You guys! I learned how to make corn tortillas…that actually puff up! You might not think that it’s that big of a deal, but for me it is! I went to Oaxaca last year in November, and I took a cooking class from this wonderful family. We had the most amazing food, and one of the things that we made was tetelas. And for that you have to make a corn tortillas first. So when I came home, I went out to buy some masa, and borrowed my friend’s tortilla press.

In my attempts to make corn tortillas on my own, I failed many times. The masa (dough) would be too dry, too wet, they would come out too thick, they wouldn’t puff…etc. With each “failed” batch I made, I tried something different and got closer to making them right. This weekend, I finally got the right consistency, AND that nice puff. I’m still learning to get the tortillas consistent, but I call this a win.

Why is this so important to me?

Food is such an important part of a culture. Learning how to make Mexican food has been a way for me to draw closer to my Mexican roots. I didn’t grow up with anyone passing down family recipes (other than a few staples), so I’ve had to research and experiment on my own, so I CAN pass things down to my children.

It’s also so fun, for my family to get excited for me when I succeed. Now they prefer homemade tortillas to store bought ones, and my batch of 16 is usually gone in one sitting. Everything I learned about making corn tortillas I googled. I pulled from different resources until I found what worked for me. So I’ll share some tips.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup Maseca

1 1/4 cup Water

You’ll also need:

Plastic tortilla sheets OR a plastic baggie

And a tortilla press OR a pie dish or something to press the masa with

You pretty much just mix these two ingredients for 16 tortillas. But here are some tips that have helped me to get mine to puff up.

• I have a metal tortilla press, so I don’t push very hard and only press once per tortilla.

• Before I peel the plastic off of the raw tortilla, I run my hand over the plastic. Then I peel the plastic back, put the plastic back over the tortilla, flip it over, and do the same on the other side. This helps it not stick to the plastic.

• I use a super hot griddle. I have it to the highest setting.

• Once the tortilla starts to cook, about 30-45 seconds, I do the first flip.

• I cook the tortilla a little longer, and then flip again.

• If the tortilla isn’t puffing up after a few seconds after the second flip, I apply a little bit of pressure on the tortilla with my spatula. I might flip again and apply pressure if it’s still not puffing.

I’ve learned that cooking is an art, and with any art, when you’re learning how to use your tools and materials, you’ll get some mess ups along the way. So be patient. And feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

The kids love having tacos or quesadillas. Today, I had my tortillas with some eggs and arroz and salsa roja.

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I share my go-to tequila drink almost every week on Instagram, so I thought I would make it official by sharing it on the blog!

First let’s talk about tequila:

I’ve heard so much negativity around tequila. I feel like everyone I’ve talked to has a “tequila story” which has now deterred them from drinking it altogether. Let me just say, I’ve been there. I have a tequila story. However, it’s because we were drinking it all wrong! Tequila is a drink that is really meant to be enjoyed slowly, and for the taste.

First, let’s look at the history. Before distilling was introduced to Mexico in the 1600s, the sap from the agave plant was collected and fermented as a drink. This drink is called pulque, and was very popular before tequila. When the Spanish conquistadors ran out of their alcohol (brandy), they started distilling agave, introducing tequila. Tequila is a drink made specifically from the blue agave plant. Depending on the region, the taste can vary. Blue agave plants grown at higher altitudes are typically sweeter, and agaves grown in the low lands have a more herbaceous flavor. You might also be curious about where mezcal comes in. Mezcal is also made from the agave plant, but tequila comes specifically from the blue agave plant. Mezcal also goes through a cooking process which gives it a smoky flavor.

You may have noticed three different types of tequila when you are buying it at the store:

Blanco: A white, clear tequila that has been aged the least; typically less than two months.

Reposado: A tinted tequila that has been aged from two months to a year in an oak barrel.

Añejo: A rich tequila with a tinted brown color, that has been aged from one to three years in an oak barrel.

Tequila is a drink that can be enjoyed for the taste, notes of the aging, and the region it comes from. When you sip it slowly over ice, you can really taste the fullness of the tequila. Usually tequila blanco is used for cocktails. I personally tend to like a more robust flavor, and tequila reposado is a happy medium for the cocktails I make at home.

