Cinco de Mayo...What will you make??

[heidih]

Odd day . 6pm . no fireworks at all. As poppy as I will get is popcorn

[lindag]

So, along with my margaritas I’m making a ham and Swiss quiche.  Not Mexican but it’s what I have on hand.

[blue_dolphin]

Amá’s Margarita from Josef Centeno’s cookbook, Amá, with the Cascabel Pimento Cheese from the same book.

I'm not the biggest fan of the salt + Amá spice mix rim but I'll try anything once and it was a great margarita.  I'm out of agave nectar so I used piloncillo simple syrup, dialed it back to 1/4 oz. 

 
This stuff is absolutely a hybrid between pimento cheese (from my limited Yankee/SoCal perspective) and the Tex-Mex flavors in Amá

[Smithy]

We're Philistines (forgive the cross-cultural reference) when it comes to excuses for holidays. Nonetheless, I visited the local butcher shop and found their chicken, prepped for fajitas. It took some fine-tuning (finer chopping; more vegetables, juice and sauce) to satisfy me, but for party food that turned into party-for-two-food it wasn't bad.

 

 

We'll ignore the tortillas for any leftovers. Rice will be grand. A microwave and spoon may suffice.

 

[heidih]

I can not see or hear the term "fajitas" without flashbacks to the 80's That really hot sizzling cast iron skillet set before a diner. This link to a popular chain sums it up well. My aversion to bell peppers allowed me to smell it but please no, Not a poor concept - just my goofiness. and flour tortillas were/are the norm. If I had a choice pre-shutdown I'd have selected Casablanca - the fresh flour tortillas, salsa  and calamari - I drool.. 

https://acapulcos.net/how-to-make-fajitas-home/

https://www.thrillist.com/eat/los-angeles/casablanca-restaurant-venice-a-history

Edited May 6, 2020 by heidih (log)

[Smithy]

16 hours ago, heidih said:

I can not see or hear the term "fajitas" without flashbacks to the 80's That really hot sizzling cast iron skillet set before a diner. This link to a popular chain sums it up well. My aversion to bell peppers allowed me to smell it but please no, Not a poor concept - just my goofiness. and flour tortillas were/are the norm. If I had a choice pre-shutdown I'd have selected Casablanca - the fresh flour tortillas, salsa  and calamari - I drool.. 

https://acapulcos.net/how-to-make-fajitas-home/

https://www.thrillist.com/eat/los-angeles/casablanca-restaurant-venice-a-history

 

 

Those are some great links. I didn't know the source of the word "fajita" so I learned something, and the Acapulco web site looks very informative. Casablanca looks like it would have been a lot of fun. Another restaurant I never had the pleasure of knowing, because I'd moved away by the time it opened.

[David Ross]

What's on your menu for Cinco de Mayo this year?

[heidih]

I had the hilarious conversation at grocery store the other day. Man South Asian is asked by Caucasian female partner what Cinco de Mayo  is. Unable to keep my mouth shut I said it was called MX Independence day but is really more of a fake drinking holiday like St. Pats.  Avocados and tortilla chips on sale along with beer & tequila. 

[Darienne]

On 5/4/2020 at 9:50 PM, Darienne said:

Not exactly traditional but we'll have Chile Relleno Casserole with sour cream made following the instructions on Bigger Bolder Baking.   And black beans from a can.  It will have to suffice.  Also the day our female Rottie turns 11...the longest lived Rottie we've ever had...and the 9th celebration since I fell backwards over our male Rottie, Morgan, and split open my head having to spend the entire night at ER waiting to see a doctor.  Hoping for a quiet celebrations.  

Upgrade it all by one year.  Kyra, our longest living Spoiled-Rotten Weiler, turns 12 which is really quite old for a Rottie, and it's 10 years since I split open my head.  I think it will be Enchiladas Suizas this year with commercial corn chips and salsa (oh, how lazy) but homemade sour cream and guacamole.  Black beans cooked from scratch this year.  Not exciting...but I'm glad to be up and cooking again. 

[MokaPot]

16 minutes ago, Darienne said:

Upgrade it all by one year.  Kyra, our longest living Spoiled-Rotten Weiler, turns 12 which is really quite old for a Rottie, and it's 10 years since I split open my head.  I think it will be Enchiladas Suizas this year with commercial corn chips and salsa (oh, how lazy) but homemade sour cream and guacamole.  Black beans cooked from scratch this year.  Not exciting...but I'm glad to be up and cooking again. 

 

Enchiladas Suizas sound good. I've never had a chance to try. Please post a photo if it's not too much trouble.

 

[Darienne]

16 minutes ago, MokaPot said:

 

Enchiladas Suizas sound good. I've never had a chance to try. Please post a photo if it's not too much trouble.

