Category: Art and Culture

Frijolitos Refritos, Estilo Mexico Cooks! (Refried Beans, Mexico Cooks! Style)

Some of the many varieties of beans for sale at the daily indigenous market in
San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas. The metal cup measures one kilo.

The Spanish word frijol is a bastardization of ancient Spanish frisol, which itself is a rendering of the Catalán word fesol–which comes from the Latin scientific name–are you still with me?–phaseolus vulgaris. Is that more than you wanted to know about bean nomenclature?

Here's yet another little bit of Mexican bean esoterica: in Mexico, when you go to the store or the tianguis (street market) to buy beans, you are buying frijol. When you prepare the frijol at home, the cooked beans become frijoles. That's right: raw dried beans in any quantity: frijol. Cooked beans, frijoles. If you ask a tianguis vendor for a kilo of frijoles, he could rightfully send you to a restaurant to make your purchase.

The simple utensils you need to cook dried beans: an olla de barro (clay pot) and a strainer. These pale yellow, long-oval beans are frijol peruano (Peruvian beans, or phaseolus vulgaris), the most commonly used bean in the Central Highlands of Mexico.

Mexico Cooks! loves beans. In our kitchen, we prepare about a pound of dried beans at a time. After cooking, this is enough frijoles de la olla
(cooked-in-the-pot beans) to serve, freshly cooked, for a meal or
two. We freeze the rest of the cooked beans in five or six two-portion size
plastic sandwich bags. Cooked beans and their pot liquor freeze very well.

I found this little batch of rocks, discolored or very wrinkled beans, and other garbage in the half-kilo of frijol that I cooked yesterday.

Beans are very easy to cook. First, pick carefully through your beans. Even if you buy bulk beans or commercially packaged dry beans at a
modern supermarket, be certain to pick through them and discard any
beans that look badly broken, discolored, or wizened, as well as any
small rocks. You may also find pieces of straw, pieces of paper, and
other detritus in any purchase of beans. Put the cleaned beans in a strainer and wash well under running water.

To soak, or not to soak? Some folks recommend soaking beans for up to 24 hours to shorten their cooking time, but Mexico Cooks! has tried both soaking and not soaking and has noticed that the cooking time is about the same either way. We never soak. You try it both ways, too, and report back with your findings.

Epazote (wormweed) growing in a maceta (flower pot) on our terrace. Just before turning on the fire to cook the beans, Mexico Cooks! adds two sprigs of epazote, just about this size, to the pot of beans and water. The strong, resinous odor of the herb absorbs almost entirely into the beans, giving them a mild flavor punch and, some say, diminishing flatulence.

My olla de barrlo (clay bean pot) holds about a half kilo of frijol plus enough water to cook them. You can see the light glinting
off the water line, just below the top part of the handle. If you
don't have an olla de barro, a heavy metal soup pot will do almost as well. The clay does impart a subtle, earthy flavor to beans as they cook.

Over a high flame, bring the pot of beans to a full, rolling boil. Turn the flame to a medium simmer and cover the pot. Allow the beans to cook for about an hour. At the end of an hour, check the water level. If you need to add more water, be sure that it is boiling before you pour it into the bean pot; adding cold water lowers the cooking temperature and can cause the beans to toughen. Continue to cook the beans at a medium simmer until, when you bite into one, it is soft and creamy. The pot liquor will thicken slightly.

Now's the time to salt your beans–after cooking, not before and not during. We use Espuma del Mar (Mexican sea salt from the state of Colima) for its wonderful sweetly salty flavor, but any salt will do. Add a little less salt than you think is correct–you can always add more later, and you don't want to oversalt your beans.

If you live in the United States or Canada, you'll want to order the fabulous heritage dried beans sold by Rancho Gordo. Rancho Gordo's owner, my friend Steve Sando, has nearly single-handedly brought delicious old-style beans to new popularity in home and restaurant kitchens. If you've tasted ordinary beans and said, "So what?", try Rancho Gordo beans for a huge WOW! of an eye opener.

Mexico Cooks! likes frijoles de la olla (freshly cooked beans, straight from the pot) with a big spoonful of salsa fresca (chopped tomato, minced onion, minced chile serrano, salt, and roughly chopped cilantro). Sometimes we steam white rice, fill a bowl with it, add frijoles de la olla and salsa fresca, and call it comida (main meal of the day).

Chiles serranos and manteca (lard)for frijoles refritos estilo Mexico Cooks!.

For breakfast, Mexico Cooks! prepares frijoles refritos (refried beans). Served with scrambled eggs, some sliced avocado, and a stack of hot tortillas, they're a great way to start the morning.

Here's some more bean trivia: frijoles refritos doesn't really mean 'refried' beans. Mexican Spanish often uses the prefix 're-' to describe something exceptional. 'Rebueno' means 'really, really good'. 'Refrito' means–you guessed it–well-fried.

Melt about a tablespoon of manteca (lard) in an 8" frying pan. Split the chiles from the tip almost to the stem end. Fry the chiles until they are blistered and dark brown, almost blackened. To prevent a million splatters, allow to cool a bit before you add the beans to the pan.

Frijoles Refritos Estilo Mexico Cooks! (Refried Beans, Mexico Cooks! Style)
Serves six as a side dish

3 cups
recently-cooked frijoles peruanos
1 or 2 chiles serrano, depending on your heat tolerance
1 or 2 Tbsp lard or vegetable oil—preferably lard and definitely NOT olive oil
Bean cooking liquid
Sea salt to taste

Melt the
lard in an 8-inch skillet. Split the
chile(s) from the tip almost to the stem end and add to the melted lard. Sauté over a medium flame until the chile is
dark brown, almost black.