My go-to drinks when I’m out at a restaurant are a paloma or a cantarito. These drinks are SO good when good tequila is used and they have a nice cocktail mix to bring out the tequila flavor. Obviously restaurant cocktails can also have added sugar, so it’s not a good idea for my waistline to be drinking cocktails like that everyday, but I do like to enjoy tequila at the end of a day just like other people enjoy a glass of wine in the evening. So I have replicated my favorite cocktails at home without using sugary additives, but in a way I can enjoy the taste of the tequila with citrusy flavors.

If you want to try these drinks I make at home, all you’ll need is an orange, lime, grapefruit, and your favorite tequila to enjoy some low calorie cocktails at home.

Paloma Recipe

A paloma is a grapefruit-based drink usually made with Squirt. That’s how my father actually taught me how to drink tequila. A shot, and some squirt. I don’t drink squirt anymore though.

This is way I make it here at home:

• half a grapefruit

• half a lime

• shot of tequila

• sparkling water

Not many people have grapefruits hanging around, so you can totally just use grapefruit-flavored sparkling water. ;-)

Cantarito Recipe

If you want something a little fancier, or sweeter, you can add a half an orange to mimic a Cantarito

• half a grapefruit, squeezed (or grapefruit flavored sparkling water)

• half an orange, squeezed

• half a lime, squeezed

• shot of tequila

• sparkling water

With either of these recipes, you can add a slice of the fruit to your drink as well, to feel like you got it straight from the bartender. My favorite tequila brand is FINO tequila. It is the smoothest I’ve had, and could sip it straight on the rocks. I like to play around with the fruit and the flavors with the different kinds of tequila I get. In my opinion the cocktail you make should compliment the tequila flavor, not over power it. When what you add to your drink overpowers the flavor of the tequila…that’s where you can get in trouble. ;-)

I’d love to hear if you make a tequila cocktail! And let me know what your favorite tequila brand is. Comment below if you end up trying your hand at some mixology.

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Ok, so one of my favorite desserts ever is churros. I’d say churros and conchas are my favs. Last year we celebrated Elias’ birthday in Mexico, and his only request was to have churros as the dessert rather than a cake. So we hired a churro bar and I’m pretty sure we all had like 5 churros each with different fillings. Since then, I’ve been wanting to figure out how to make churros. After several failed tries, I finally succeeded in making churros for the family! I have Ignacio Gutierrez to thank for the recipe. He came to our home last year to lead a workshop where he taught how to make pozole rojo, and churros. And now that we have more time at home, I decided to finally try making churros again using his recipe. I’m so glad I did, and now I hope you can enjoy churros at home too.

Gather Ingredients

1 cup milk

1 cup water

4 tbsp butter

2 cups flour

2 tbsp sugar

2 eggs (whisked)

1 tsp salt

Oil for frying

Cinnamon & sugar to roll churros in once fried.

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Now what?

1. Add milk, water, butter, and sugar in your pot. Heat and stir until smooth.

2. Once it’s boiling, add flour. With a wooden spoon begin to mix in until flour has fully absorbed liquids.

3. Remove pan from heat. Add whisked eggs and stir them in with a wooden spoon. This is the tough part because the eggs don’t really want to incorporate to the dough. Work your muscles and keep stirring…it will happen eventually.

4. Once incorporated, let the dough rest covered for 15 to 30 minutes.

5. Add dough to a piping bag with a star tip. 

6. Heat your oil to 360 degrees. If the oil gets too hot, the churros will heat too quickly and start popping. (Which actually happened to me.)

7. Pipe in the dough. After a few minutes rotate in oil so they fry evenly. Rotate a few times to make sure they cook evenly.

8. Let churros sit and cool, then roll in sugar and cinnamon when ready to eat.

9. Eat!

Ok, now if you do try making churros, please share with me. It would make me so happy to see someone’s successful churro batch. We like to roll in cinnamon and sugar. But we also dip in chocolate, cajeta, or strawberry jelly. What’s your favorite way to eat a churro?

Ok well, now that I’ve written the blog, I need to make another batch because these pictures are making my mouth water.

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No, these aren’t the Taco Bell Chalupas. Although I must admit I have had a taco bell chalupa once or twice. It was college…yes, you can judge. Haha.

