Here in Mexico, this dish is particularly popular in December, March and April. During these months, it’s very easy to find romeritos, a wild plant which has sprigs somewhat resembling rosemary, but which has a delicate taste closest to that of baby spinach. If you can’t find romeritos where you are, you can substitute fresh baby spinach, although the final presentation might look a bit different. Other versions of this dish feature dried prawn patties, but we’ve made it a little simpler here by just including dried prawns. Enjoy this traditional dish from Central Mexico!

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs. Small Potatoes
• 1 lb. Peapods
• 1 lb. Green Beans
• 2 Cups Nopal (Prickly Pear Cactus) Leaves, chopped
• 1 to 2 lbs. Romeritos (Fresh Baby Spinach may be substituted)
• 1/2 lb. Pre-made Mole Paste
• 100 grams Whole Almonds
• 100 grams Sesame Seeds, toasted
• 100 grams Powdered Chocolate or 1 Tablet Abuelita Brand Chocolate
• 2 Tablespoons Powdered Chicken Bouillon
• 300 grams Dried Prawns
• 2 Tablespoons Olive or Vegetable Oil

Directions:

Boil the potatoes until tender, drain, and set aside to cool.

Once the potatoes have cooled, remove the skins, and cut into halves.

Steam or boil the peapods until cooked through. Drain and cool, but reserve the water.

When the peapods have cooled, remove the peas and discard the pods.

Steam the green beans until done, then set aside to cool. Again, reserve the water.

Once the green beans have cooled, coarsely chop them.

Boil or steam the chopped nopal cactus until tender, then set aside. Reserve the water.

Season the romeritos (or baby spinach) lightly with salt and simmer until softened. Drain and reserve the water.

Break up the mole paste into smaller pieces using your hand.

Measure out and prepare the almonds, toasted sesame seeds, and chocolate.

To make chicken broth, add the chicken bouillon powder to 1 quart of the water reserved from the steamed peapods, green beans, nopal, and romeritos. If you don’t have enough reserved water, just add fresh hot water. Meanwhile, measure out  and prepare the dried prawns.

Remove the heads and tails from the prawns and peel them.

Set aside the prawns.

Place the heads, tails, skins and about 2 cups of water in a small saucepan set over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer 10 minutes.

Pour this mixture into a blender and combine until smooth. Then strain the purée through a sieve to remove any fragments.

Pour this strained mixture back into the blender and add the mole, almonds, sesame seeds, chocolate, and 2 cups of the chicken broth. Blend until smooth. Pour this into a large pot containing the 2 tablespoons of oil and set over medium-high heat. “Rinse” the blender with the remaining chicken broth and pour it into the pot.

Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add the prawns and reduce heat to low.

Cover and simmer about 15 minutes, stirring often. Add an additional cup of water so the sauce is not too thick, and stir to mix well. Then add the steamed chopped green beans to the mole sauce.

Add the peas.

Add the chopped and steamed nopal cactus.

Top with the steamed romeritos.

Add the skinned and halved potatoes and mix to combine well. Remove from heat.

Serve with fresh bread, such as Telera or French bread – great for mopping up the mole!

Buen Provecho!

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

• 2 Cans Tuna (in water or oil)
• 1 Garlic Clove
• 1 Small White Onion
• 2-3 Roma Tomatoes
• 1-2 Serrano Chile Peppers
• Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste
• Salt, to taste
• 8-10 Corn Tortillas, optional

Directions:

Make sure you have the necessary ingredients.

To prepare your own tostadas to serve with the pico de tuna, toast the corn tortillas over a low flame on the stovetop until they’re crispy. Set aside.

Drain the tuna and place in a medium-sized bowl. If using tuna packed in water, you might want to add just a little oil, if desired.

Mince the garlic, and finely chop the onion. Then seed and dice the tomatoes. Mince the serrano peppers, adding the amount desired depending on how spicy you want it.

Add the garlic, onion, tomato, and peppers to the tuna and stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.

You can serve it immediately or allow the flavors to meld a bit by refrigerating it an hour or so. Serve the pico de tuna with the tostadas or corn tortilla chips.

Enjoy this simple, healthy, and tasty appetizer.

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds Salt Cod
• 2 pounds Mini White or Red Potatoes, washed
• 2 Medium White Onions
• 4 Garlic Cloves
• 2 pounds Roma Tomatoes
• 6 Dried Bay Leaves
• 1/2 pound Prunes
• 6 ounces Almonds, whole or sliced
• 1 Cup Fresh Parsley
• 10 ounces Green Olives, whole or pitted
• 1/2 Cup Olive Oil

Directions:

One day prior to preparation, cut the codfish into 3 or 4 pieces.

