Delicious No Matter the Language

Stollen for Breakfast

So many cultures, and so many wonderful recipes. I have focused on my Slovak and Serbian ethnic recipes, and on Guatemalan foods I learned to love, along with Indian. When Christmas time rolls around, regardless how many other goodies there are to eat, German Stollen bread is on my list. Fruit and nut filled and rich with butter and egg, this bread is just marvelous for breakfast or brunch, with coffee or tea on a cold winter's morn. These things are food for the soul, and are made from the heart.

There are many, many Stollen recipe variations, of course. Everyone who writes a recipe declares theirs is the only "right" way. I declare there is no right way to make anything, but only interpretations. All recipes are personal interpretations. We alter a recipe to include an ingredient we prefer, or leave one out that we dislike. Then and there, the recipe is now a personal variation and no longer someone else's.

Small Stollen loaves, just baked
and glazed with a simple icing

I enjoy reading recipes, and variations on recipes. I love seeing the differences and similarities and then making them to my own taste. I rarely make a recipe as it is given. Stollen bread is basically as I described: fruit and nut filled and butter and egg rich. Amounts and specifics are left to personal interpretation. I prefer having my Stollen filled to overflowing with the fruits and nuts. Though many Stollen recipes call for citron in large quantity, I dislike citron and would never put it in anything I make. Does that make it any less good? I think not. Some recipes call for cherries, and some not. I am not generally wild about raisins when baked in a food, but I do use them in my Stollen, because it seems an integral part of the recipe. Golden or dark raisins, either/or, or both. I really love candied orange peel, so that goes in.

But have you ever tried to make such an overwhelmingly rich yeast dough? It is very hard for the yeast to have an effect on such a heavy dough, so the making of Stollen is a long process. Rising times are very long. There is a kind of yeast, available from the King Arthur flour site, called SAF Gold. It is meant for precisely this type of rich dough. Unfortunately, it is only available in 1-pound bricks. The reason behind the slow rising process, as explained in the King Arthur Flour / Baker's Catalogue is this:

“Sweet breads can be agonizingly slow risers. Why? Because sugar attracts water, and when it's in bread dough, it pulls water away from yeast - leaving the yeast thirsty and unable to grow. The special strain of yeast in SAF Gold is ‘osmotolerant’ – it requires less water. So it's able to grow happily despite sugar's attempts to leave it ‘high and dry.”

I started making my Stollen this morning at 10:30 AM. The last loaves were out of the oven at 6:30 PM. I have been working on many other things today, while waiting for the dough to rise, so its not that I had to be there attendant upon the dough. Just checking in periodically is enough. The bread is made for this year, and I am pleased. The recipe makes two quite large loaves, or three more medium sized loaves. This year I want to give them as gifts, so I made 8 smaller loaves. See the recipe for my Stollen loaves and you might be tempted to spend a nice day inside watching this marvelous bread rising, with the promise of such goodness at the end.

Dough ready to form into loaves

Stollen

Makes 2 large or 6 small breads

6 - 8 cups bread flour
2 packages dry yeast, or SAF Gold, or Instant Rise
1½ cups water or scalded milk (at 85-degrees)
½ pound raisins
½ pound almonds, blanched, peeled, chopped
½ pound candied fruits (cherries, orange peel, pineapple)
¾ cup sugar
1½ cups butter (3 sticks), room temperature
3 eggs, room temperature
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon grated lemon or lime zest
2 tablespoons brandy or cognac (optional)

Blanch almonds in boiling water until the skins soften, drain and rinse, peel and chop the almonds. Or, just use already slivered almonds.

Mix the yeast into the scalded milk, cooled (or water) to about 85 degrees. Allow to rest for10 minutes.

Chop the candied fruits into smaller bits and add a little flour, tossing so the fruits separate more easily. Add in the raisins and almonds, tossing to combine. May substitute golden raisins (Sultanas) for all or part of the total amount.

Once the yeast has bloomed, add in 1 cup of the flour and whisk well. Allow this sponge to grow until doubled in size, about ½ hour.

Cream the butter until light. This may be done in a large, heavy duty mixer, such as Kitchen Aid. Add in the sugar, a little at a time. Beat in the eggs until combined. Add in the brandy or cognac, if using. Add in the fruits and nuts, lemon or lime zest and the risen sponge mixture to combine, then add in another 5 to 7 cups of flour, as needed. Knead for about 10 minutes until the dough is silky smooth and elastic.

