Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24: Cinco de Mayo Fiesta

I grew up in the bay area, where the arrival of May 5th marked a day filled with delicious spicy Mexican food, festive music by brightly colored mariachi bands, and the gleeful squeal of children chasing after treasures of a freshly broken pinata. Cinco de Mayo, which translates into the "Fifth of May," celebrates Mexican heritage and pride, specifically Americans of Mexican ancestry. And although I am not of Latino descent, the lessons and fond childhood memories affiliated with this day remain fervently with me.

For this month's Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24, I wanted share with you an early Cinco de Mayo fiesta that I threw for my family and my friends Margot and Dillon from White Hot Oven over the weekend. It is my sincere hope that some of the recipes and traditions featured on this post will inspire ideas for your own celebrations on May 5th.

As soon as guests arrived to the party each person noted the medley of savory aromas swirling in the air— from the smoky chili spices of Spanish rice to the sizzling smell of freshly roasted hand made corn tortillas. If they weren't hungry before, this was sure to kick their appetite into high gear. 

With beverage in hand, everyone helped themselves to chips, chipotle salsa, and a brightly flavored chunky guacamole from my favorite recipe.

Simmering on the stove were two types of beans: Rancho Gordo's Good Mother Stallard and frijoles negros (black beans).  The Good Mother Stallard beans were wonderfully dense and hearty with a delicious chestnut flavor.

Also from Rancho Gordo were white corn posole, a staple of Mexican cuisine, which were incorporated with the Good Mother Stallards in Beans and Vegetable Posole.

As soon as the cooking was done, everyone surrounded the table to for some good south of the border eats.

 There's no mistake, this spread had Cinco de Mayo fiesta written all over it.

Everyone grabbed a plate and started to build their tacos with homemade carnitas made with seven spices, shredded cabbage, chopped cilantro and diced onions.

In addition to the Spanish fried rice, frijoles negros, and bean and vegetable posole, there were enchiladas made entirely from scratch, including the salsa roja from a great recipe that can be found on A Little Bit of Spain in Iowa. These are flavorful, comforting and filling.

For the enchilada filling I combined a pound of shredded chicken meat with four green onions thinly sliced, 3/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped and 1/2 cup shredded cheese.

The homemade enchiladas sauce is just as easy with 3 whole tomatoes diced, or 1 can of diced tomatoes, 2 cups chicken broth, 5 garlic cloves, smashed, 2 dried guajillo chile's, stem and seeds removed, 1 large dried ancho chile, stem and seeds removed, 1/2 Tablespoon dried Mexican oregano, 1 teaspoon cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Combine in a pot and simmer for roughly half an hour before blending.

After a ravenous dinner, we sat down to a decadent, creamy and caramel-rich flan, a traditional Mexican dessert.  

We didn't have a mariachi band, but they were here in spirit.

Dillon glances admiringly at the mariachi band and contemplates a career change.

I hope y'all enjoyed this early Cinco de Mayo fiesta! In addition to the links to the recipes of each dish featured, here are a few recipes. ¡Viva México!

Spanish Rice Recipe
Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 cup uncooked white rice
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 teaspoons ancho chili powder
• 1 cup of medium to spicy salsa
• 2 cups chicken broth

Directions

1. In a deep skillet, toast the garlic in heated olive oil over medium heat until a light golden color. Add onion and saute until translucent. Add the rice and saute until the grains are translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the chili powder and green bell pepper and saute for another minute or two.
2. Stir in the salsa and chicken broth. Cover, and simmer on low to medium low for 30 minutes, or until rice is cooked and liquid is absorbed.

Frijoles Negros
Adapted from Celebrate Cuban
Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups dried black beans
• 9 cups water
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 1 1/2 cups chopped green bell pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled, and mashed with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
• Olive oil for sautéing
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 tablespoons vinegar
• 3/4 cup dry Spanish wine
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• Olive oil

Method

1. Cover dry beans with water and let stand covered overnight. Drain and discard water.
2. Place the cleaned black beans in a large 6-quart saucepan. Add water and olive oil—this will prevent the beans from foaming. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until the beans are tender, about 1 hour. Do not add salt to the beans when they are cooking. Salt at this stage of the game will make your beans very tough. Do not drain the water from the cooked beans.
3. Meanwhile, chop onion and green pepper. Mash the garlic with salt and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle. Sauté the onions and green pepper in olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add mashed garlic and sauté another minute or so. Add the cooked beans, oregano, cumin, bay leaf, vinegar, and wine. Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaf. Some cooks—including us—like to thicken the beans by taking about 1 cup of beans and mashing them to make a thick paste. Mix the mashed beans back into the pot. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the sugar; then drizzle a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over the beans. Immediately cover the pot, remove from heat, and let stand for 10 minutes.

 

Spanish Flan Recipe

adapted from All Recipes

This is a very simple recipe that is best made the day before to allow the custard to solidify completely.
Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar
• 5 large eggs
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In pan (or any wide vessel) that is wider than the 9-inch round baking dish, fill it hot water from the sink, up to 1-inch deep. Place the 9-inch glass dish in the vessel, taking care to keep the interior of the pan dry.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt sugar, stirring every 1-2 minutes until liquefied and golden in color. This process which should take roughly 20-30 minutes, going from a hardy rocky texture to syrup. A drop or two of lemon juice should accelerate the melting process. Remove the 9-inch round baking dish from the water, wipe off any water from the interior of the pan. Carefully pour hot syrup into a 9-inch round glass baking dish, turning the dish to evenly coat the bottom and sides. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Beat in condensed milk, evaporated milk and vanilla until smooth. Pour egg mixture into caramel-bottom baking dish. Cover with aluminum foil.
4. Bake in preheated oven 60 minutes. Let it cool completely, before placing in the refrigerator. Allow the flan to solidify overnight. 
5. To serve, carefully invert on serving plate with edges.