Lower the
flame and add the beans and a little bean liquid. When the beans begin to simmer, mash them and
the chile with a potato or bean masher until they are smooth. Add more liquid if necessary to give the
beans the consistency you prefer. Add
sea salt to taste and stir well.

Leave the melted lard and the chiles in the frying pan and add the beans and some pot liquor. Bring to a simmer over low heat. When the beans are hot, start mashing them with a potato or bean masher. Mash the chiles, too.

These beans are about half mashed.

Mexico Cooks! prefers that frijoles refritos have a little texture. These are just right for us, but you might prefer yours perfectly smooth. If you like them smoother, keep mashing! Either way, the beans should be thickly liquid. If the consistency is too thick, add more pot liquor. If the beans are too thin, add a few more whole beans to mash.

For a wonderful breakfast or supper treat, try making molletes estilo Mexico Cooks!. This is real Mexican home cooking; Mexico Cooks! has never seen this style molletes served in a restaurant. A wonderful Michoacán cook taught me how to prepare this easy meal.

Start with fresh pan bolillo (individual-size loaf of dense white bread), split in half lengthwise. Butter the cut bolillo halves and grill them on a comal (griddle) or hot skillet till they're golden brown. If you aren't able to buy bolillos where you live, use a dense French-style bread instead.

Spread each half bolillo with a thick coat–two tablespoons or more–of frijoles refritos.

Top the beans with a freshly fried egg and your favorite bottled or home-made salsa.

Breakfast, estilo Mexico Cooks!, will keep you going strong till time for comida. You're going to love these beans!

¡Provecho!

Note: Be sure to visit Patricia Jinich at Pati's Table this week for a great post about Mexico Cooks! and these very same frijolitos refritos!

Looking for a tailored-to-your-interests specialized tour in Mexico? Click here: Tours.

5 de December de 2009
Feria de Artesanías (Artisans’ Fair), November 2009, Pátzcuaro, Michoacán

Esferas de barro y su platón (clay spheres and their platter) from Zinapécuaro, Michoacán. Feria de Artesanía, Pátzcuaro 2009.

Carved wooden molinillos (chocolate beaters), rolling pins, and spoons from Quiroga, Michoacán.

The state of
Michoacán, rich in clay, copper, wood, and other natural resources, is
home to thousands of highly skilled artisans. Their traditional work
includes the use of all of those natural materials. Each year during
Pátzcuaro's festivities for the Day of the Dead, an all-Michoacán
artisans' fair entices tourists from all over Mexico (as well as from
the rest of the world) to support the local crafts-making economy.

Floreros de barro (clay vases) from Tzintzuntzan, Michoacán.

La Huesuda (the bony woman) on a platter, Capula, Michoacán. La Huesuda is among the many, many Mexican terms for death.

Piñas (pineapples) from San José de Gracia, Michoacán. These were originally made to be containers for serving agua fresca (fruit water).

The November artisans' fair in Pátzcuaro and the larger
all-Michoacán artisans' fair in Uruapan that takes place annually from Palm Sunday through
the end of Easter Week are the biggest income-producing events for many
of the state's artisans. Due in part
to the global economic crisis, in part to fear of the AH1N1 virus, and
in part to reported drug-related violence in Mexico, tourism all over the country has fallen to record
low levels. During 2009, most Michoacán artisans have experienced a precipitous
drop in sales.

Comedor (dining room table and chairs), Cuanajo, Michoacán.

Highly decorated platones de cobre (copper platters) from Santa Clara del Cobre, Michoacán. Photo courtesy of this Flickr user.

Michoacan's artisans work using centuries-old techniques to create both traditional and modern designs. Among village families, skills are passed from generation to generation. It's unusual to find an artisan who has formally studied his or her art, but it is far from unusual to find enormously talented artists, even in the smallest towns.

Cocuchas (pots from the tiny Purhépecha town of Cocucho), Cocucho, Michoacán.

Detail of cross-stitch blouse, Pátzcuaro, Michoacán.

Figuras de barro (clay figures), Ocumicho, Michoacán.

Many artisan families are currently confronting the tension between the desire to continue to produce arts and crafts and the overwhelming need to feed their children. In an economy geared toward the purchase of necessities, not luxuries, the purchase of personal and home adornment comes last for the average tourist. Although sales were up somewhat at the 2009 Pátzcuaro artisans' fair, in general sales for 2009 have been very low.

Viejito de trapo (Dance of the Viejitos rag doll).

In many
instances, young artisans have left their family's traditional work
altogether to seek employment in other sectors. Thousands of young men
have left Michoacán to try their luck in the United States. Hands that
once worked clay, copper, wood, and reed now wash dishes, bus tables,
and pick crops far from home. The questions that plague the artisans
who remain in Michoacán are: who will keep the traditions alive? Who
will continue the work of centuries? Do today's young people care if
the old ways die out?

Platón (platter), Guadalupe Ríos, Tzintzuntzan, Michoacán.

Some municipalities, such as the copper arts-producing town of Santa Clara del
Cobre, the pine needle arts-producing town of Casas Blancas, and the rag doll producing town of Zirahuén, are working together to find a solution to the artisans' need
for support. In Santa Clara, nearly 90% of the town is employed in the copper industry. Municipal authorities recognize that artisan productivity is vital to the town. The town governments have proposed a grant of two thousand pesos (approximately $155 USD at today's exchange rate) each to 35 needy artisans for the purchase of necessary materials to continue working in their traditional fields. The sole requirement for participating in the grant program is that the recipients document how the money is spent and how many people are either direct or indirect beneficiaries of the program. Of course, one very small municipality's tiny stimulus program will not save all of
Michoacán's artisans, but it may help stave off their need to stop
production. The larger question is whether this generation and those to come recognize the value of their historic work. That remains to be answered.