Place the bowl in a warm place and allow the dough to rise until almost doubled in bulk. Once risen, turn out onto a floured surface and divide into 2 sections. Form each section into a loaf and place into greased loaf pans. These loaves may also be formed into oval or round loaves and placed on baking sheets. Allow to rise in a warm place until almost doubled in bulk. Bake the loaves in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes.

My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.

Delicious Guatemalan Dessert

Today I made Plantains in Mole Sauce for dessert. Called "Mole de Platano" or "Platanos en Mole" in Guatemala, this is one dessert that I learned to make that has been enjoyed even by some of my family here in the States. I am from the States, and lived in Guatemala in the 1970s. I enjoyed learning to cook all the great foods down there. Makes me really wish my children lived nearer, because at this time of year tamales would be wonderful to make. The recipe makes a huge amount, so it isn't easy to have 60 tamales around. I would be eating them forever. Not a problem except that is a lot of tamales! Guatemalan tamales are at least double or triple the size of a Mexican tamal. One makes a meal, unless you are supremely hungry.

Mole de Platano or Plantains in Mole Sauce

I digress. I guess I have been dreaming of tamales, too. Oh well. Today I made the plantains instead. I haven't made this dessert in quite a while. The recipe calls for some ingredients that you may find strange if you are not accustomed to the Central American penchant for mixing savory ingredients into sweets. It calls for sesame seeds (ajonjoli) and pumpkin seeds (pepitoria), true cinnamon, tomatillos and Roma tomatoes. It also calls for one of the Guatemalan breads that is more like a cookie, made into crumbs for thickening. These cookie-like breads are called Champurradas. That is another very Guatemalan thing; using a bread or crumbs of some kind for thickening a sauce. And lastly is chocolate, which makes the dish. The chocolate used in Guatemala is more like the Mexican Chocolate tablets you can find in some groceries or Mexican groceries. The Mexican or Guatemalan chocolate tablets are large, because they have sugar in them already, along with other flavors such as cinnamon or vanilla.

That is all the sauce ingredients, but then comes the plantains. Plantains are a much larger relative of the banana. They are very starchy and need to be cooked. One of the interesting things about plantains is that they can be used as a vegetable when green, or a dessert once ripe. If you are one of those (like me) who hate bananas once they get spots on the skin, you need to set that mindset aside when it comes to plantains. If a plantain's skin is unblemished, they are really, really green. To have a very sweet and ripe plantain, you must wait until it has nearly blackened. Then it is soft and sweet, and when cooked or fried is tender and delicious. To use as a vegetable, just cook the plantains that are yellow, but with unblemished skin.  They are quite hard still, but can be cooked in water and served that way.

For this dish it is best to have quite ripened plantains, because this will keep them softer in the dessert. If the dessert is refrigerated and the plantains were less than ripe, they will get hard in the sauce and not even heating it all again will help. It is still good, but never quite what it should be. This recipe is really delicious; if you have an adventuresome spirit, please give this recipe a try.

Mole de Platano or Plantains in Mole Sauce

Mole de Platano

or Plantains in Mole Sauce

Serves 6 to 8
3 plantains, very ripe, blackened and soft
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, unhulled variety
1½ tablespoons raw green pumpkin seeds
3 tomatillos, husks removed
3 Roma tomatoes
1 cup water
1 piece true cinnamon stick, about ½” worth
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
pinch salt
½ ounce unsweetened chocolate OR 1 whole tablet Mexican chocolate
1 large handful of simply flavored cookies, i.e. vanilla wafers, animal crackers, made into crumbs

Dry toasting sesame, pumpkin seeds,
tomatoes and tomatillos; frying plantains

In a dry skillet, toast, moving constantly, the sesame seeds until most of the seeds have popped, but have not turned too brown. Dump the seeds into a blender container. Repeat this process with the pumpkin seeds and then with the crumbled cinnamon stick to release its fragrance and add to the blender. Place the tomatillos and Roma tomatoes into the dry skillet and roll them around until the exteriors are charred and peeling. Add to the blender along with the cup of water. Blend until all the seeds and cinnamon are pulverized.

Pour this mixture into a medium saucepan and add in the sugar. Stir until the mixture begins to boil. Add the butter and salt, the chocolate and the cookie crumbs and cook until thickened and chocolate is melted.
Heat a skillet and add in some cooking oil. Peel the plantains and slice them about ¼-inch thick, on a bias. Fry the plantain slices until nicely browned and completely tender. Add them to the mole sauce as they are cooked. Once all plantain slices are done, mix well with the sauce and serve. Sprinkle with more sesame seeds as garnish.

