & shellfish shells. There may be a dash of Worcestire (commonly used in Mexico)... but not much more.. it is a divine sauce. The version above will keep for months in the fridge.

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EN, fascinating blog, I'm really enjoying it. A question about Oliver's markets: do all three have grills and serve up cooked ribs and corn? I've never been. When we go to Dillon Beach (as we will be this month) we usually take our own food up but use Petaluma for supplemental shopping; by default that means Petaluma market, partly because we can pop in on my SIL, who works two doors down. But Oliver's sounds intriguing, and Cotati isn't too far out of the way.

Could you elaborate on the elote preparado? Do you make your own with takeaway grilled corn or does Oliver's do the whole number to go?

One more question: do you make your own cajeta or do you buy the stuff in the plastic bottle? If you can get your hands on fresh corn ice cream, cajeta and a bit of salt makes an amazing topping!

And of course, happy anniv.

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Alright dinner pics are here! Thank you Kalypso, Linda & everyone for the warm wishes, and also for your questions... I will address them and pontificate some tomorrow.

Horchata de Melon Canario (remember those seeds?)

The kids enjoyed the Horchata as is... I improvised a take on the regional Cabo cocktail of choice which is Cantaloupe juice, Tequila, Damiana Liqueur & Squeeze of Lime... I went Horchata de Melon, Tequila, Meyer Lemon, Clover Honey... probably wouldn't win any awards but it was light, refreshing, tasty & not intrusive to the food that would follow.

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Garbanzos al Vapor

A classic appetizer currenly in high season throughout Central Mexico... best way to describe them is a much better version of Edamame (at least compared to the typical waterlogged Edamame you get in Sushi joints around California)

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Xitomate Criollo over Nopal Asado with a dollop of Guacamole Verde (It is the tail end of the Nopales season and the paddles weren't perfect but I had to honor my handle... besides it is one of the most delicious salads you will ever taste).

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Pan Seared Duck Breast, Mole Verde, Tamal de Elote

(Muscovy Duck & Turkey were the two primary domesticated proteins in Pre-Hispanic Mexico... one of my favorite places in the world is the area west of Mexico City.. Valle de Bravo etc.,... the town of Almoloya del Rio is situated on the Rio Lerma watershed that was famous even in Aztec times for its duck & today is a primary purveyor of ducks to Mexico City markets. Pato en Mole Verde served with an Avocado Leaf scented Tamal is not only my favorite Mexican dish of all... but is also the most iconic, traditional & special dish to that region which is deep in my heart. P.S. As I alluded earlier... Frog Legs in Mole Verde is the more common & iconic way to consume Mole Verde in the river & lakes regions around Mexico City but I couldn't find Frog Legs around town... other versions are made with Trout, Quail & other game birds).

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store bought Chocolate Dipped Coconut Paleta

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That duck is beautiful and I love the nopales. I've heard from my Mexican friends about the numerous recipes for duck and turkey in the regions where sheep and cattle are not as plentiful.

I remember when I was in Chiapas that we were strongly urged to shoot all the ducks and turkeys we wished because those non-domesticated fowl were so damaging to the local farmer's crops. The turkeys we found were different from the wild turkeys in the area where I was raised and were much more agile flyers.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Aha, fresh chickpeas! In India they are probably most often roasted and salted and eaten as a snack. You buy them from a street vendor and they will still be in their little green jacket. Best thing to do is sit outside your house with some friends and peel and eat them at leisure. I think the season for them is January, February or something like that. That's when I've had them anyway.

Having said that my Dad, living in the UK, is growing some kala chana (small, dark Indian chickpea) that I started to sprout and promptly forgot about. They are doing quite well, as seen in the following pic, so I guess the season varies by country and climate!

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In your picture it looks like they are slightly damp so have you steamed or boiled them?

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Lovely pictures and a fascinating and informative blog this week. I was particularly glad to come across the discussion of jocoque. I had come across a recipe on MexConnect some time ago calling for it that I wanted to try but have never found it in local mercados, carnicerias, etc. I am looking forward to the rest of the week.

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