Although rainy weather is an unpleasant thought, if not anathema, to those hoping for a little summer vacation sun-and-fun, the rainy season is one of my favorite times of the year here in central Mexico. Perhaps this is because there is such a long dry spell that by the time the rains come, they are […]
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A recent trip to the cloud covered village of Cuetzalan, high in the Sierra of Puebla, generated more of the questions that arise on each visit. How does the regional dress of pure white cotton, worn daily, stay so clean in a place where it rains nearly every day? How do any vehicles get to […]
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Sometimes the humblest ingredients have the most exotic histories. So it is with the lentil, whose journey to Mexico dates back thousands of years, to approximately 8000 B.C. in Southwest Asia. It traveled to Greece during the Neolithic period, and to the Mediterranean area during the Bronze Age. Along the way, it journeyed to ancient […]
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The US celebrates National Tequila Day on July 24. Present in the popular margarita, tequila can stand alone as a fine liquor. The popular traditional drink boasts an appellation or denomination of origin. Distilled from the nectar of the Weber blue agave, tequila dates from the 16th century. It may have originated in the Mexican […]
Continue ReadingDid you know that the vanilla bean is from an aromatic orchid that originally came from Mexico? The Academy of Sciences and Gastronomic Arts in Paris were so taken with the fruit of this orchid, that in 1921 they paid homage to the anonymous Mexican Indians who discovered it and put it to various uses. […]
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Of all the many mercados I have visited in Mexico, one of my favorites is the municipal market in Cholula, Puebla, where I have shopped for the better part of the last quarter century. Filled with an enticing array of the best that this culinary region has to offer, this place is to Mexican food lovers what […]
Continue ReadingJune is a month of family celebrations; in México as well as north of the border, weddings, graduations and Father’s Day are all prominent June occasions. This month, I happily recall a couple of the many wedding fiestas, and their food, that our family has enjoyed during our years in Mexico. So, move over dads and grads, […]
Continue ReadingWhen Francisco Hernandez de Córdoba, having set sail from Cuba in 1517, met a Maya in a canoe off the island of Cozumel, he was given gourds of water and balls of ground maize. This Mayan keyem, more commonly called by the Nahuatl name posolli, was the sustenance food carried by travelers in pre-Hispanic Mexico. Culinary anthropologist Sophie Coe […]
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At this time of year, when the weather turns cool and the holidays approach, the kitchen seems to beckon more strongly than ever, and those of us who love to cook begin to think of ingredients to incorporate into the season’s festive fare. One of my favorites is the pear, whose iconic shape, subtle sweetness […]
Continue ReadingOne of the standard pieces of advice found in books and magazines on diet and nutrition is to “eat what’s in season.” Here in Mexico, that advice is easy to follow, simply because the available produce varies so much from the rainy season to the dry season. By early November, the variety of different colored […]
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