Vajilla (dishware), Capula, Michoacán.

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28 de November de 2009
Día de los Muertos: November 2, 2009 in the Tzintzuntzan, Michoacán Cemetery

Graves decorated for Noche de los Muertos (Night of the Dead) in the Tzintzuntzan, Michoacán panteón (cemetery). These recent graves lie within easy sight of the yácatas (Purhépecha pyramids, mid-center in the photograph) just across the road. The yácatas were formerly both a priestly burial site and the site of ancient Purhépecha religious ceremonies.

The packed-earth paths among the graves at the cemetery in Tzintzuntzan wind through old trees and dappled sunshine.

This little car, decorated with cempasúchil (marigold) flowers, fruits, and pan de muertos (bread of the dead) in the shape of human figures, is the cemetery ofrenda (altar, or offering) for a baby born in October and dead in November 2005. Tiny white baby shoes are on the car's hood, along with a baby bottle. Click on any photo to enlarge it.

The faithful Purhépecha believe that the angelitos, the dead children, are the first of the departed who come to re-visit their loved ones each year during the day of November 1, arriving at noon. Their parents take an ofrenda (offering) of fruit, candies, and wooden toys to the children's graves and invite the little ones to come and eat. Late in the night, the godfather of a dead child goes to the cemetery with an arco (arch) made of cempasúchil (marigolds). At home, the parents have already prepared beautiful altars to honor the memory and spirits of their children.

Cempasúchiles, gladiolas, and candles adorn this grave. The cross is made of red veladoras (candles in holders) in a framework of blue and white.

Each year, late in the night of November 1, the spirits of deceased adults make their way back to this earthly plane to visit their relatives. The living relatives, bearing food, bright golden flowers, strong drink, and other favorites of the dead, file into Purhépecha cemeteries to commune with those who have gone before. The assembled lay out blankets, unfold chairs, bring out plastic cups, cartons of beer, a bottle of tequila, and assorted food for their own consumption as they settle in for the long, cold night of vigil.

A band or two or three often wander the cemetery, hired for a song or two or three to entertain the living and the dead.

Copal incense burns, calling the souls of the dead home. Candles, hundreds and hundreds of candles, flicker on and around the graves, showing the way home to the wandering spirits. Food–especially corn tamales and churipo, a beef soup for festivals–and other personal gifts to the 'visitors' show that the spirits are still valued members of their community. Special pan de muertos (bread of the dead) in the form of human bodies represents the relationship between the living and the dead. Fruits, including bananas, oranges, and limas, are hung on the ofrendas de cempasúchil to represent the relationship between nature and human beings.

This elaborate bóveda de cempasúchil ( marigold arch) hung with an old family photograph and topped by a feather dove (the symbol of the Holy Spirit) decorates a family grave. Under the photograph, an angel stands vigil.

Marigolds are used as symbols for their yellow color, which resembles the gold that was used as decoration for the ancient grand festivals. The flowers were used to adorn the visitor in the form of crowns or necklaces. Today, the belief is that the ofrendas de cempasúchil (marigold arches) aid the visiting spirits to identify their homes. Cempasúchil petals are also strewn over the bare earth mounds of the graves.

These modern coronas (wreaths) are made of ribbons and plastic, much more durable than fresh flowers. The brilliant colors eventually fade over the course of a year, but the wreaths will stay up till next October.

Cempasúchiles, pata de león (lion's paw, as cockscomb is known in this part of Michoacán), freshly cut gladiola, nube (baby's breath) and just-in-season wild orchids from the mountains are the flowers most commonly used on Tzintzuntzan's graves.

My favorite ofrenda of 2009: a terrific full-size bicycle made of cempasúchiles, decorated with fruit–and with pineapple on the seat! The flowers at the base of the grave marker are wild orchids. This style figural ofrenda is very unusual.

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21 de November de 2009
Día y Noche de los Muertos: Day and Night of the Dead, November 2009

Catrinas de papel maché (death-mocking figures made of paper maché). The catrín (male figure) and catrina (female figure) come from the late 19th-early 20th Century drawings by political cartoonist José Guadalupe Posadas. Posadas drew his skeletons dressed in finery of the Porfiriato (the era between 1875-1910 when Porfirio Díaz, a Francophile, ruled Mexico) to demonstrate the pointlessness of vanity in life that, in the end, covers nothing but bones.

Día (y Noche) de los Muertos (Day or Night of the Dead) is celebrated in Mexico each year on November 1 and 2. It's a festival both solemn and humorous, both sacred and profane: it's a wildly and uniquely Mexican fiesta (party), although other Latin American countries–Guatemala, Honduras, and Perú, among others–celebrate the dates in other ways.

Called Día de los Muertos in most of Mexico, in Michoacán the fiesta is known as Noche de los Muertos. The traditional celebrations in Purhépecha pueblos (indigenous towns) near Morelia are among the most famous in Mexico.

Everywhere in Mexico, it's traditional to eat pan de muertos (bread of the dead) before, during, and after the early November Día de los Muertos. Mexico Cooks! photographed this gorgeous pan de muertos at Panadería Hornos Los Ortiz on Av. Vicente Santa María in Morelia.

These catrínes de barro (clay) are tremendously elegant. They are the creations of acclaimed painter and bronze sculptor Juan Torres Calderón and his wife, clay sculptor Velia Torres Canals. The Torres couple work in Capula, Michoacán, where they started the tradition of clay catrines in the early 1960s.

Cohetes (rockets) are another tradition for Día de los Muertos and other fiestas. Coheteros carry bundles of long-stick rockets in local processions, lighting one after another during the duration of the parade. The young boy walking behind the cohetero is carrying a pole to move electrical wires out of the way of the rockets. The intense boom! boom! boom! of the cohetes announces the arrival of the procession.

