Serves 3 In El Salvador, Atol is made with fresh corn kernels, milk, cinnamon, and sugar. My version is simplified for the home cook – but if you have the time, and if it is in season, cut the corn straight off the cob. Do it while listening to Salvadoran music, just because. Ingredients: 1 lb frozen corn, thawed 2 cups milk 1 cinnamon stick 1/4-1/2 cup sugar extra milk, as needed ground cinnamon for garnish Method: Add golden nuggets of goodness to a medium pot. Balance a cinnamon stick on top. Pour milk over the cinnamon stick… and click on the heat. While the milk is coming to a simmer, pour on the sugar. (If you don’t have a crazy wild sweet tooth, just add 1/4 cup. Also, if your corn is ultra sweet you may not need so much). Give everything a buzz with an immersion blender. Simmer about 15-20 minutes, then strain out all the fibers and yucky bits. Put those in your garden. Reheat the strained mixture if it cools down …
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Makes 1 giant bowl. Vinegar lovers unite! With very little effort you can have this Salvadoran slaw at your next barbecue or gathering. To be authentic, serve slightly “pickled” – about 1-3 days after making it. This should be vinegary and with the slightest hint of heat. Serve with pupusas. Ingredients: 1 cabbage, cored and sliced thinly 1/2 red onion, sliced thinly 2 carrots, grated 1 tsp dried oregano 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 1/4 cup white wine vinegar 1/8 cup olive oil salt and pepper, to taste (I put in 2/3 tsp salt) Method: Time to get out all your aggression on some red onion, cabbage, and carrot. Chop, chop, chop like there’s no tomorrow. Well really… slice thinly. Chopping is a bit too coarse for this recipe. When you’re done, mix the vinegar with olive oil, red pepper flakes and oregano. Add a little water if desired (maybe 1/8 cup) and season with salt and pepper. Pour over the veggies. Toss and refrigerate for 1-3 days. It gets better and better and … …
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Makes 18-22 cupcakes Don’t expect cheese and tortillas. Instead, think poundcake. Think party food. Think happy mornings, popping a few too many quesadillas in your mouth. In El Salvador they eat rich, buttery quesadillas in the morning with a big cup of coffee and I suggest you do the same. You’ll love the slight crunch of the sesame seeds in combination with the sweet/salty cake. I’m proud to say that this recipe was awarded First Place in food52‘s Gluten-Free Baking Competition. Best served with dulce de leche and a cloud of whipped cream. Ingredients: 1 cup rice flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 pinch salt 1 cup butter 1 cup sugar 3 eggs 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup grated hard cheese, like cotija (parmesan can be substituted) sesame seeds, to taste Method: Get your baking shoes on! You’re about to whip up a batch of Salvadoran goodness. Gather your ingredients, then preheat the oven to 350F. Whisk together the rice flour, baking powder, and salt. Meanwhile, in a standing mixer, cream the butter with …
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Elegance turns to a sloppy muddled mess in the Salvadoran danza de los chapetones. On purpose. For giggles. The satirical dance begins with thirteen dancers, 12 men and a woman. All are elegantly dressed – the men represent Spanish nobles, wearing suits with fancy hats, the woman represents the Spanish queen, wearing a crown and white wedding dress. Which all makes sense once you realize El Salvador was once a Spanish colony. The satire begins as a waltz, wickedly exaggerated. As the dance continues, the queen tipples chicha into the dancer’s cups – a sweet local booze made from maize, panela, and pineapple – over and over again. With each sip the dance becomes sloppier, rowdier, and – eventually – downright wild. Have you ever had chicha? If not, would you try it? Source: Lonely Planet & others Photos: Folklor de El Salvador, Dtarazona
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Makes 6-10 pupusa Take a big bite of El Salvador with cheesy pupusas. Many locals eat pupusa several times a week – some are filled with beans, others meat. But, no matter how you fill it, there’s an art to shaping the mighty pupusa. Here’s Martha Stewart’s demonstration: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kShxKY1mrPM Here are four things I wish I knew when I got started: Make your dough fairly moist. Play with the consistency. You don’t want a lot of cracking on the edges. The one Keith is holding is perfect. My others (pictured in the recipe) were a little dry and as a result, not so great. Rub vegetable oil on the pupusa before you put it on the griddle. This will keep it from – ahem – drying out. It will also give it a pretty, golden color. The one Keith is holding is nice and golden. The others are pale because I forgot this step. Make the pupusa thinner for a cheesier effect. Use salt. It really pulls the flavors together. By making sure I did …
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El Salvador is calling my name but I can’t go, no matter how badly I want to. We just dug ourselves out of a 14″ snowstorm that sent Tulsa to a screeching halt. The newspaper didn’t print, milk has been missing for days, and – someone help us – we’ve got another 5-10 inches coming. At times like these, I find “denial” to be a fairly decent coping mechanism. So, if you need me, I’ll be tucked away, under comforter, spooning Salvadorian food into my mouth, waiting for the snow to melt. Cabbage Slaw (Curtido) [Recipe] Crunchy cabbage mixed with shredded carrots, and red onion. Toss with vinegar, olive oil, oregano, and red pepper flakes to make a classic Salvadorian side dish. Pupusa with quesilla [Recipe] Thick corn tortilla packet conceals a melted layer of quesilla, or soft melting cheese. Serve with salsa on the side. Atol (corn drink) [Recipe] There are many ways to make this traditional central american drink. Ours is quick and dirty – and uses fresh corn, cinnamon, and sugar for …