My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.

Memories from Childhood and Comfort Food

I come from a large family. I am the oldest of seven children. My Mom and Dad liked to cook, and had to think of ways to stretch a meal to feed so many. Dad didn't have as much time to spend at home cooking, but now and again he would make one of his dishes. Some of his specialties were things like scrambled eggs with canned salmon, omelets, and his version of a Chicken Paprikas. As Dad's parents were both from what today is Serbia, his version of this Chicken Paprikas is far different from my Mom's Slovakian recipe. To avoid confusion, Dad started calling his version "Chicken Stew." I always loved both versions, but Dad's was made more rarely, as he wasn't always around to make it. Perhaps for that reason my excitement was greater when I knew Dad was going to make that for dinner.

Dad was an innovative cook, and liked experimenting and trying new things. He and Mom would collaborate on some recipes, such as their Bean Soup and Stewed Tomatoes. Dad always had a garden and loved to plant things to see what would grow. Some things were less exciting to us kids, such as the year he planted eggplant. We had never had eggplant before and it just didn't fly. I have learned to eat eggplant since then, but I never eat it without thinking of Dad.

In reminiscing about Dad today, I made his version of Chicken Paprikas, or Chicken Stew, and I will share this recipe here:

Dad's Chicken Paprikas, aka Chicken Stew

Dad's Chicken Paprikas, aka Chicken Stew

Serves 6 to 8

1 whole chicken, cut into about 12 pieces
2 tablespoons butter
3 - 4 tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika
1 large onion, cut in 1-inch chunks
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch chunks
3 - 4 carrots, peeled, sliced
3 - 4 medium potatoes, peeled, cut into 1½-inch chunks
1½ teaspoons salt
Pepper, freshly ground, to taste
4 cups water

Cut the chicken into wings, thighs, legs, and after dividing the breast, cut each breast portion in half, and cut the back in half. Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven, and begin browning the chicken pieces; when browned, remove to a plate and brown the rest. Sprinkle paprika over both sides of all the pieces and return to the pot with the onion, garlic and green peppers. Toss to begin softening for about 5 minutes. Add in the water, salt, pepper and potatoes. This part should take about ½ hour. Bring the pot to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, put a lid on the pot and allow to stew for about 1½ hours, or until the meat is beginning to fall off the bones. Check for seasoning. Serve in soup bowls.


My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.

Maple Bacon Muffins - Hungry anyone?

This morning I was thinking of something different. I hadn't made muffins in a long time. I haven't kept bacon around either, but I happened to have some just now. I started thinking on this last night, so it played in my brain all night, and this morning I tried out making muffins with bacon and maple syrup.

I started putting things together, and frying the bacon. I was wondering if the muffins would turn out too sweet. I needn't have worried. To my taste, they are perfect. The bacon provides enough saltiness to offset the sweet. I ate two of them for breakfast. Oh were they ever good. Mmmm-mmm.

Maple Bacon Muffins

Maple Bacon Muffins

Makes 12

MUFFINS:
12 strips thin sliced bacon (or 6 slices of thick sliced bacon)
2 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup milk 1/4 cup maple syrup
1 stick of butter1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs

STREUSEL:
2 tablespoons softened butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour

Cut the bacon into small pieces and fry to your desired doneness. Set on paper towels to drain. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease or spray with cooking spray a 12 cup muffin tin.

Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. Separately, combine the milk and maple syrup. Cream together the butter and brown sugar, then blend in the eggs. Add in the flour mixture and stir, alternately with the milk mixture until just combined. Do not over beat. Fold in the bacon. Divide batter between the muffin cups.

Some might feel the streusel is too much, in which case, omit.  I love streusel, so I used it, and the muffins were great.

Make the streusel. This is easiest with fingers. Combine the 3 ingredients until they are well mixed and crumbly. Put about 2 or so teaspoons of streusel on top of each muffin in tin. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Turn muffins out of tins to cool.


My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.

Russian Tea Cakes to Pistachio Tea Cookies

I am making cookies. 

Slowly. 

Pistachio Tea Cookies

A couple of days ago I made Russian Tea Cakes (aka Snowballs, Mexican Wedding Cakes), which are high on my favorites list. I love walnuts, and have always made them with walnuts. I love shortbread and shortbread type cookies too, so these are a hit for me, no matter how you look at them. My whole family is crazy about these cookies, so it is no surprise they turn up on the list each year.