Calabaza en tacha (squash in syrup) is one of the most traditional foods for a Diá de los Muertos ofrenda (home or cemetery altar to honor the deceased). Learn its very simple preparation right here.

During the Día y Noche de Muertos fiesta, a loved one's grave becomes a place to pray, party, and reminisce. Candles, a glass of water to quench the deceased person's thirst, a bottle of his or her favorite liquor, and favorite foods such as mole or tamales, pan de muertos, calabaza en tacha, and seasonal fresh fruits are always placed on the grave.

During this very Mexican, very special festival, the dead–at least in spirit–pay a visit to their loved ones here on earth. It's a mutual nostalgia: the living remember the dead, and the dead remember the taste of home.

An acquaintance in Pátzcuaro dedicated this very large ofrenda (offering, or altar) to his deceased parents and other family members. The colors, the candles, the foods, the photos, and the flowers are all part of the old traditional altar decoration.

Next week, Mexico Cooks! will take you to one of the most important cemeteries in Mexico for a last look at the special Michoacán traditional commemoration of Noche de los Muertos 2009.

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14 de November de 2009
Day of the Dead 2009 in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán

This quirky calavera (skull, in this case about six inches high) is made of white chocolate with applied chocolate decorations dyed in various colors.

Every year, Mexico Cooks! heads for Pátzcuaro to see what's new and eye-catching in the world of alfeñiques (molded sugar trinkets for the Día de los Muertos–Day of the Dead). Skulls, caskets, skeletons, and miniature food are found almost everywhere in Mexico during this season. Some other sugar figures, made of azúcar glass (confectioner's sugar) as well as granulated sugar, are traditional just in Michoacán. This year, white chocolate was the new kid on the block.

More traditional sugar skulls are made in wooden molds, dried, and then hand-decorated. The eyes of these calaveras are sequins; the rest of the decor is stiff colored icing.

The artisan has applied white icing teeth, orange icing eyebrows and nose outline, green sequin eyes, and a blue-and-green patterned topknot.

Each of these one-inch calaveras has a name tag. Pick the skull that matches your best friend, your romantic interest, or a relative. Click on the photo to enlarge it for a better view–then see if you can find your own name!

These six-inch high molded sugar hearts bear sweet sentiments: Para Mi Corazón (For My Sweetheart) and Con Amor (With Love).

You can find more Mexico Cooks! photos and other information related to the Day of the Dead here, here, and here.

Tiny sugar representations of your dearly departed's favorite foods: pan dulce (sweet bread), enchiladas, tacos, and tostadas. These little plates measure about three inches in diameter.

Six-inch-high sugary crosses.

In the open casket, the calaca (skeleton) partakes of his favorite drink. Click on the photo to read the placard on the grave: "De tontos y panzones están llenos los panteones." ('Cemeteries are full of fools and gluttons.')

Laid out on an old painted wood table, this sheet of papel picado (cut tissue paper) depicts a skull and an ofrenda (Day of the Dead personal altar in honor of the deceased).

Former Mexican president Carlos Salinas de Gortari in the form of a murcielago (bat). Sin comentario (no comment), but this little candy made Mexico Cooks! laugh out loud.

Traditional sweet sugar gallinas (hens).

Coronas (funeral wreaths) with their motto Descansa en paz (rest in peace).

Sra. Gallina Roja (Mrs. Red Hen), made of azúcar glass (confectioner's sugar) rather than granulated sugar, sits on her nest with her huevos y polluelos (eggs and chicks).

Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe)–this time in white chocolate, dyed in multi-colors–watches over all of us, the living and the dead.

Mexico Cooks! will have more Día de los Muertos traditions for you in the weeks to come. The annual holiday is just too big and colorful for just one week's article.

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7 de November de 2009
Black Magic Woman: Lila Downs Bewitches Morelia

Lila Downs, Morelia, Michoacán, October 3, 2009. Unless otherwise noted, all photos are copyright Mexico Cooks!.

Lila Downs hypnotized Morelia and absconded with the city's heart a few weekends ago. For a time, we Morelianos forgot about la crisis económica, we forgot about la influenza H1N1, we forgot about the violent problems that have plagued our city for more than a year. We forgot everything except the essence of la Lila, who worked her black magic on all of us and captured our every sensibility with her voodoo moves and bewitching voice. In a jam-packed Morelia theater, for a couple of hours on a Sunday evening, Lila Downs gave us the gift of letting us remember our best selves.

Mexico Cooks! has watched Lila (pronounced LEE-lah) Downs grow as an artist since 2004. We first saw her perform in the patio of the University of Guadalajara's Escuela de Artes Plásticos, and again at the city's Teatro Galerías, then in a marvelous get-the-crowd-dancing open air concert in the Plaza de las Américas in Zapopan, and most recently this September in Guadalajara, where she opened her 2009 Black Magic Woman tour.

The tour, scheduled to run from August through November, started late because, as Lila said, "Me metieron un cuchillo…" ('They stuck a knife in me…'). Just before the tour was due to open in Denver, Lila had a different, unexpected opening: her appendix had to be removed.

A scant month after surgery, still looking a bit physically challenged from the procedure, Lila launched the Black Magic Woman tour at the sold-out Teatro Diana in Guadalajara. But oh boy, two weeks later in Morelia, Lila was back at the top of her form.

Lila Downs and her incredible troupe of musicians took the stage with a bang in Morelia and never let up.

Lila is the daughter of a Oaxacan Mixtec cabaret singer and a father from the United States who taught at the University of Minnesota. Raised in both Oaxaca (in the far southern mountains of Mexico) and Minnesota (in the far northern plains of the USA), Lila grew up conflicted by her roots in two worlds. Viewed as an exotically brown-skinned girl in north, known as the daughter of a gringo in the south, Lila herself barely knew where she fit in.

