Feasting on Scraps: Cantaloupe Seed Water

When I first moved to Mexico, I, of course, was trying to cook delicious and fabulous meals for my new husband.  As cooking is my sweet spot (and the one thing I really felt I was contributing to the relationship - as I did not speak Spanish, understand the culture, nor was I making money), I would get rather annoyed when Ismael would come into the kitchen and ask me why I was throwing away parts of the food.  I, of course, felt like he was questioning how I was preparing the meal.

The first time this happened, I was trying to make a mock BBQ Loaded Potato that Ismael had fallen in love with in Texas.  The cut of meat I had cooked had a lot of chewy bits in it and, as I was not used to eating those parts, I had picked them off to throw into the "Organic Waste" (yes, in Mexico City you need to separate your waste into organic and inorganic items.)

The conversation went like this:
Ismael: "What are you doing with this part of the meat?"
Kim: "I am throwing it away - it is not good."
Ismael: "That is the best part of the meat!"

We ended up adding the nerves back in and I had to agree with my husband - it was delicious.

The second time, I was preparing mashed potatoes for dinner.  Ismael came by and asked what I was doing with the potato skins.  I told him that I wanted a smooth version of mashed potatoes and so had removed them.  He was still staring at the pile of potato skins, asking what I was going to do with them.  I told him I was going to throw them away (once again into "Organic Trash.")  He just replied that his mom made a really delicious dish with them that he would show me sometime.

Seriously - I thought was were having a communication problem.  Potato skins do not really equal delicious meal in my mind.

The third time, I had cut up some cantaloupe as part of our breakfast.  Ismael asked me what I had done with the cantaloupe seeds.  I looked at him blankly and said I had thrown them away - he said "Oh, my mom makes a really, really, really delicious aqua fresca (fruit drink) from them.  It is so delicious - I will show you how to make it sometime."

You would think that by now I would have caught on to the trend, but really - I just could not imagine something delicious made from cantaloupe seeds.  Anyone else have any great recipes for Cantaloupe Seeds?  (Silence.)  That is what I thought.

But eventually my husband did show me how to make the Cantaloupe Seed Agua Fresca (Horchata de Semilla de Melon) and it was really, really, really delicious.  So if you happen to love cantaloupe and are looking for something delicious to do with the seeds (after all, I know you do not want to waste any perfectly good food), this recipe is for you.

The first few times I made this drink I figured it would really make a difference in the drink if I added a little bit of the cantaloupe's flesh along with the seeds.  I have since realized that it is really just the seeds that are so rich in cantaloupe flavor giving this drink it it's deliciously fresh flavor.

Horchata de Semilla de Melon (Cantaloupe Seed Aqua Fresca)
1 Cantaloupe
4 Cups Water
3 to 6 TB sugar

Assemble your ingredients along with a cutting board, large knife, blender, sieve, and bowl.

Carefully cut the cantaloupe in half.

Scoop out the seeds and any juice into a small bowl.  If don't want to make the Aqua Fresca now, it will keep tightly covered in the refrigerator for a few days.

Add the cantaloupe seeds, your initial level of sugar, and water to the blender.

Blend for several minutes to pulverize the cantaloupe seeds.   Taste and add more sugar as needed.

Strain through a sieve into a pitcher or other container that is easy to pour from.

Pour the aqua fresca into tall glasses filled with a few ice cubes to enjoy this very, very, very delicious drink.

As for the cantaloupe flesh, might I suggest serving it with lime wedges?  This combination has vastly increased how much I enjoy this type of melon.

I love this drink for breakfast, but it is also tasty for lunch or whenever you want a slightly-sweet, fruity treat.

~ Kim

My Everyday Salsa Verde

As I think anyone who visits Mexico (or even a Mexican restaurant) knows, salsa is very important to this cuisine.  In fact, my mother-in-law makes a very special salsa from chilies only grown in her hometown.  This salsa is legendary in the family, so much so, that my sister-in-law claims that that salsa was part of why she originally fell in love with my brother-in-law.  I am hoping that one day my mother-in-law will want to pass on the tradition to me, and when she does, I will make sure to share it with you.

Today, however, I want to teach you the simple, everyday grilled salsa that is so indispensable to my life here in Mexico.  I think it was the second recipe my mother-in-law ever taught me and it is a constant in our house.  Whenever we are getting low, I start planning when I can make the next batch.

The only problem with this salsa is that it was taught to me basically as a technique - I have few hard and fast rules for how much of the ingredients you are going to need.  So the following amounts are more or less correct.  More on that later... (see Notes at the bottom)

Roasted Salsa Verde
Makes about 1 cup
5 Medium Tomatillos (The ones in the pictures are very small)
1-2 Small Serrano Peppers
1 Garlic Clove
Salt (to taste)

Remove the hulls of the tomatillos and wash off their sticky coating.

Assemble your ingredients.  You will also need a blender and comal or skillet (cask iron works well.)

Heat up the comal or skillet and place the tomatillos and serrano pepper(s) on it to grill.

Carefully turn the vegetables over until they are spotted with charred-spots and the color of the tomatillos has turned from green to more of a yellowish color.

When most of the serrano pepper looks charred, remove it from the heat and set aside to cool.

When cool enough to touch, carefully peel off the skin and cut off the top of the pepper.

As the tomatillos soften and become more yellow, remove them to cool.

Place the pepper, garlic clove, and 2 or 3 small tomatillos into a blender.