I saw somewhere on the internet that these cookies have been made in variations. One was using pistachio and green tea powder. Another I saw was a chocolate version. I just happened to have both pistachios and green tea powder, so I took my original recipe and played with ingredients and came up with my own version, called Pistachio Tea Cookies. They turned out just delicious, even making a contender for first place in my cookie-loving heart.

A caveat about the Matcha green tea powder. Not all the Match sold is equal, not by a long shot. The better the quality, the brighter and denser the green of the powder. My first experience in buying Matcha was with no knowledge, and I bought a cheaper brand. It was very pale green, so light that it was difficult to get a real green color in these cookies. I used a full ¼ cup of the Matcha powder and it yielded a pale green cookie. Even the little bits of pistachio in the cookie were more noticeably green. If using a higher quality Matcha powder, you might need far less of it in these cookies. 

Pistachio Tea Cookies

Pistachio Tea Cookies

makes about 7 1/2 dozen cookies 

2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon pistachio flavoring
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 1/4 cups flour
2 - 4 tablespoons matcha green tea powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups unsalted raw pistachios, finely ground

Cream together the butter, confectioners' sugar and flavorings.  If pistachio flavor is not available, use either all almond, or half almond and half vanilla extracts. Using a pastry cutter, cut into the creamed mixture the flour, matcha green tea powder and salt.  Add in the nuts and blend well. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Form small balls about 1 inch in diameter and place on ungreased cookie sheets to bake for 14 - 16 minutes or until just set but not browned.

ready to bake

I found this dough worked really well with no need to chill it before making the cookies. I used a small cookie scoop 1¼ inch in diameter and packed the dough into the little scoop and dropped the cookies this way onto the cookie sheet. They were so cute! The scoop holds just over 2 teaspoons of dough, and these are just the perfect size.  Using one of these scoops makes cookies a real snap.  I would recommend that everyone invest in at least a couple of these smaller sizes.



My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.

Cookie Baking Time is Upon Us with Snowballs

Snowballs or Russian Tea Cakes

The holidays are approaching quickly, and cookie baking time is here. I started yesterday, making the little round Russian Teacakes, also known as Snowballs or Mexican Wedding Cakes. I have eaten these cookies for the better part of my 62 years, and they remain some of my most favorite. They just burst in your mouth, and the flavor is heaven. I have made some cookies all the years I have been baking and others have been left by the wayside. Some new ones have come up to take their places.

My husband loves Cherry Bon Bons, with little bits of dough wrapped around a drained maraschino cherry. They are delicious, if you love those cherries. When I was really young, I loved some that were called Snickerdoodles.  Last year about this time I was working on a family cookbook from all my mother-in-law's recipes, and found one recipe called "Crisco Cookies," that was the same recipe as the old Snickerdoodles!

I have stopped making Spritz cookies in a cookie press, as they were more trouble than they were worth no matter how decadently delicious. My Mom would make Spritz with her trusty cookie press, and then either brush them with an egg yolk wash and adorn with bits of candied cherries, or on some of the cookies, she would beat up egg whites with some sugar, then fold in finely ground walnuts and brush some of this mixture on the cookies before baking. These are also in my top three of cookie preferences.


Kifli with Apricot Filling: Ready to Bake

In Guatemala, armed with the Joy of Cooking, I made some spiced bars that turned out hard as little rocks, but with excellent flavor.  They were a hit at breakfast to dunk in coffee. The coffee softened them enough to eat, with an added dimension of flavor. Other cookies I made were little rolled cookies with ground almonds and cardamom. These are just excellent but I haven't made them for many years. Some that were always a hit with my children were thumbprints, but these were made with an exceptional amount of cinnamon added in, and with a half red or green glaceed cherry stuck on top.

When I was a teenager and dating, I went to a boyfriend's house and ate cookies his mom called Forgotten Cookies. They were meringues, baked, then left overnight in the oven.  I fell in love with them, but only just made them a few years ago for the first time.  Melt in your mouth good, and light! Others I have tried are cookies with date filling, either a two layered cookie with a section cut out of the top cookie, or made into a filling in a pie dough square.

Snowballs or Russian Tea Cakes

Snowballs or Russian Tea Cakes

Makes 7 dozen

2 cups unsalted butter
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cup finely ground nuts (we always used walnuts)
Extra confectioners' sugar for rolling and storing

Cream together the butter, confectioners' sugar and vanilla. Using a pastry blender cut in the flour, salt and nuts; blend in until crumbly. Chill the dough. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Form the dough into 1 inch balls and place on an ungreased baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake until set, but not browned, about 15 minutes. While still warm, roll in confectioners' sugar. Allow to cool and roll in more confectioners' sugar. When storing, sprinkle more confectioners' sugar over and around the cookies, as they soak up quite a bit.