Photo courtesy Fernando Aceves and Lila Downs.

When her father moved to Southern California, her mother sent teenage Lila to live with him to finish high school. After high school, Lila returned to her mother's home in Oaxaca. While visiting them at their home, Lila's father died unexpectedly of a heart attack. Left alone with her Indian mother, bitter and angry that her father had disappeared from her life, Lila started college in Minnesota but dropped out prior to finishing her education. She stopped singing, although she had sung while growing up and studied voice in college. She drifted with the Grateful Dead, a Deadhead and latter-day hippie.

Pure energy, pure movement, pure voice: Lila Downs captivated everyone in her Morelia audience.

After a two-year mix of intensive psychotherapy and deep personal introspection, Lila returned to the University of Minnesota and finished a degree in voice and anthropology. Consciously or unconsciously, her studies mirrored both of her parents.

When she returned to Oaxaca after college, she finally discovered herself: rooted deeply in Oaxaca, profoundly influenced by the suppression and hardship suffered by Mexico's indigenous peoples, she composed. And she sang, for the first time in several years.

Lila! For a sneak peek at Lila in action, watch and listen to her perform La Cumbia del Mole.

In the mid-1990s, Lila met Paul Cohen, an East Coast saxophonist. They soon joined their lives and their careers to ponerse las pilas (put on the batteries) for huge success. Paul encourages her to keep exploring Mexico's music traditions: ranchera, bolero, ballads, and more. Lila's next CD, which she hopes will be on the market in 2010, will be a compilation of música ranchera, from the mariachi tradition.

Joy and delight in Lila's music reverberated in every corner of Morelia's Teatro Morelos.

On Saturday night before the Sunday evening concert, Lila graciously received Mexico Cooks! for a little private conversation. We both wanted to talk about Lila's newest project, a musical theater version of Laura Esquivel's book, Like Water for Chocolate. Lila and Paul are writing nearly 20 original songs for the musical, songs that Lila hopes will endure long after the curtain closes on the play. Like Water for Chocolate will have a libretto by Quiara Hudes (In the Heights, running since early 2008 in New York), with creative direction by Jonathan Butterell (most recently, Fiddler on the Roof revival) and music direction by Ted Sperling (most recently, Guys and Dolls and South Pacific revivals). Lila expects the music to preview in concert in 2010 and hopes for an off-Broadway opening soon after that–and then to Broadway!

Book cover, Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel.

Like Water for Chocolate, published in 1989, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. There are nearly three million copies in print. When Like Water for Chocolate became a movie in 1992, it won all eleven of the Ariel awards (analogous to the Oscars) for that year.

"I'm really excited about this project." Lila drummed her fingers on the arm of her chair. "So many things about this story remind me of life in Oaxaca, even though the book is set in the north of Mexico. Like Water for Chocolate has already had such huge success as a book and a film! It's just made for the musical stage. The work is a tremendous opportunity for us."

Lila grinned when I asked if she likes to cook. "I do! I really do! My recipe for mole is fantastic! I love nopalitos (strips of nopal cactus, often served as a salad), and I love beans." She rolled her eyes and ducked her head. "My husband calls me a real beaner." She laughed. "Seriously, the fragrance of beans cooking, the flavor of the nopal–those are things that say 'home' to me. Those are the things that give me so much nostalgia. That's one of the reasons I love Like Water for Chocolate so much: home, love, and food are all mixed together. But you know that. That's what I believe, and that's what your Mexico Cooks! is all about, too: a Mexico that is home, love, and food."

Lila moves to deep rhythms and moves her audience to intense feelings. "Lila, te estoy queriendo!" shouts a fan. "Y yo a ti…" Lila responds from the stage, blowing a kiss. ('Lila, I am loving you!' 'And I am loving you…')

Lila Downs' life is a complex mix of intellect and feeling, tradition and the modern, of joy and pain, of hard work and well-deserved success. She gives exquisite voice to her deepest self, she offers unusual accessibility to her adoring fans, and she's made it to the top in a very harsh world. If you are ever in a place where Lila will be singing, get a ticket. Whatever the cost, it's worth every penny.

Qué viva Lila! Te estamos quieriendo…(Long live Lila! We are loving you).

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31 de October de 2009
Rigoberta Menchú y La Ceremonia por La Paz, Morelia, September 15, 2009

Actúa por la Paz: Take Action for Peace, on the back of a T-shirt, Morelia, September 15, 2009.

On the night of September 15, 2008–just a bit over a year ago–all of Mexico celebrated its annual re-enactment of the Grito de Dolores (1810 call for independence from Spain). Many of Morelia's citizens, filled with the joy of Fiestas Patrias (Independence Day) festivities, gathered in the two downtown plazas facing the balconies of the Palacio del Gobierno (state capitol building) to await the appearance of Michoacán's governor. Traditionally, the governor waves the Mexican flag, rings a bell, and calls out a string of VIVAs: Viva México! Viva Hidalgo! Viva Morelos! Viva la Corregidora! Viva los Niños Héroes! Viva México!

In Morelia, those historic VIVAs are always followed by glorious patriotic fireworks in front of the Cathedral. At the 2008 celebration, the governor's actions were aborted by a loud explosion: instead of fireworks, the sound was from two live grenades thrown into crowded Plaza Melchor Ocampo. The balance: hundreds injured, eight killed, and scores of lives changed forever. Recovery of confidence has been slow in Morelia; we who live in Morelia lost our innocence that night.

Rigoberta Menchú Tum from Guatemala, 1992 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, moved hearts and minds with her Ceremonia por la Paz (Peace Ceremony) speech on September 15, 2009, in Morelia.