Soak the fish in cold water for 24 hours. It will be necessary to discard the water and add fresh water to the fish every 2 to 3 hours in order to remove as much salt as possible and to make the fish easier to work with. The water should be changed 4 or 5 times throughout the day.

The following day, debone the fish and pull it apart into small pieces.

If desired, soak the green olives in water to remove some of their saltiness.

Boil the potatoes until tender, drain, and allow to cool.

Peel off the potato skins and set aside.

Mince the garlic and finely chop the onion.

Dice the tomatoes, removing the seeds.

Select the best quality bay leaves to use. For the prunes, remove the pits and finely chop the fruit. Sliced almonds are best, so if you have whole almonds, slice them.

Chop the fresh parsley.

In a large pot set over medium-high heat, sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil until translucent.

Add the fish and sauté 1-2 minutes.

Add the diced tomatoes and simmer 2-3 minutes.

Next, add the bay leaves and cook another minute.

Then add the chopped prunes.

Sprinkle the sliced almonds on top and bring to a boil.

Stir well to combine the ingredients.

Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 15-20 minutes.

Remove lid, stir, and add the potatoes.

Then add the green olives.

Finally, sprinkle the chopped parsley on top.

Mix well and simmer another 2-3 minutes.

Serve hot with teleras (Mexican flat bread), french bread, or rolls.

Bon appetit!

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

Pineapple Salsa Ingredients:

• 1 Small pineapple, rind removed and sliced
• 1/2 Small onion, sliced
• 2 Garlic cloves
• 4 Habanero chile peppers, or to taste
• 1 Cup fresh cilantro, or to taste, coarsely chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Salt to taste

Tuna Cakes Ingredients:

• 2 Cans tuna, drained (canned tuna in oil seems to work better than in water)
• 1/3 Cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 Garlic clove, minced
• 1 Egg beaten
• 2 Tablespoons bread crumbs
• 1 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsely, or dried parsely
• 1 Teaspoon dill, or to taste
• Cayenne pepper, to taste
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 Cup flour
• 3/4 Cup bread crumbs
• 1/3 Cup vegetable oil, for frying

Pineapple Salsa Directions:

In a blender, combine pineapple, onion, garlic, and habanero peppers and blend until smooth. Add cilantro, pepper and salt, and blend briefly to finely chop the cilantro. Pour into a bowl and set aside, letting the flavors meld nicely while you prepare the tuna cakes.

Tuna Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine tuna, onion, garlic, egg, and 2 tablespoons bread crumbs together. Add the parsely, dill, cayenne, black pepper, and salt, and mix well.

Combine flour and 3/4 cup bread crumbs and, if desired, season to taste with parsely, cayenne, black pepper, and salt.

Form the tuna mixture into small cakes, or patties. Thoroughly coat each cake in the flour and bread  crumb mixture and shake off excess.

Heat oil in a large skillet set over medium heat until hot. Place the tuna cakes in the skillet and saute until golden brown on each side, turning every 2-3 minutes.

Drain cakes on a plate lined with paper towels.

Serve tuna cakes hot with the pineapple salsa drizzled on top. A light salad and white rice make nice accompaniments. Enjoy!

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

Ingredients:

• Freshly squeezed lime juice from 6-8 limes
• 1 Pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and de-veined (chopped or whole, according to taste)
• 1 White onion, finely chopped
• 5 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 Cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/3 Cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 Cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Jalapeño chile peppers, minced
• 1 Bunch radishes, diced
• 1/2 Cup green olives, finely chopped (optional)
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 Avocados, peeled, pitted and diced
• Salt to taste
• Pinch of oregano
• Tortilla chips or crackers

Directions:

Place shrimp in a bowl and pour the lime juice over them, covering the shrimp completely. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour, or until slightly firm and opaque.

Add onion, tomatoes, cucumber, cilantro, garlic, jalapeños, radishes, green olives, and olive oil. Toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. When ready to serve, add avocados and salt and oregano as desired. Serve chilled with tortilla chips or crackers and garnish with lime slices.

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. Peeled & Deveined Medium Shrimp
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 1 Habanero Chile Pepper, quartered
• 3 Cloves Garlic, halved
• 2 Teaspoons Lemon Pepper
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
• 3 Tablespoons Red Onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 Cup Celery, sliced
• 1 Cucumber, peeled and chopped
• 1/2 Cup Cilantro, Chopped
• 4 Roma Tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 2 Avocados, chopped
• 1 Chipotle chile (canned in adobo sauce), finely chopped
• 1 Tablespoon Adobo Sauce
• 1/4 Cup Lime Juice, freshly aqueezed
• Salt to Taste
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper to Taste

Directions:

Combine the bay leaf, habanero chile, 3 halved cloves of garlic, lemon pepper, and 1 teaspoon salt in boiling water. Add the shrimp and cook until they just turn pink. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Don’t remove the shrimp from the water since they ‘ll absorb the seasoning in the water as they cool. Chill in the refrigerator about half an hour. The longer the shrimp in the water, the spicier they’ll get.

