Las Posadas of Christmas!

Las Posadas is a nine-day celebration with origins in Spain, now celebrated chiefly in Mexico, Guatemala and parts of the Southwestern United States, beginning December 16th and ending late Christmas Eve and followed by la Misa de Gallo (Midnight Mass).

Typically, each family in a neighborhood will schedule a night for the Posada to be held at their home, 16th - 24th of December. Every home has a nativity scene and the hosts of the Posada act as the innkeepers. The neighborhood children and adults are the pilgrims (los peregrinos), who go house to house requesting lodging by singing a traditional song about the pilgrims. Most all pilgrims carry lit candles in their hands, yet others carry statuettes of Joseph leading a burro, on which Mary is riding. In small villages a young girl wearing a shawl rides a burro reenacting the story of searching for room at an inn (posada), any inn. Even a manger would do...

Cannella's PIZZA! Two Thumbs Up! Way, Way Up!!!

Cannella's is an old school American-Italian fave in the center of Salt Lake City, Utah. However, currently there's a renaissance happening there. The young Joe Cannella along with Culinary Institute of America grad, Sean Guckian, are shaking up the Out-West Pizza World!

Upon tasting these pies with heady flavor and crispy crust my hard core East Coast friend gasped; "OMG! This is New York, this is New York!" I thought perhaps the style was closer to Pizza Mecca - Napoli. Never one to quibble, it remains best for your taste buds to decide. Fresh & crisp one version is superbly sublime cheese; another sports a fresh salad on top; yet another is perfumed with truffle oil!

These young fellows know well it begins with incredible dough and finishes with the flourishes! And what that will do in your mouth is a matter of getting there and finding out if you can handle all the flavour!!! "OMG, this is New York!" Many thanks to irrepressible New Yorker, Nancy Fillat, for such an apt description and a perfectly quotable line!



Copyright © Mick Huerta 2011. All Rights Reserved
mickhuerta@gmail.com
All Accordin' - Travel, Culture, Food & Wine!

Beaner's Breakfast (w/o a bean in sight)!

My brother Roberto gave me a gift of this season's freshly roasted Green Chiles from Hatch, New Mexico! He knew that living in far flung places (where chile peppers are different or nonexistent) would leave me yearning for Green Chile, a flavor and aroma emblematic of our family's Autumn cooking. The gifted quart zip-lock bags were marked XXX-Hot. He's uses this batch with care for he's one of the few who can eat them. Well aware of the incendiary properties, I was eager to stack chiles on Ranch Eggs and steam-fried potatoes accompanied by fresh corn tortillas and a squeeze of lime on it all!

My first morning back in town, he looked at the lone plate in my hand and complained, "Hey, can't a brother get a lil' bit of love? Where's mine, Miguel?" Feeling a little red-faced because of my blind hunger that bordered on the selfish, I gave him the first plate and started another...

Our father always said that the very best Chiles have great flavor but can make you sniffle, hiccup and cry. As for his sons, we enjoy sniffling and hiccuping and crying for more. A Beaner's Breakfast? Perfect! Laughing and serving, we had a second helping stacked high with our childhood fave, roasted Green Chiles. Drinking the blackest coffee dusted with ground cinnamon we felt sated for conjuring memories and having had a little time together as Green Chile fanatics yet again!!!

Copyright © Mick Huerta 2011. All Rights Reserved.
http://mickhuerta.blogspot.com
All Accordin' - Travel, Culture, Food & Wine!

The Miracle of Many! Gourmet Deviled Eggs!

'Tis the season of parties and party trays and nibbles galore! Somewhere in there you're sure to find Deviled Eggs. Ho Hum. Mayonnaise and Colman's Dry Mustard come together yet again to deliver a holiday staple.

But really isn't it time to Be-Devil your Eggs. If you're going to take the time make'em POP (with flavor)! How about using a bottle of Ranch Dressing or Habanero Sauce (el Yucateco) and make it happen. Or use the Colman's and augment it with Maille Dijon Mustard! Top with Salmon Roe or Caviar and freeze a bottle of your new favorite vodka, Russian Standard! Add Lobster, Crab or Smoked Salmon to the mix then fill! Just make'em wickedly tempting and wild! You'll prompt laughter and conversation with every bite! The holidays will be better for the all the joy you've brought to loved ones, friends & tag-a-longs! And isn't that all you really wanted to do in the first place? Ho ho ho instead of Ho Hum Drum! Yum!

Copyright © Mick Huerta 2011.
All Rights Reserved.
mickhuerta@gmail.com
All Accordin' - Travel, Culture, Food & Wine!

Both Shrimp and Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs photos: http://www.deviledeggs101.com/

Wine Bottle to Wine Glass!

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Re-purpose! The concept comes home when you've bought the wine, drink it at dinner and the bottle stares you in the face during clean-up. Throw a garden party and the problem grows one hundred fold! This simple solution requires little skill but provides great satisfaction while doing your part. Truly a great way to end up in your cups!

Step 1: Use a jig to create a score line that runs the circumference of the bottle (the bottle can be scored with a diamond or carbide tipped tool for scoring glass)

Step 2: Use a second jig and blowtorch (as seen in video) to evenly heat bottle, as the bottle is heated the score line created in step 1 will actually crack the glass

Step 3: Use the bucket of water to complete the separation of bottle top from bottle bottom

Step 4: Sand, sand, sand with various grits of paper to smooth drinking edge.

Video by Bruno of Curbly.com
Instructions by moondogdesigns