The event didn't look much like a ceremony for peace, but rather resembled a locked-down security risk. Morelia's Centro Histórico, an area that encompasses most of our colonial-era buildings, was cordoned off by Federal, State, and local police. No private vehicles, taxis, or buses were allowed to circulate within a several-square-block area of the Cathedral. Pedestrians who wanted to enter the area passed first through metal detector security arches. Federal police checked all handbags, camera bags, and backpacks for suspicious objects.

Just across the street from Plaza Melchor Ocampo, sharpshooters and special security forces lined the roof of Hotel Los Juaninos. In order to enter the plaza, we had to pass under yet another security arch. Friends who work for the government called out to us to sit with them for the event.

Fausto Vallejo Figueroa, mayor of Morelia, greets supporters at the Ceremonia por la Paz.

Once settled, we looked around at the crowd. Government officials of all ranks, university officials, relatives of the 2008 victims, and a few selected schools were present, but no ordinary Morelia citizens were in the chairs. The press was amply represented. It became apparent that this Ceremonia por la Paz was more a photo opportunity and sound bite for government promotion than it was an event for the common person.

Dra. Silvia Figueroa Zamudio, distinguished rector of the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo. Dra. Figueroa, whose term began in 2007 and will end in 2011, is the first woman rector since the university was founded in 1540.

Leonel Godoy Rangel, governor of Michoacán, chats with Rigoberta Menchú prior to her Morelia speech.

In spite of the militaristic aspects of the event, Sra. Menchú exhorted Morelia, "Don't be afraid. Fear turns us into accomplices and prisoners of violence. Today I stand before you to plead for your courage."

Some survivors and relatives of those dead and injured in the September 15, 2008, grenade blasts attended the 2009 commemoration in Plaza Melchor Ocampo.

She begged the relatives of last year's injured and deceased, "Hold out your dead like a flag of struggle for the well-being of all. Forgive the attackers, involve yourselves in the search for liberty."

Children from a few specially selected schools attended the commemorati
ve event.

At the end of the ceremony–where seating was limited to 1000 people
and standing room was at the very edge of the plaza, behind a security
barricade–Rigoberta Menchú called out once again for peace. "From
Morelia, we celebrate peace, life, and dignity. In the struggle for
peace, we all have something to give. The amount of material things we
can offer isn't important. What is important is our struggle for the
common good."

A strong military presence at the event seemed to contradict Rigoberta Menchú's plea for peace.

Morelia's Municipal Tourism Secretary Roberto Monroy noted that the government invited Rigoberta Menchú so that her presence in Morelia could be seen as a message of peace, of cordiality, and a sign that the capital and the state of Michoacán are still standing, working for the development of peace.

Several of Mexico's Federal police helicopters circled and circled the Centro Histórico after the event.

Despite the contradictions between Sra. Menchú's compelling speech and the military actions of the government, the event left Mexico Cooks! with the joy of seeing and hearing a woman struggling tirelessly on behalf of peace. There are so few like her in today's world: committed, valiant, single-minded in the search for peace. Qué viva Rigoberta! Qué viva!

Picasso's Dove of Peace is still a sign hope for the future of Mexico and the world.

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24 de October de 2009
Restaurante Los Comensales, Traditional Morelia Dining

The covered dining terraza at Los Comensales borders the restaurant's central garden, beautifully in bloom in rain or sunshine. Indoor dining is also available.

When Mexico Cooks! is looking for a traditional old-style Morelia comida corrida (soup-to-nuts main meal of the day, usually inexpensive), we often head to Restaurante Los Comensales, on Calle Zaragoza in the Centro Histórico. A Morelia tradition since 1980, Los Comensales (the name means 'the diners') satisfies its clients' hunger very well, and in a genteel, old-fashioned way.

A small plate of verduras en escabeche (pickled vegetables) is the first dish to arrive at our table. This little plate holds carrots, cauliflower, green beans, chayote, and onions–along with a bay leaf or two and a sprig of oregano.

The lovely terraza and dining rooms at Los Comensales are filled with memories of days gone by. Photographs of the founders–Señora Aguirre has survived her husband by many years–are scattered on the walls. He was a bullfight aficionado; she was a great home cook, specializing in the broad gamut of Michoacán comida casera (home cooking). In 19th and 20th Century Mexico, French and Spanish cuisine were the sought-after flavors when Mexicans dined out in style. Mexican cooking was considered second-class at best. Nevertheless, Sra. Aguirre and her husband decided to feature typical Michoacán cuisine when they opened Los Comensales in their own home in early 1980.

You'll have a choice between at least two soups-of-the-day. The last time Mexico Cooks! enjoyed comida at Los Comensales, the choices were between caldo tlalpeño made with a touch of chile chipotle (pictured above) and crema de zanahoria (cream of carrot). We've also loved the delicious leek, mushroom, and potato soup and the simple consomé de pollo (chicken consomme).

Los Comensales was the first private home in Morelia to be converted
into a restaurant. It immediately became a great success. In 1989, the
pair opened a second downtown Morelia restaurant. Las Viandas de San
José (The Foods of Saint Joseph), located directly in front of
Morelia's Templo San José, was in the same style as Los Comensales: the
rich and varied cuisine of the couple's beloved home state, Michoacán.

This tortita de calabacita was a tremendous hit, fresh and delicious in its pool of caldillo (thin tomato sauce). We chose it from the sopas section of the comida corrida menu. Other choices were spaghetti in cream sauce or standard Mexican red rice with diced vegetables.

Mexican sopas are divided into two classes: sopa aguada (wet soup) and sopa seca (dry soup).

