Traditional findings from Guanajuato, Mexico.

We enjoyed the city of Guanajuato in the state of Guanajuato. We could have spent weeks here exploring the surroundings and the food. However, I can only show you a delicious “paleta”.

A paleta is a Mexican ice pop usually made from fresh fruit. The name comes from palo, or “stick,” and the diminutive ending -eta, referencing the little flat stick frozen into each item; the stores, carts, and kiosks where they are sold are known as paleterías, and the sellers are called paleteros. They can be made with milk or water, I had a strawberry milk based paleta for $13 pesos.
Many paleterías have “Michoacana” in their names, and it’s believed that paletas were first sold in the state of Michoacan in western Mexico or in Mexico City in the 1940s.

Traditional findings from Jalisco, Mexico.

In Jalisco you can find tequila, some of it is produced in Tequila (town that gave the name to “tequila”) but also you can find lots of other things that may not be as healthy as tequila but still enjoyable and reasonably priced. Some of these findings may not be originated here but for sure they are traditionally made here…

We were in Guadalajara (capital of Jalisco) and found couple of snacks that can actually be a meal… they were big…


Chayotes: $13 pesos for a plate.
Chayote also known as christophene, vegetable pear, mirliton, choko, starprecianté, citrayota, citrayote (Ecuador and Colombia), chuchu (Brazil), chow chow (India) or pear squash is an edible plant that belongs to the gourd family Cucurbitaceae along with melons, cucumbers and squash.
Chayote was one of the many foods introduced to Europe by early explorers, who brought back a wide assortment of botanical samples. The age of conquest also spread the plant South from Mexico, ultimately causing it to be integrated into the cuisine of many other Latin American nations. The main growing regions are Costa Rica and Veracruz, Mexico. Costa Rican chayotes are predominantly exported to the European Union whereas Veracruz is the main exporter of chayotes to the United States.
In this little establishment chayotes were offered cooked (boiled) on a plate with cheese and other condiments…


Esquites: $13 pesos for a little container.
They are made with boiled corn kernels, mayonnaise, cheese, lemon, salt and spices. You can also get the entire corn with all the stuff mentioned. Either way it is a delicious snack!!!


Churros: $20 pesos for a plate with couple of churros.
Churros are made with flour, water, sugar and salt; this dough is introduced to a machine producing an elongated thin cylinder, it is then fried in oil and finally covered with sugar or cajeta.
Cajeta is a Mexican confection of thickened syrup usually made of sweetened caramelized milk.


Pancakes: $15 pesos/each with some options for toppings.
Pancakes or hot cakes are served on a plate with some toppings: jam or cajeta.

-Chayotes and Esquites-

-Elotes-

-Churros-

-Pancakes (in the left)-

Licuado de plátano.

This recipe can only be implemented if you have a blender. We were in Zapopan, Jalisco at my cousin’s friend’s friend home (I know…weird) and we prepared this wonderful easy breakfast. This reminded me my years in University when my mom used to make a similar shake for me.

Ingredients:
From the recipe Archie’s special (hot oatmeal):
Plain oatmeal
Raisins
Slivered almonds
Coconut flakes
Powder milk

Liquid milk
Bananas
Peanut butter


Preparation:
1) Put all the ingredients in the blender, blend for few seconds (depending on the consistency you may wish) and serve.

-Thanks Brian for introducing me to peanut butter, I love it!!!-

Traditional findings from Sinaloa, Mexico.

When we were in Mazatlan Sinaloa we cooked a lot, so tasting local food was not our main goal. However, we came across these wonderful tamales which are traditional in the entire country but each state/area has different types of tamales.

A tamal (Spanish: tamal, from Nahuatl: tamalli) is a traditional Latin American dish made of masa (a starchy dough, often corn-based), which is steamed or boiled in a leaf wrapper (banana leaf or corn leaf). The wrapping is discarded before eating. Tamales can be further filled with meats, cheese, vegetables, chilies or any preparation according to taste and both the filling and the cooking liquid may be seasoned.
Tamales were one of the staples found by the Spanish Conquistadors when they first arrived in Mexico and were soon widely spread throughout their other colonies. Tamales are said to have been as ubiquitous and varied as the sandwich is today.

The tamal we ate (mainly I did) was filled with chicken, veggies and sauce. Fantastic for only $10 pesos which really makes for a great meal, just one and you are full and happy…

I have to say that so far the best tamales I have ever tried are made by my mom and pretty soon we will be eating them… This time I will learn how to make them so that one day I can cook them for you.

-Looks messy, tastes awesome!!!-

Tacos del Lerma.

Tacos are just amazing, healthy and cheap. In this recipe we use seasoned pork meat, spent $65.5 pesos for all the ingredients plus fruit and had leftovers for other recipes. A pack of beer (8) is $68 pesos, so those have to be used throughout several days to justify the expense.
A taco is always better with a beer, especially if you are feeling stress!!!

Ingredients:
Tortillas
Seasoned pork meat
Olive oil
Onion
Jalapeño
Cucumber
Lime
Fresh cheese
Avocado
Lime zest
Beer!!!

Preparation:
1) Cut the meat in strips and cook it with a little bit of olive oil, put aside.
2) Cut (in reasonable pieces) the onion, jalapeño and cucumber. Cut the limes in halves. Place everything in a container on the table.
3) Peel avocado. Place avocado and fresh cheese on the table, people can cut the pieces depending on how big they like them.
4) Warm up the tortillas and cover them with a cloth to keep them warm.
5) Prepare your taco by placing on the warm tortilla the meat, fresh cheese, avocado, a bit of lime juice, lime zest, onion and jalapeño. Pieces of cucumber can be included but since this taco is already “gordo” I suggest serving them in the side.
6) If you happen to have beer, go ahead and try…

Gorditas Mazatleñas.

Gorditas are typical in Mexico, they are different from place to place. Here in Mazatlan, I found the tick tortillas already made at the tortillería which saves a lot of time, it is just the matter of putting on top whatever you like. In some states these are also called “Picaditas” because they are pinched in the middle. Anyway, I will refer to them as “Gorditas”.

Ingredients:
Gorditas
“Carne machaca” (dehydrated meat from Sonora)
Olive oil
Fresh cheese
Onion
Lime zest

Preparation:
1) Place the gordita on a pan and add a little bit of oil.
2) Add “Carne machaca” and let it cook for 1 minute.
3) Add lime zest, chunks of onion & fresh cheese.
4) Enjoy…

Finally Pineapple!!!

Finally we had just pineapple and enjoyed it very much. Simple, simple and delicious breakfast…

Ingredients:
Pineapple
Sweet bread (Pan de dulce)
Coffee

Preparation:
1) Peel the pineapple and cut it into wedges.
2) Serve the pineapple with “Pan de dulce” and coffee. We had a kiwi from another day so we ate it too!!!
3) Enjoy.