Similar to this, but far more elegant and flaky are the Kifli my Grandma used to make.  These are made with a delicate dough made with lard (for best flakiness), and cut into little circles or squares.  A filling of cooked apricots or prunes are the two I remember most, and this was placed in the center of each circle or square and then the pastry pinched together over top. After baking, they are sprinkled with confectioners' sugar.

We all have favorites, and we all have different memories of our favorite cookies.  Whichever they may be, have a wonderful time baking memories!


My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.

Dreaming of Tamales

I lived in Guatemala for just about 12 years, from early 1970 to late 1981. I was married to a Guatemalan man, and had all four of my children while down there.  I learned to speak the language very well, and learned to cook many of the foods, including Tamales.

While the marriage didn't last, the memories of the country, the people, the food, and all I learned down there stays with me always. I learned to cook down there. All from scratch, too. My older 3 children remember the foods very well. The youngest was just turning 3 when we moved back to the States. She recalls the foods because of what I have continued to cook. Food memories are very strong, and they really evoke the feeling of time and place, so whenever I make something Guatemalan, I am at once back there in memory. I have a lot of very lovely memories of my time there, and am eternally grateful that I had the chance to experience that culture.

Paches Guatemaltecos, photo courtesy of Guatemala.com

The recipe for tamales that got me dreaming today is the one traditionally made at Christmas time. There are savory tamales and "sweet" tamales, for Christmas. The savory ones have a red sauce over top (made red by free use of annato seeds), and the sweet ones have chocolate added to their sauce. When I first went down there with my Dad, I tried them, but didn't much care for them. Too different, to a not-quite-twenty-year-old.  The sweet tamales were passable. As time went on, and I learned to make them and ate them more and more often, I swung over to loving the savory ones far more.

Making Tamalitos de Elote

Tamales are just about anything wrapped into packets and steamed. In Guatemala, "tamales" are generally thought of as the ones I just posted the recipe for, but other things are also tamales, such as "Paches", which are a potato based tamal, rather than corn and / or rice.  Then "Tamalitos de Elote", which are tiny sweet tamales made from not quite dry field corn, ground and folded into the same green corn husks - delicious!  I finally got an opportunity to get some field corn last year and made them for the first time in over 30 years.  I photo documented every step of the way.  And then forgot to get a photo of a finished tamalito, unwrapped.  

Tamalitos de Elote, photo courtesy of KiwiLimon.com

Some tamalitos (meaning "little tamales") are just corn masa dough, and my ex father-in-law was particularly fond of "Tamalitos de Chipilin".  Chipilin is a weed/herb used mainly in Mexico and Central America. It is sometimes mixed into the plain corn masa dough. One last type of tamal is called a "Chuchito" (see one below, to the right), and it is the most similar to what we in the States know as Mexican tamales.

So, I spent the day reminiscing and longing for some of the foods I ate while in Guatemala. I wish I could share them with all of you! Unfortunately, with no access to maxan leaves, nor even banana leaves, I haven't made tamales for a long time now. Thus, I have no photos of my own. For now, here is my recipe, from my mother-in-law:

Tamales Colorados y Negros with one Chuchito

courtesy of AntiguaDailyPhoto.com

Tamales Quetzaltecos

Makes 60 to 80 tamales

INGREDIENTS:
1 turkey, cut up into 2 - 3-inch chunks, bone and all (at least 12 lbs)
2 pounds white rice (3 pounds for larger amount)
1 pound white hominy (2 pounds for larger amount)
12 ounces shortening or lard (less if stock is fatty)
1 large pinch saffron
4 ounces unhulled sesame seeds
4 ounces pumpkin seeds
12 tomatillos
12 roma tomatoes
4 red bell peppers
1 dried hot red chile (optional)
2 dried pasilla or ancho chiles
3 inches of stick cinnamon (true cinnamon)
4 whole cloves
4 slices day-old French bread
4 tablespoons shortening or lard

FOR SAVORY TAMALES:
salt, to taste
½ cup annato seeds (or more, as needed)

FOR SWEET TAMALES:
sugar, to taste
"Mexican style" chocolate, to taste

TO ADORN:

• bottled whole pimientos, cut into long thin strips
• capers
• olives, with pits
• almonds, blanched, peeled, sliced
• raisins
• prunes

1. Two days in advance, wash the rice, rinse and drain. Set it to dry on large flat cookie sheets with rims.

2. The day before, cut up the turkey (or chicken or pork or duck) into pieces of a size for the tamal, put them in a very large pot and boil with the saffron, some salt (do not over salt at this time), and an onion. Bring to a boil and cook till meat is done. Remove from heat and set to cool. If the pot is too large for the fridge, outside is fine (in winters up north!) as long as it is cold out and the pot has a strong lid!