Sopa aguada is divided into two further categories: caldos and cremas. Caldos are clear broths, usually with other ingredients like vegetables and meat. Cremas are cream soups; the different possibilities are endless.

Sopa seca includes dishes such as pastas, rice, and vegetable tortitas–like the tortitas de calabacita shown above. These are easy to prepare and absolutely delicious.

Tortitas de Calabacita (Little Zucchini Fritters)
Ingredients
6 small calabacitas (or zucchini), no more than 3" long
6 1/4" thick slices mild white cheese (queso fresco, if possible)
2 eggs, separated
Salt
Flour
Vegetable oil for frying

Slice the calabacitas in half, lengthwise. Place one slice of cheese between the slices of each calabacita. Hold the slices of calabacita and cheese together with toothpicks. Dredge each calabacita with salted flour.

Beat the egg whites until stiff. Beat the egg yolks until thick and pale lemon in color. Gently fold the yolks into the whites.

Heat oil in a frying pan until hot but not smoking.

Coat the floured calabacitas in the egg batter and fry until golden brown. Serve bathed with caldillo.

Caldillo (thin tomato sauce)
4 or 5 red-ripe Roma tomatoes
1/2 small white onion
Chicken broth
Oregano
Sea salt to taste

Bring a small pot of water to a full rolling boil. Add the tomatoes and boil till the skins split–just a couple of minutes. Remove tomato peels.

Place the peeled tomatoes and the onion in a blender. Add a very small amount of chicken broth and blend until smooth.

In a frying pan, fry the sauce for about five minutes. Add chicken broth until you have a very thin sauce. Add a sprig of fresh oregano and salt to taste. Cook for another five minutes and remove the oregano. Serves 6 as a side dish.

Carne de res en salsa chipotle (beef in a smoky chile sauce) was Mexico Cooks!' main dish. Others at our table ordered milanesa de pollo (thinly sliced, lightly breaded chicken breast).

Los Comensales also has an a la carte menu, but it hasn't really tempted us. The daily comida corrida offers such a big variety of dishes that we've always chosen our meal from that menu.

Our dessert, Flan napolitano (Naples-style custard with caramel), is firmer than its ordinary cousin. Flan napolitano is made with cream cheese, in addition to the usual milk and eggs.

The last time Mexico Cooks! dined at Los Comensales, our comida corrida was exactly what's pictured here. The total cost for the three of us was $300 pesos; each comida corrida was $60 pesos, plus the addition of our order of a large jarra (pitcher) of naranjada (orangeade, made with freshly squeezed orange juice and sparkling water)–and the tip is included in the cost.

Señora Catalina Aguirre Camacho, the owner of Los Comensales since 1980.

Los Comensales is open for desayuno (breakfast) and comida every day except Wednesday. If you're visiting Morelia, be sure to stop in for a lovely treat. You'll feel as if you're part of Morelia's culinary history.

Restaurante Los Comensales
Calle Ignacio Zaragoza #148
Centro Histórico
Morelia, Michoacán, México

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17 de October de 2009
Pátzcuaro, Michoacán: Pine Needle Garlands the Old-Fashioned Way

Basílica dome at twlight, Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Salud (Our Lady of Health), Pátzcuaro. The setting sun gives the dome its heavenly pink glow.

Just before Mexico's Independence Day holiday, a spur-of-the-moment email ("Show me real Mexican food, show me your part of Mexico!") from a fan inspired a whirlwind Mexico Cooks! morning tour of Morelia's Mercado Independencia and an afternoon visit to Pátzcuaro. Jeffrey Jones, in Mexico City for a business conference, hopped on a bus and arrived in Morelia on Saturday evening. We met at ten o'clock on Sunday morning and were off and running for the day.

Touring Pátzcuaro is second nature to
me. I am always overjoyed to show its pleasures to someone who has
never experienced them: the entrance to town, lined by huge eucalyptus and cedar trees; two
bustling plazas, the daily market, the Museo Regional de Artes Populares, Doña Ofelia's corundas for breakfast, the several glorious 16th Century churches, extraordinary crafts to purchase, nieve de pasta (almond and honey ice cream) under the portales, and Super Pollo Emilio's enchiladas placeras for supper.

This young man is concentrating on the machetazo (machete blow) he is about to give to a bundle of pine needles.

Once in a while, Mexico Cooks! is surprised and delighted by a
new discovery in long-familiar location. Not only had we never seen this traditional way of making pine garland, we'd never even heard of it. To say that we were absolutely floored is putting it mildly.

One of several men cutting the pine needles to the proper length, this fellow grips a handful to make sure they're straight before he takes off the ends with his machete.

Using huinumo (the Purhépecha word for pine needle), machetes, coarse
twine, and a tool made for twisting, a few men worked to create 1000
meters (that's over 3900 feet, for you who are metrically challenged) of pine garland to adorn all four sides of Plaza Don Vasco de
Quiroga.

Starting at either end of the twine on the paving stones, men lay out the carefully cut pine needles.

Mexico Cooks! chatted with some Pátzcuaro natives while we all watched this process. All of them were as open-mouthed with awe as I was. Lifelong residents of the area, none of these people had ever seen guirnalda (garland) made from these simple components.

The work isn't difficult, but it has to be done correctly in order to make the garlands. Enlarge the photo to see that the needles are all the same length.

The gentleman supervising the work assured me that no trees were harmed in the collection of these millions of pine needles. "We don't take them all from just a few trees. We're very careful to take some from here, some from there, so that the trees don't miss them at all. The process is ancient, and the trees still thrive."

In just a few minutes, the two men laying the pine needles meet in the middle of the twine.

Next, a man walks from one end of the pine needles to meet another man walking from the other direction. While he walks, the wooden tool (in the right hand of the man in the white hat) spins to fasten the needles between the lower twine and the upper twine.