 

Oooh...I hate to tell you.  I stand caught with my calzoncillos showing.  The whole dish (and not traditionally made as it's in a casserole format) was made some time ago and we are eating them defrosted from frozen storage.  Please don't pass it on.  This is so embarrassing.  There's only two of us these Covid 19 days and whatever I make, much of it ends up being frozen for future use.  

 

Enchiladas Suizas in my gringo world are pretty much enchiladas with a bechamel sauce topping them.  Or it is in my method.  My recipe just about predates my life in eGullet.  It certainly predates my acquisition of Kennedy and Bayless cookbooks.  It comes from Better Homes and Gardens Special "Ultimate Mexican" publication, 2010 and doesn't contain all the prescribed ingredients.    We still can't buy tomatillos where we live in East Central Ontario, nor fire-roasted tomatoes until very recently, no Mexican crema and I've yet to even taste Chihuahua cheese.  And I use a recipe for a Chile Verde given to me by andiesenji many years ago But we do our best....

[heidih]

13 minutes ago, Darienne said:

Oooh...I hate to tell you.  I stand caught with my calzoncillos showing.  The whole dish (and not traditionally made as it's in a casserole format) was made some time ago and we are eating them defrosted from frozen storage.  Please don't pass it on.  This is so embarrassing.  There's only two of us these Covid 19 days and whatever I make, much of it ends up being frozen for future use.  

 

Enchiladas Suizas in my gringo world are pretty much enchiladas with a bechamel sauce topping them.  Or it is in my method.  My recipe just about predates my life in eGullet.  It certainly predates my acquisition of Kennedy and Bayless cookbooks.  It comes from Better Homes and Gardens Special "Ultimate Mexican" publication, 2010 and doesn't contain all the prescribed ingredients.    We still can't buy tomatillos where we live in East Central Ontario, nor fire-roasted tomatoes until very recently, no Mexican crema and I've yet to even taste Chihuahua cheese.  And I use a recipe for a Chile Verde given to me by andiesenji many years ago But we do our best....

Oh pooh on rules  I do not think you could find them in L.A. if you tried. To me it is an enchilada style prep with Swiss cheese sauce. We've discussed them. Not in my personal top 10 but they are comforting  

 

 

[MokaPot]

Yes, it (enchiladas Suizas) does sound comforting. That's why I was interested in it.

[chileheadmike]

I should start planning something. I turn 60 on May 5 this year. 

I may have to do the celebration on Saturday when I'll have time to cook.

There's some horse race thingie here that weekend also. 

[Shelby]

1 minute ago, chileheadmike said:

I should start planning something. I turn 60 on May 5 this year. 

I may have to do the celebration on Saturday when I'll have time to cook.

There's some horse race thingie here that weekend also. 

😎I can't wait!!!!!  KD in September just doesn't cut it for me.

[David Ross]

One thing I'll make is salsa.  For the past year my favorite is a Tomatillo Salsa.  Served with homemade tortilla chips and on occasion, a guilty pleasure, I serve them with fresh fried chicarhonnes from the local Mexican market. 

For the Roasted Tomatillo Salsa-

1 lb. tomatillos, husks removed and rinsed

1 small yellow onion, skin on, cut in half

4 cloves garlic, skin on

1 ½ cups fresh cilantro

1 small jalapeno, chopped

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. each salt and black pepper

2 tsp. dried Mexican oregano

 

For the Homemade Tortilla Chips-

12 thin corn tortillas, cut into quarters

8 cups canola oil for frying

1 tsp. chipotle chili powder

1 tsp. each salt and black pepper

Instructions

 

Make the Roasted Tomatillo Salsa-

-Heat a cast-iron skillet on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Do not add oil or butter, leave the skillet dry. Add the onion, flesh side down, to the skillet. Add the unpeeled garlic cloves to the skillet. Let the onion and garlic char and get some black bits and start to get soft, 10 minutes, turning the skillet a few times.

-Remove the onion and garlic from the skillet. Remove the onion skin and cut it into chunks. Remove the skin from the garlic cloves.

Heat the broiler. Remove the husks from the tomatillos and rinse. Place the tomatillos in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Place the tomatillos under the broiler and roast until they start to char and soften, 8 minutes.

-Place the tomatillos, onion, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, sugar, oregano and salt and pepper in a food processor or blender. Blend the salsa to combine.

 

Make the Tortilla Chips and Serve-

-Heat the oil in a deep-fryer or heavy stockpot to 350. Cut the corn tortillas in quarters. Deep-fry some of the tortilla wedges until golden, 2 minutes. Deep-fry the chips in batches. Drain the chips on a rack over a cookie sheet and season with chipotle chili powder, salt and pepper. Serve the chips warm with the tomatillo salsa.