I had chalupas like this in Puebla when I went for the first time with my father last year. He had just enjoyed a meal at a nice restaurant, but I wanted to hold out for some street food. After he ate, we walked around the city in search of some elote when I saw a lady making these chalupas. At the time I didn’t know what it was, but it smelled amazing. She had a huge comal with chalupas and was selling them five at a time. They were amazing! I’ve been thinking about them ever since and I really wanted Michael to taste them, so I finally made them. They were so good, and I wanted to share the recipe with you. I’m also sharing my recipe for salsa verde (below), since I shared how I make salsa roja last year.

Gather Ingredients

Corn tortillas

Lard

Chopped onion

Shredded chicken

Red Salsa

Green Salsa (recipe below)

Queso Fresco

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Now what?

1. Heat your pan with a generous amount of Lard (about 3 teaspoons for a small pan).

2. Add tortillas to crisp. Flip tortilla after about 60 seconds.

3. Add a handful of chicken, onion, and two scoops of salsa or until covered.

4. Let cook for another minute or two. It will sizzle a lot so be careful of the Lard jumping. You have to be brave and let the grease hit your hand a little as you add the salsa.

5. Take out of the pan and transfer to your plate and top with queso fresco.

6. Enjoy!

I was so happy they turned out! They cook really quickly so make sure you have all your ingredients ready to go. And I used Lard to make these, but I’m sure you can also use vegetable oil.

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Salsa Verde

Gather Ingredients

Green Tomatoes (2 lbs)

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

About 1/2 cup of chopped cilantro

Salt to taste

2 serrano peppers

Now what?

1. Peel and wash tomatoes. Peel onion and garlic.

2. Put tomatoes, onion, and garlic in a pan with medium heat.

3. Let it all brown. Turning every few minutes to make sure it browns until skin of tomato starts peeling. This part is about 30 minutes.

4. Put tomatoes, onion, and garlic in a blender. Add about 6 oz of water.

5. Blend.

6. Add cilantro & salt to taste. Add the 2 serrano peppers, more if you want to add heat.

7. Blend until ingredients are all incorporated.

8. Enjoy!

This is a nice fresh salsa great for the summer months. I usually alternate between making green and red salsa at home. If you make either of these recipes at home, I’d love to know! Leave a comment below, or share a picture of your meal with me on Instagram!

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Well, well, well, who do we have here. I think this is the first time my husband has any presence on my blog. He’s usually behind the scenes; helping me hang my art pieces when I display a gallery wall, keeping the kids under control during my Instagram Lives, or my assistant when I’m cooking or doing a photo shoot. He really is the “stage manager” or “head of logistics” as I often call him.

Most of the time my kids are either helping, or eating whatever I make. However, with this meal since I was using jalapeños, they weren’t involved in the process. They both know how to make scrambled eggs, and have their preferences on what they like or don’t like in them. I specifically made this lunch for Michael though. I have Huevos a la Mexicana or a variation of it almost every day for lunch. But today, I made some for him. AND I even made him some fresh tortillas. Legit. My friend let me borrow her tortilla press a few weeks ago, and I’ve been making tortillas since.

This is a really quick, simple, inexpensive, but flavorful meal that can be enjoyed any time of the day. I usually have this for lunch, since my breakfasts consist of protein shakes, and fruit. There’s a little restaurant in Mexico that we stop every time we drive from Guadalajara to Puerto Vallarta for brunch. This is my go-to meal to order there, and their fresh tortillas are the best tortillas I’ve ever had. It’s a tradition I look forward to every year, but until then, I try to recreate it at home.

GATHER INGREDIENTS

*serves two

3 eggs

small tomato

1/4 small onion

1/2 jalapeno

tortillas

*optional: ham

Huevos a la Mexicana technically don’t include ham, but I like to add ham. Even when I order in Mexico, I usually ask that they add some ham if I’m feeling a little extra. It’s actually a common thing to add ham, chorizo, or even hot dogs (cut up in little rounds) to give your eggs a little personality.

NOW WHAT?

This will probably all be common sense, and the easiest recipe ever.

1. Chop the tomato, onion, jalapeño, and ham

2. Sauté the vegetables for a few minutes.

3. Add in eggs. I don’t like to pre-scramble because I like to have the egg whites visible in my eggs. So I either add directly to the pan, or just break the yolk like I did here for pictures.

4. Cook until ready to eat.

5. Serve with some beans and tortillas***.

6. Enjoy!

***if you’re making tortillas, I would press them before you start cooking the eggs. Have all your ingredients ready, press out a few tortillas and put them on the comal (griddle) to heat up. Then cook the eggs while the tortillas are warming up.

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