3. The morning of Tamal Day, remove the meat pieces to a bowl and strain the stock into another large pot. Bring the stock to a boil.

4. The rice should be thoroughly dry. If not, set in a very low oven with the door ajar and turn often, till dry. Grind the rice in a grain mill till fine, but still with granules. It should not be flour! More like the consistency of Cream of Rice cereal. Do not try to substitute Cream of Rice Cereal - I tried it and it comes out FAR too runny!

5. Grind or blend the hominy till very fine with a bit of water. Mix in more water till you have about a quart of liquid or so. Set aside.

6. Once the stock is boiling, and stirring constantly, pour in the rice in a fine stream, till all incorporated. If the stock was not too fatty, or you are using water instead of stock, add the 12 oz. of shortening or lard, otherwise cut this quantity in half.

7. As the rice begins to cook, add, a little at a time, the liquidized hominy, stirring continually. Be careful that the heat is not too high so the masa does not burn. (Be very careful to wear oven mitts to stir, as the masa, once boiling, can burn badly!) Once the masa begins to boil, allow it to boil for about 15 minutes, stirring all the while. This takes about one hour, total. Remove from heat.

8. Continue to stir the masa, off the heat, until it is cool enough to insert a finger for about a half-minute without getting burnt. (Here is where someone to help comes in handy.) This maintains softness and pliability of the masa; otherwise it would cool to one large lump!

9. Once cooled, separate into two containers; one for savory and one for sweet. Add salt to the savory masa and sugar to the sweet. If the masa has thickened too much, add some water to thin it and stir well.

FOR THE SAUCE(S) (Recado)
1. In a dry skillet, over medium high heat, toast separately - the sesame seeds, the pumpkin seeds, the cinnamon and cloves. Be especially careful of the sesame and pumpkin seeds – they will continue to cook once off the heat and can burn! Once burnt, you will need to start over with fresh seeds, the burnt flavor is that bad.

2. In a good-sized saucepan, put the tomatoes, tomatillos, red bell peppers (seeds and stems cut out), the “Pasilla” or “Ancho” dried chiles (whole – remove seeds and stems after cooking), and the hot dried chile, if desired, and nearly cover with water. Set to cook until all are cooked through. Take the Ancho or Pasilla Chiles and remove stems and seeds. Saving the cooking water, remove all the vegetables to a blender or a food mill (Food mill will remove skin and seeds, resulting in a smoother sauce).

3. Grind the seeds and spices finely in a food grinder, or put them into the blender with a little of the pureed vegetables as a liquid base and blend till fine. Add the spices to the pureed vegetables. Add a little ground black pepper, to taste.

4. Put the 4 pieces of French bread into the cooking water until they have softened, then blend them to a fine paste also; add to the sauce. Stir the sauce over medium heat till it thickens slightly and add the 2 oz. of shortening or lard. Once incorporated, take off heat and divide into two pots – one for the savory tamales and one for the sweet.

5. In the pot for the savory sauce, use annato seeds to color and flavor, till you get a nice orange color. (In a small saucepan, heat a very small amount of water with a handful of annato seeds, till it begins to give off color. Then rub through a sieve or a food mill to extract as much color as possible.) Add a bit of salt, to taste.

6. In the pot for the sweet sauce, add Mexican Chocolate, grated (this contains sugar already, so there is no need to add sugar). If no Mexican chocolate is available, use (½ square at a time) Baker's unsweetened chocolate to reach the desired color, then add sugar to taste. The sweetness should be distinguishable, but not terribly sweet. Too much sugar will also thin the sauce.

PREPARE LEAVES:
1. If using banana leaves fresh – wash well, then pass them through boiling water to soften.

2. If using frozen banana leaves, thaw, and wash.

3. If no leaves are available, use squares of parchment.

4. With leaves, you will need a larger outer “wrapper” plus an inner “serving” leaf per tamal.

5. With parchment, just the one sheet is all that is needed. 



My passion is to teach people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and help pass along my love and joy of food, both simple and exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, trying new things weekly. Join me at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook and Pinterest.