Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Yumminess of Mexico!

I love Mexican food, and everything was so fresh! And on this trip, no turista...our tummies were very happy for the week.

Gordon and his breakfast, the morning after we arrived, in Puebla.

Huevos Mexicana: scrambled eggs with onion, tomato and cilantro, with a side of refried beans.


Eating in Puebla was a delight! We shared a great meal with our friends Dr. Sloth and Carmen:


"Chiles en nogada" -- SO delicious! From Wikipedia: "Another famous dish, chiles en nogada, was also supposedly invented here. The story begins with three sisters from Puebla who met officers from Agustin de Iturbide’s Army of the Three Guarantees in Mexico City and fell in love with them. Attempts were made to engage the couples but one problem was that none of the sisters knew how to cook. Upon returning to Puebla, their mother sent them to the Convent of Santa Monica to learn. The women decided they wanted to make an original dish to impress Iturbide and his officers when they were due to visit Puebla. The dish, chiles en nogada, represents the colors of the Mexican flag, green (poblano chili pepper), white (the walnut sauce) and red (pomegranate seeds). The dish was served for the first time at a banquet for Iturbide with great success"

Gordon's soup with all the fixin's!


Yummies covered in mole sauce. From Wikipedia: "The best-known mole is named after the city of Puebla, mole poblano. The origin of this sauce is disputed and there are two versions of the legend that are most often cited. The first states that 16th century nuns from the Convent of Santa Rosa were worried because they had just found out that the archbishop was going to visit them and they had nothing to prepare for him except for an old turkey in the yard. Supposedly due to divine inspiration, they began to mix together many of the spices and flavorings they had on hand in the kitchen, including different types of chili peppers, other spices, day-old bread, chocolate and approximately twenty other ingredients. They let the sauce simmer for hours and poured it over the turkey meat. Fortunately, the archbishop was very pleased with the meal and the nuns were able to save face."

And what Mexican meal would be complete without a nice dark Mexican beer? And in the back, delicious chicken-stuffed tortillas bathed in yummalicious pipián sauce, which is made with pumpkin or squash seeds and various delicious spices.


And of course, Mexico is full of great coffee. Here is Gordon relaxing with a cup of Java in Veracruz, at the Café Gran del Portal.


And since I don't like coffee (sorry, I was brought up by Brits), and couldn't get a decent cuppa tea, I switched to chocolate caliente, or hot chocolate, which was delicious and usually had a touch of cinnamon. None of that powdered crap! Real chocolate nibs.


And look! Nut-paste chickens from a street vendor. They reminded me a bit of marzipan.


And at the Veracruz airport? More café Americano con leche...

and more chocolate caliente for me!

Early morning, in dire need of caffeine.

And finally, a lovely tortilla soup from a restaurant in Mexico City, garnished with avocado, cheese, and dried poblano chiles. Mmmmmmm!

For some reason, my cashew nut butter on whole grain toast is not looking very exciting this morning...

8 comments:

  1. HI,

    welcome back and

    HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY.

    Looks like you had a good time.
    Looking forward to seeing you.

    I am not a fan of mexican food.

    ReplyDelete
  2. While Gordon's breakfast looks great, I really enjoyed the stories of how the Mexican dishes were originated. Very interesting, thank you. Great photos by the way.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Very tasty stuff! Glad you had a great hols!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Looks tasty! And what a perfect time to take a trip too. Good timing.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wy thank you, people. Willie, I forgive you for not being a fan... but have you been to Mexico?! The real stuff is better than the fake stuff!

    Paula, a lot of the food in Mexico seems to have fascinating stories behind it.

    :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous1:03 pm

    Welcome back and happy birthday! Love the photos and am extremely jealous!

    (In the photo of Gordon holding up his coffee cup in Veracruz, the gentleman at the table behind him seems to be doing an impersonation of McCauley Culkin in "Home Alone".)

    I LOVE Mexican food and could eat it (the real and the fake) everyday. Do you or Gordon speak Spanish? I'm brushing up on my weak junior high Spanish right now so I can converse with the ladies at our local McDonald's. :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you TTPT! and I see what you mean about the Mexican McCauley Culkin. :)

    My Spanish is virtually non-existent. Gordon took a course years back but quit halfway through. I really want to learn it. I can actually understand and read a surprising amount, as it has so much in common in French (which I do speak!) I would love to take a course before I travel in a Spanish-speaking country again. It makes such a difference when you can converse with and get to know the locals!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for all your comments, which I love to read!