The same tool–in the hand of the man with the white cap–spins the twine at the other end of the pine needles while the second man walks toward the center.

This man uses a cane for balance as he approaches the mid-point of the garland.

Jeffrey was so taken with the process that he filmed it. He graciously allowed me to publish his video on Mexico Cooks!. Thanks, Jeffrey!

View the video: Pine Needle Garlands

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10 de October de 2009
San Francisco Pichátaro, Michoacán: Pueblo en el Bosque (Town in the Woods)

The heart of Pichátaro: Templo de San Francisco de Asís (St. Francis of Assisi Church), decorated for its annual fiestas.

Low-hanging clouds and misty rain accompanied Mexico Cooks! to San Francisco Pichátaro, Michoacán, for a day at the town's 10° Anual Feria del Mueble Rústico y Textil Bordado (10th Rustic Furniture and Embroidered Textile Fair). The event, held every August, has traditionally been an important source of pride and revenue for the town's furniture makers and hand-embroidery specialists. The drizzle stopped as we parked the car near Pichátaro's tiny centro (downtown).

Closeup of the church door, decorated for the annual fiestas as well as for the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, celebrated annually on August 15.

Since long before the Spanish reached Michoacán in the 1521, San Francisco Pichátaro has depended on pine and oak forests for its livelihood. Today in the central highlands of Michoacán, battles for wood rights and acreage pit town against town and family against family.

Pichátaro is west and slightly north of Pátzcuaro, at the far left of the map inside the purple rectangle. Click on the map (and all photos in any Mexico Cooks! article) to improve your view.

Indigenous foresters fight constantly against illegal tree-cutting, but in recent years the area around Pichátaro has lost approximately 30 thousand thickly wooded hectáreas (approximately 75 thousand acres) per year to tree pirates. Additionally, deforestation and the planting of untold thousands of hectáreas of avocado orchards in the region have further depleted Michoacán's pine and oak forests.

Interior, Templo de San Francisco de Asís, Pichátaro.

Aside from ongoing battles to protect its wood rights, Pichátaro is also hampered by marketing problems. Pichátaro, with a population of fewer than 4,500 indigenous Purhépecha, has not historically been a tourist destination. The town is divided into seven barrios (neighborhoods), each one autonomous in making decisions about its use of natural resources. Unfortunately, some of the townspeople make their living from illegal wood cutting. Naturally there is substantial tension among some of the barrios. Given Pichátaro's multiple wood-related difficulties, we can understand why retail sales of the town's artesanía is left to vendors from other, more tourist-oriented villages.

La pila del bautizo (baptismal font), Templo de San Francisco de Asís, Pichátaro.

In spite of these difficulties, Pichátaro has reached Level Four (of five) in the development of its woodlands. Developmental levels, supervised by Mexico's National Forestry Commission, indicate how far a given community has progressed in the preservation and use of wood products for lumber, furniture, boards, doors, and other items. San Juan Parangaricutiro, Michoacán (farther west and south of Pichátaro), is one of the few communities in the state to reach Level Five.

Veladoras (votive candles), Templo de San Francisco de Asís, Pichátaro.

Pichátaro is striving for its position in Level Five. That level includes everything that Pichátaro has already accomplished in achieving Level Four, plus the creation of a stable marketing plan, principally in regions outside its current sales locations and including marketing in other countries.

Bell tower, Templo de San Francisco de Asís, Pichátaro.

More than three hundred families own and operate woodwork talleres (shops) in the town. Those woodworking shops employ nearly 1000 people and generate approximately 19 million pesos per year in income. Many of the woodworkers are eager to develop a collective mark similar to a trademark, used by all the talleres.

Poster for the 10th Annual Rustic Furniture and Embroidered Textile Fair in Pichátaro.

The collective mark belongs to a legally formed association or society
of artisans to distinguish their products from others made by
craftspeople who do not belong to the associations. That collective
trademark would be a guarantee of quality for all of Pichátaro's
clients. The woodworkers also believe that with the trademark, they'll
be able to standardize production and earn 30% more for their pieces
than they currently do.

One of many hand-carved pieces of pine furniture entered in Pichátaro's 10th annual rustic furniture competition. This gorgeous piece is a sofa, part of a three-piece sala (living room set).

The majority of furniture and other artisan work from Pichátaro is currently sold to middlemen. Craftspeople in Pichátaro barely eke out the cost of materials, while the middlemen often sell at retail prices as much as 200% higher than the wholesale price paid to the artisan. Most of the furniture produced in the town is sold unfinished; some is sold disassembled and other pieces are sold unstained.

This hand-carved pine comedor (dining room set) consists of the table base and four massive chairs.

Table base detail.

At the 2009 all-Michoacán crafts fair in Uruapan: guanengos (traditional cross stitched blouses) from Pichátaro, entered in the textiles competition.

In addition to woodworking, Pichátaro is well known for its hand-embroidered textiles. Girls learn cross stitch embroidery from the time they are able to hold a needle. They produce aprons, napkins, tablecloths, place mats, coverlets, pillowcases, and the guanengo, the traditional Purhépecha blouse used in Michoacán. Recently Pichátaro's women have begun to create beautifully made heavy woolen jackets. A few of these are sold at the state-run Casa de Artesanía in Morelia.

Begonias on a roof terrace, Pichátaro.

Red doors, yellow wall, Pichátaro.

Well off the beaten tourist track, Pichátaro is a worthy destination. Mexico Cooks! is always happy with a new trip. We walked around town, sampled some out-of-this-world puff pastry empanadas (turnovers) filled with pastry cream, and made it back to the car just as the rain started to pelt down again.

Next time, you come with us.

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3 de October de 2009