OK, so this a quickie, but I think it's fitting.
I just want to rave for a minute and encourage all of those who have turned their noses up at roadside taco stands to actually give them a try.
Why, you ask? Because they're awesome! They are about eight times cheaper than a restaurant, and just as delicious. (granted, it's not what you're looking for when you're taking the in-laws out...) And the staff, though usually a one-man show, are always friendly. A couple years ago I met this great guy named Manuel who told me about how he bought his mobile cooking cart and had been making a go of it ever since (and he was only 19).
Manuel's line of several containers full of toppings and different salsa covered in tinfoil made for an excellent picture. Unfortunately, the computer I had it saved on has recently died. (sometimes I really hate technology)
Another reason why the roadside stands are so great other than the staff and the price, is the convenience. You're just driving down the road, maybe in a rush, and boom! A quick pit stop gets you food on a plate without leaving your wallet empty.
And while all of those reasons are great, I think I truly like them for the nostalgia.
When vacationing in Mexico, my diet consisted of little burritos and tamales that the same women would bring down the beach everyday. Maybe a taco here and there from a nearby stand. I think I got the most pleasure out of the sheer simplicity. The food is so cheap and easy and yet, so fresh and delicious. I couldn't ask for more.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
A little change of pace ...
So… I’m finally full. (and digressing for one blog, I hope you’ll forgive me). But I have other interests in items that cross borders and change cultures, the current topic on hand – clothes. Or fashion, as some would like to say. More or less these days, fashion designers use their own backgrounds and histories, muddled with the influence of worldly travels to create beautiful piece of wearable art (as I like to think of it).
But the ‘art’ can be duplicated, or washed and worn and in some sad cases, even start off as less than extraordinary. But one common thread is the magnificence of the artists (even if they may have made a questionable call using that gold chiffon). And there are plenty of designers who have crossed borders to brighten their own future as well as the world of fashion.
Oscar de la Renta is one name that jumps to mind right away. Originally from the Dominican Republic, he went to an art institute in Madrid at the age of 18 for painting, but his fashion illustrations for a Spanish magazine got him quickly noticed by Cristobal Balenciaga. Balenciaga is one of the fashion powerhouses today, and De la Renta got his foot in the door as a design assistant. From there his career flourished, as he worked at Lanvin and Elizabeth Arden before going out on his own. One might wonder why all of this matters, and what effect does it really have in our culture, but the answer is plenty. De la Renta now owns a fashion house that sells products ranging from perfume, to bags, to haute couture, and rakes in an estimated $500 million annually. More than his personal success, De la Renta has been given numerous accolades in the fashion world, as well as contributed to social organizations like the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall . He has also funded two schools for children living in poverty in the Dominican Republic.
There are so many designers who have had to leave the borders of their home countries to achieve success elsewhere that I couldn’t even begin to do then all justice. De la Renta happened to get my spotlight, because he is one of my personal favorites. You can see the life in his designs, and that is something I can appreciate. Not just me though, powerful women across the world have asked him to dress them. Laura Bush, Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Walter and Hillary Clinton are women who enjoy his work, just to name a few.
Though they might be just clothes, they have the potential to be so much more than that. De la Renta gives us (the world) a little taste of the Dominican Republic, whether he knows it or not, when he puts his heart and soul into his designs. Just like Emilio Pucci infused his designs with the Italian fervor for life with his boisterous prints. If we would only stop to look at the peole who create the clothes, we might just be able to decipher a little bit about the world they came from and how that fits in with the world we know ourselves.
But the ‘art’ can be duplicated, or washed and worn and in some sad cases, even start off as less than extraordinary. But one common thread is the magnificence of the artists (even if they may have made a questionable call using that gold chiffon). And there are plenty of designers who have crossed borders to brighten their own future as well as the world of fashion.
Oscar de la Renta is one name that jumps to mind right away. Originally from the Dominican Republic, he went to an art institute in Madrid at the age of 18 for painting, but his fashion illustrations for a Spanish magazine got him quickly noticed by Cristobal Balenciaga. Balenciaga is one of the fashion powerhouses today, and De la Renta got his foot in the door as a design assistant. From there his career flourished, as he worked at Lanvin and Elizabeth Arden before going out on his own. One might wonder why all of this matters, and what effect does it really have in our culture, but the answer is plenty. De la Renta now owns a fashion house that sells products ranging from perfume, to bags, to haute couture, and rakes in an estimated $500 million annually. More than his personal success, De la Renta has been given numerous accolades in the fashion world, as well as contributed to social organizations like the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall . He has also funded two schools for children living in poverty in the Dominican Republic.
There are so many designers who have had to leave the borders of their home countries to achieve success elsewhere that I couldn’t even begin to do then all justice. De la Renta happened to get my spotlight, because he is one of my personal favorites. You can see the life in his designs, and that is something I can appreciate. Not just me though, powerful women across the world have asked him to dress them. Laura Bush, Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Walter and Hillary Clinton are women who enjoy his work, just to name a few.