Combine the remaining ingredients, stirring in the drained shrimp at the end. Serve with  crackers or bread, telera or baguette).

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

Mango HabaneroSauce Ingredients:

• 5 Cebu Mangoes (these yellow mangoes from the phillipines are the best!)
• 1-2 Habanero chile peppers, or to taste (depending on how spicy you want it)
• A 2-inch piece of ginger, minced
• 1/2 Cup freshly squeezed lime juice

Mango Habanero Sauce Directions:

Roast the habanero(s) over a flame or in a skillet set over medium heat until the skin blisters and blackens a bit and the chile softens. Remove from heat.

The best way to cut up a mango is to cut it vertically in almost the middle of the mango, just passing the blade of the knife by the large, flat pit. Do the same on the other side of the mango. Then gently slice the mango halves like you would an avocado, being careful not tu cut all the way through the skin. Use a spoon to scoop out the fruit into a blender. Peel the remaining piece of mango containing the pit and cut off as much fruit from the pit as you can and place the fruit in the blender. Repeat with the remaining mangoes.

Add the habanero(s), ginger, and lime juice to the blender. Combine the ingredients until smooth.

Pour into a medium saucepan, cover, and set over medium-low heat. Allow to simmer, but be carefull because mango spatters! Keep the sauce warm while you prepare the coconut prawns.

Note: This is enough sauce to serve with 24 coconut prawns. If I’m just making 12 prawns, I like to make the same amount of sauce and use the remaining sauce to marinate and roast a pork tenderloin another day.

Coconut Prawn Ingredients:

• 12 Prawns
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt
• 1/2 Teaspoon Sugar
• 3 Teaspoon milk
• 1 Cup flour
• 100 grams shredded coconut
• Vegetable or olive oil for frying

Coconut Prawn Directions:

Shell, de-vein, and butterfly prawns, leaving tail intact.

Combine flour, salt and sugar in a bowl and set aside. Beat eggs and milk together in a bowl and set aside. Place coconut in another bowl.

Holding each prawn by the tail, dip it in the flour mixture and shake off any excess.

Next, dip it in the egg mixture. Finally, press it into the coconut, coating thoroughly.

Set a large skillet over medium-high heat and add enough oil so it’s sufficiently deep to fry the prawns. When the oil is hot, add half the prawns. Fry until golden on both sides, between 1-3 minutes. Be careful not to overcook them. Transfer them to a paper-towel lined plate and repeat the process with the remaining prawns.

Serve hot with mango lime habanero sauce.

Recipe Posted by Lindsay

Shrimp a la Diabla (camarones a la diabla) can be prepared in a variety of ways. This often depends on family tradition and the region where you live. Of course, you can find Camarones a la Diabla on the Baja and Yucatan Peninsulas as well as in coastal states, like Sinaloa, Nayarit, Colima, and Oaxaca, where there’s plenty of fresh seafood. But you’ll also be delighted by mouth-watering versions of this dish in Central Mexico, like in Guanajuato and Mexico state. Some prepare Camarones a la Diabla using Worcestershire Sauce (very popular in recipes here) and ketchup, but we’ve tried to give you the real McCoy.

Ingredients:

• 2 Guajillo chile peppers
• 5 Arbol chile peppers
• 5 Serrano chile peppers
• 1 28-oz Can tomato puree
• 1 Stick of butter
• 1 Medium onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 Head of garlic, minced
• 2 Lbs prawns, peeled and de-veined, tail intact
• Salt to taste

Directions:

Boil the chiles in a large pot for about 10 minutes until soft. Remove and allow them to cool a bit. Remove the stems. Grind the chiles in a mortar and pestle, incorporating the tomato puree. As another option, blend the chiles and tomato puree in a blender until smooth. Pour through a strainer and set aside.

Melt butter in a large heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until tender. Add the prawns and sauté for about 1 minute. Add the strained chile sauce and salt to taste. Simmer another 3 to 5 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the prawns.

Serve with Mexican Rice (or white rice to temper the heat of the spicy prawns), beans, and warm corn tortillas. Hope you’ll enjoy it!!

Posted by Lindsay