Blend well.  You want to make sure the pepper is well chopped into the salsa.  Add the rest of the tomatillos and blend to your desired consistency.  Add a nice pinch of salt.  Taste the salsa and add more salt if needed.

Pour the salsa into a bowl for serving.

Here is a typical breakfast at our house - two eggs over easy with queso, salsa, and lightly salted avocados, all served with warmed tortillas.

This salsa is also my salsa of choice for Sopa de Pasta.

Notes:
It can be difficult to obtain your preferred level of spiciness.  You may want to grill extra serrano peppers and only add them in as needed.  Or if it is too hot, add in more grilled tomatillos.  Just keep in mind that the flavor of the salsa tends to mellow out after being put in the refrigerator overnight - so something that is perfect the day you make it, my be a bit dull the next day.


Also, if your salsa tastes very acidic, you may not have grilled the tomatillos enough - in this case you may want to put the salsa in a pot and simmer it a bit to cook it a little more.

~ Kim

Dia de los Reyes Magos (Three Kings Day)

Welcome to the most highly anticipated day of the year for the children of Mexico: El Dia de los Reyes Magos (Three Kings Day).

While in the US, children receive their gifts on Christmas from Santa Claus, here in Mexico it is the Three Kings (the ones who brought presents to Jesus) that bring them gifts on the evening of January 5.  (However, Mexican children from well-off families can ask for presents from both Santa Claus and the Three Kings.)

As far as how to tell the Three Kings them how good you have been and which presents you would like - what could be better than sending your message by balloon?

On the days leading up to Dia de los Reyes Magos, the streets are filled with vendors happy to help you send your message to the Three Kings.  Children write their messages, tie it to the bottom of the balloon, and then release it at anytime before they go to bed on the night of January 5th.

It is also popular to take pictures with the Three Kings.  Traditionally, one of the three is always from African descent.  As few foreigners live in Mexico, this role is frequently portrayed through the use of make-up.

The night before Dia de los Reyes Magos the custom is to have hot chocolate along with Rosca de Reyes - a large just slightly sweet bread with candies figs and fruit paste placed on top.  

Hidden in the bread are tiny plastic figurines of babies, with the size of the Rosca determining how many can be found within it.  Each person cuts their own piece and, if they find a baby in their piece, they have to buy tamales for that group on Dia de la Candelaria (February 2nd).

Of course, of the 5 baby figurines found in our Rosca, I found two of them.

Then, once the children have gone to bed, the adults head off to one of the hundreds of street markets filled with toys and games, set up just for this night.  It took us over two hours just to walk thur one of the local ones set up near my in-laws' house.

Each of these markets is enormous and very, very crowded, containing everything a kid could desire: DVDs, CDs, video games, stuffed animals, dolls, bicycles, scooters, clothing, and lots of candy.  

In a tradition similar to that in the US of Santa Claus filling stockings hung on the mantle with small toys and candy, in Mexico it is popular to give children stockings filled with candy on this day.

Receiving gifts is so important for this holiday that families without much money will pawn things to be able to afford gifts for their children.

As this was my first experience with this holiday, Ismael bought me a balloon and told the vendor that I was going to write a message to the Three Kings asking for a gift.  She looked a little embarrassed and kept on saying no, surely I was not going to (this is, after all, only a holiday for kids.)  While I did not write them a note, they kindly dropped by my house and gave me a cat stuffed animal.

I think I like this holiday.

~ Kim

Pasta Soup (Sopa de Pasta)

I don't think I have mentioned this before, but my mother-in-law is a really awesome cook.  What is even more amazing about this, at least to me, is that she does not like cooking - she would much rather be puttering around with her plants.

Early on, after moving here to Mexico, I fell in love with her Sopa de Pasta.  It is a simple and very popular dish here in Mexico.  I liked it so much that she ended up teaching it to me and now I make it once every couple of weeks.  I would like to share her recipe with you.

Sopa de Pasta (Pasta Soup)
Serves about 10 for first course
4 Tomatoes
1 Slice of Onion
1 Garlic Clove
2 Chicken Bullion Cubes (enough for 4 cups of water)
200 g Small Pasta or Spaghetti broken into 2-3 inch pieces
2 Tb Vegetable Oil (more as needed)
Salt (to taste)

Assemble all your ingredients along with a blender, a large pot, and your trusty wooden spoon.

Heat about 2 Tb of vegetable oil in the pot and add the small pasta, stirring to coat.  If needed, feel free to add a little more oil.

After the pasta has been in the pan for about 2 minutes, you will need to stir it constantly until it reaches a nice toasty brown color.  If you don't, you will end up with some burnt pasta and some that has not been toasted at all.

Meanwhile, quarter the tomatoes and add them along with the onion slice and garlic clove into the blender.  Add 1 cup of water and blend.

When the pasta is nicely toasted, add the tomato mixture along with 6 cups of water, the two bullion cubes, and 1 tsp of salt into the pot and stir.  Bring to a boil until the pasta is done.

Once it is finished, taste to see if more salt is needed and then serve with fresh lime and salsa ~ as this soup is designed to the served with these accompaniments, it will not be half as good served alone.

Note: If you find the soup getting too thick for your liking, feel free to add more water, but you may have to add salt accordingly to get to the right flavor.  This especially is a problem after the soup has been in the refrigerator.

Happy Soup-eating!
Kim

Update Jan 12 2012: After consulting my recipe again, I realized that it calls for adding a total of 7 cups of water, rather than the 4 cups I originally listed.  Sorry about that!