Though they might be just clothes, they have the potential to be so much more than that. De la Renta gives us (the world) a little taste of the Dominican Republic, whether he knows it or not, when he puts his heart and soul into his designs. Just like Emilio Pucci infused his designs with the Italian fervor for life with his boisterous prints. If we would only stop to look at the peole who create the clothes, we might just be able to decipher a little bit about the world they came from and how that fits in with the world we know ourselves.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Pan de Muerto
It’s baking while I’m writing this. My own Pan de Muerto smells great and I’m glad I don’t have to wait to eat it. See, when it is being made to celebrate the holiday, Dia de los Muertos, it is meant to be enjoyed by departed souls who have come back for a celebration. Only after it has been appropriately offered can it be eaten.
Luckily for me, this was just an experiment in taste and culture, and the results have been great so far (hopefully to get better later, when I get to taste the bread). But I already like the idea that Mexicans celebrate death in this way. It’s not a time of mourning the lost, it is a time to celebrate their return visits. It is even common to find a person’s favorite food or drink on the ofrenda (altar), even though it may not be considered a traditional food for the holiday. Family and friends want to make it as welcoming as possible, and don’t limit themselves to only making traditional items.
The Pan de Muerto is usually found either in round or skull-shaped loaves and decorated with bones (just dough that has been separated out and formed into little bone shapes) and colored sugar or sugar glaze, if not both. Other popular food items are sugared skulls, other candies, mole dishes and Calabaza en Tacha (candied pumpkin), which I’ll be making next week. The ofrendas have more than just cuisine on them, though. They are commonly found adorned with candles, to help light the way for the returning souls, photos, flowers, and other personal or symbolic touches.
Luckily for me, this was just an experiment in taste and culture, and the results have been great so far (hopefully to get better later, when I get to taste the bread). But I already like the idea that Mexicans celebrate death in this way. It’s not a time of mourning the lost, it is a time to celebrate their return visits. It is even common to find a person’s favorite food or drink on the ofrenda (altar), even though it may not be considered a traditional food for the holiday. Family and friends want to make it as welcoming as possible, and don’t limit themselves to only making traditional items.
The Pan de Muerto is usually found either in round or skull-shaped loaves and decorated with bones (just dough that has been separated out and formed into little bone shapes) and colored sugar or sugar glaze, if not both. Other popular food items are sugared skulls, other candies, mole dishes and Calabaza en Tacha (candied pumpkin), which I’ll be making next week. The ofrendas have more than just cuisine on them, though. They are commonly found adorned with candles, to help light the way for the returning souls, photos, flowers, and other personal or symbolic touches.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Home for the Holidays?
Food and holidays always seem to correlate, and it is no different in Mexico. There are Christmas punches and Day of the Dead breads and on and on and on.
And something tells me food and holidays, even the non-religious type, are linked and always have been, and for reasons other than spicing up annual obligations.
It seems that when celebrating holidays, we eat and talk and imbibe, and while we eat and talk and imbibe we create friendships and rekindle relationships and share moments. Is good food required in such circumstances or is it just there to bribe our participation all day? Or, am I being to cynical about holidays?
And if it truly is about people reveling in the company of loved ones and milking it for all it’s worth on every given occasion, which includes elaborate menus full of items requiring painstaking preparation, should it be for better reasons than bribery or culinary punctuation?
How about tradition? Most holidays have traditional foods that are only enjoyed at that time of year. Eggnog, green beer, cranberry sauce. Is it simply done because your mother before your mother before your mother did it? I’m leaning toward this theory, but it’s driving me to a sad realization. The realization is that most people probably don’t even know the history behind the traditional foods they painstakingly cook for their in-laws. What’s the point of making specific foods if you don’t know why you’re doing it?
In an unwarranted response to that semi-rhetorical question, it will be my humble pleasure to enlighten wired audiences about the histories of a few Mexican holiday foods. Over the next two weeks, in preparation for Dia de Los Muertos , on Nov. 1-2, I am going to try and discover the histories of traditional foods associated with the day, and even attempt to cook a few!
And something tells me food and holidays, even the non-religious type, are linked and always have been, and for reasons other than spicing up annual obligations.
It seems that when celebrating holidays, we eat and talk and imbibe, and while we eat and talk and imbibe we create friendships and rekindle relationships and share moments. Is good food required in such circumstances or is it just there to bribe our participation all day? Or, am I being to cynical about holidays?
And if it truly is about people reveling in the company of loved ones and milking it for all it’s worth on every given occasion, which includes elaborate menus full of items requiring painstaking preparation, should it be for better reasons than bribery or culinary punctuation?
How about tradition? Most holidays have traditional foods that are only enjoyed at that time of year. Eggnog, green beer, cranberry sauce. Is it simply done because your mother before your mother before your mother did it? I’m leaning toward this theory, but it’s driving me to a sad realization. The realization is that most people probably don’t even know the history behind the traditional foods they painstakingly cook for their in-laws. What’s the point of making specific foods if you don’t know why you’re doing it?
In an unwarranted response to that semi-rhetorical question, it will be my humble pleasure to enlighten wired audiences about the histories of a few Mexican holiday foods. Over the next two weeks, in preparation for Dia de Los Muertos , on Nov. 1-2, I am going to try and discover the histories of traditional foods associated with the day, and even attempt to cook a few!
Monday, October 1, 2007
Chile me this
Now that it’s fall, the time has come to dry your chiles. Literally.
Used mostly for food, drying chiles for the winter season has been in style for centuries. They are handy in countless culinary uses, even as ground spices or sauces. What might be surprising to learn is that they are also used for industrial purposes like coloring (natural dyes) and home furnishings.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