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Do you like colorful birds? What about ruins – ancient, gothic, and colonial? Step right this way. Meet El Salvador, a tiny country freckled with mighty volcanoes, thickly coated by lush tropics, and so much more. In this steamy dreamland, I discovered a theme: corn. First, there’s pupusa – thick corn flour (masa) based tortillas stuffed with cheese, meat, or beans. Pupusas [Recipe] are often served with a bright, vinegary scoop of curtido [Recipe], or cabbage slaw, and fresh salsa. Then, there’s a corn drink called atol [Recipe]. Made with fresh corn, sugar, cinnamon and milk, it’s so rich you’ll think you’re drinking sweet custard, and you’ll be just as happy. And, finally, let’s not forget riguas, a moist mixture of corn (rather like tamales), spooned onto a banana leaf and griddled until firm enough to handle. Whew. And then there’s the produce. Mounds and mounds of gorgeous tropical goodness. Vivid. Fresh. Fabulous. Just look at this lady. She knows she’s got a good thing going on. Still hungry? No worries. There’s more at the Salvadorian …
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Some would blame the moon. Lady fortune. Michael Jackson. The last few weeks I’ve had this creepy, crawly feeling. It starts in my elbows and works its way up the back of my neck. It’s like stardust is sparkling on my skin. Like I’m dancing in the rain. In great part, I blame you. You see, this blog is coming up on its one year anniversary. I’ve learned a ton about food from A-D, have watched my family grow healthier and better fed, and, finally, have had so much fun getting to know you! I’m really looking forward to another few years of fun (only 2.75, actually). However, it’s not just that. From what I can tell, 2011 is shaping up to be a really special year … so special it gives me the tingles. Here are the highlights so far: 1. Ava finally got her molars in. I can give her hard food! The world feels so big… so… magical. 2. Mr Picky ate beets and liked them. How did I do it? I bought …
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Serves 4 They might not look like much, but these kidney beans taste like a work of art! Get your sofrito on! Ingredients: 1 cup sofrito olive oil 2 cans red kidney beans 1 cup stock or water salt & pepper Method: Heat up some oil in a medium pot. Add sofrito and cook… past the point where it releases all its juices… To the point where it starts to get toasty. That is the yummy bits that will make your beans incredible. Next, add the beans. And splash in water or stock. I used stock. Simmer gently until the beans are tender and flavorful. This took about an hour for me. Season generously! Dominican Beans Votes: 0 Rating: 0 You: Rate this recipe! Print Recipe They might not look like much, but these kidney beans taste like a work of art! Get your sofrito on! CourseSides & Salads LifestyleGluten-Free, Potluck Friendly, Vegan, Vegetarian Food TypeLegumes, Miss Ava’s Favorite Recipes, Mr. Picky’s Favorite Recipes, Sasha’s Favorite Recipes Servings Prep Time 4 people 10 minutes Cook …
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Serves 4 I don’t know about you, but I tend to get in a rut with chicken. Growing up in Boston, my mom often just roasted a chicken with salt, pepper and olive oil, letting the natural juices and skin provide most of the flavor. This traditional Dominican recipe is a fun way to mix things up – the meat slowly absorbs the sofrito flavor, as well as hint of lemony freshness – the perfect match for chicken. Ingredients: 4 chicken thighs 4 chicken legs 1 cup sofrito (you could add 2 cups if you’d like more veggies) 1 tsp sugar vegetable oil (1-2 Tbsp) juice of 1/2 lemon (a whole lemon if it is dry) 2 Tbsp tomato paste 3/4 cup stock or water Method: Add the chicken to a large bowl. Toss with sofrito… … and lemon juice. Let marinate about 30 minutes (overnight is fine, too) Meanwhile, stir together the stock and the tomato paste. When ready to cook, heat some oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add sugar and the …
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Makes about 5 cups Are you haggard in the kitchen? Overwhelmed at the thought of cutting up a bunch of fresh vegetables on a week night, but aware that – if you don’t – dinner is going to be b.l.a.n.d.? Dominican Sofrito (also known as Sazon) is your answer. Make a batch once or twice a week and you’ll have a great, healthy seasoning base that will amp up any dish. NOTE: In the Dominican Republic, sofrito can be made any number of ways. At the lovely web site Dominican Cooking you will find three examples that are completely different from each other (one even has radishes in it!). The moral? No Sofrito is better than your sofrito – make it the way you like it! Here’s the way I did it… Ingredients: 1 green pepper, cut in large chunks 1 red pepper, cut in large chunks 1 red onion, cut in large chunks 3 green onions, sliced 2 tomatillo, quartered 2 roma tomatoes, quartered 1/2 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped 1/2 bunch parsley, roughly chopped …
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I’m wearing two wool sweaters and a scarf. Indoors. It’s freezing, freezing, freezing. Are you cold? Can you feel your fingers? I can’t. Let’s heat things up, Domincan-style. 1. Dance the Merengue or the Bachata (links go to YouTube videos) You’ll be shaking your hips as you click, click across the floor. You’ll also be burning calories and, most likely, you’ll be smiling. So grab a partner and let’s have some fun! Don’t have a partner? Grab a broom! 🙂 2. Eat Sanocho Comfort-food doesn’t really do this stew justice. It is on a whole other plane of existence. With variations around the Latin American world, Dominicans take the cake with a version that would make any meat-lover swoon (hello, Homer Simpson) – it includes heaping portions of seven meats. In one bowl you might spot goat, pork, tripe, oxtail, chicken, rabbit, or even pigeon. That’s some serious protein. 2. La Bandera Think for a minute – what what foods make up the colors of your flag? Now, imagine making dinner with those foods. That’s what Dominicans have …
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