How nice it would be to have a cook book for Baja that used the local available food and flavors. If one exists please tell!!
If not, maybe we can start some sort of list. I know fish, rice, beans and tortilla's are a given, but what can I put on these or how to cook them to
add some flavor and variety. What are some good spices and toppings to bring from home? Any suggestions greatly appreciated.DENNIS - 1-8-2008 at 07:27 AM
Well, there is one that I know of and I'ts bound to come up here so I won't give the title. You'll know it for it's mystical reference.
My advice, knowing what I know, take it with a grain of salt.Marie-Rose - 1-8-2008 at 07:30 AM
I'm pretty sure I saw a cookbook at Tecolote Books in TS called "Cooking of Todos Santos"
Bajajudy will most certainly have all the titles and you can order from her... there are several out there.Paulina - 1-8-2008 at 09:18 AM
The only Baja cookbook that I have on my shelf here in the states is "Somethin's Fishy in Baja" by Patti Higginbotham. I have a couple others at
"home" in Mex. but can't recall the titles.
"I always felt more at home in Mexico than in the US and for years I pondered why. Now I know. I now know that my heart is Mexican. Mi corazón es
Mexicano. That is why I am here and I believe that because I am in Baja, the experiences I share now in Baja Magic Dos are more authentic. I’ve also
added 80 new recipes — some that I’ve created, many that I’ve discovered and several that were given to me by talented Baja chefs. There are lots more
surprises too... more stories, all new art, and more historical and culinary information. There are now 50 restaurant recipes from 31 Baja eateries
and two from our favorite US Mexican restaurants."
New recipes from old favorites from the first Baja Magic include Tío Pablo’s in Los Barriles, Pancho’s in Cabo, Caffé Todos Santos and the Buena Vista
Beach Resort. Eighteen of Baja’s hottest hotels, restaurants and bars are contributing for the first time here. They are: Hussongs and Taquería Mexico
(Ensenada), Pueblo Bonito (Cabo), Posada la Poza and Hotel California (Todos Santos), El Chilar, Hotel Tropicana, Brisas del Mar and Buzzard’s (San
Jose del Cabo), El Corral and Rancho Buena Vista (Buena Vista), Tacos Los Barriles (Los Barriles), Ray´s Place (Mulege), Isla Loreto (Loreto), Mr.
Azucar´s (La Paz) and the Giggling Marlin (Bahía de los Sueños). The chef on the Spirit of Endeavor, a small cruise ship that sails between Cabo, La
Paz and Loreto shared a recipe. My favorite stateside Mexican restaurants, Las Olas (in my former hometown of Cardiff, CA) and Chapala (in my current
summer hometown of McCall, ID) also inspired recipes.
In her website are several full recipes!
Here is just two!:
SOPA ROMPE CATRE — BROKEN COT SOUP
Next time you’re in La Paz, you have to visit Marcelo, the owner of Mr. Azucar’s (Mr. Sugar’s) Restaurant and Bar on 5 de Febrero, about four blocks
off the malecón. He is an imaginative, competent chef whose story-telling abilities are legendary. His menu is extensive and his prices very good. So
is the weekend musical entertainment. When I met him in 1997, he gave me the recipe for La Cola de la Sirena and it came with a story as delicious as
the dip itself. This Broken Cot Soup is no different. He explained to me that when it’s really hot and sticky in Mexico, people sleep on canvas and
wood cots under a fan or outdoors. The married folks tend to get a little rowdy sometimes and have been known to break their cots and end up on the
hard ground. He claims that this soup will induce such behavior because the catfish in it is an aphrodisiac! I can’t vouch for the story, but if you
try it and you break your cot, please let me know! This recipe serves about eight and the broth is wonderful with meat and nopales soup too!
2 pounds catfish fillet (no bones) cut into large chunks
1 pound crabmeat, cut into chunks
1 pound shrimp, skinned and deveined but with head attached
8 large tomatoes
2 tbsp vegetable oil
5 cups water
4 guajillo chiles, lightly toasted
20 chiles de arbol, lightly toasted
2 ancho chiles, slightly toasted
6 epazote leaves
2 medium white onions, puréed
10 cloves garlic, puréed
3 tbsp cider vinegar
¼ cup caldo de camarón o pollo (shrimp or chicken bouillon powder)
Salt and pepper to taste
8 large chunks queso fresco or feta cheese
In a large skillet, sauté tomatoes in oil until blackened and softened. Mix in bowl with one cup water, guajillo, arbol and ancho chiles. Add epazote,
onion, garlic, vinegar and shrimp bouillon. Purée in food processor until completely liquefied.
In Dutch oven, place puréed chile mixture. Add remaining water, catfish, crab and shrimp. Bring to boil and simmer for three to four hours. Serve
immediately with a chunk of queso fresco on the side. Now, prepare to play "crash the cot? tonight!
EL CHILAR ESQUITES CALLOS DE ALMEJA
CORN KERNELS AND SCALLLOPS WITH CHILE MAYONNAISE
El Chilar is one of the most happening restaurants in San Jose del Cabo. Located just across from the telephone company, it is on the cutting edge of
Nuevo Mexican cuisine. Each of the three owners, Ulises Méndez, Armando Montaño and Mónica Martinez de Montaño is especially talented in his/her own
way. Ulises is the general manager and a wine connoisseur. He has built El Chilar’s wine list into the largest and most moderately priced in all of
Los Cabos with 94 wines as of 2005. He specializes in the wines of Mexico (See Baja’s Boutique Wineries in the Bar section) and Latin America and
offers an unprecedented 21 by the glass. All foods are paired with a particular wine and all wait staff are trained to know which wine to recommend
with each dish.
The menu changes monthly. El Chilar is the name of the chile bush, so it’s understandable that every entrée features chile. Chef Armando wants clients
to understand that because chile is used in a dish, it doesn’t automatically mean that it will blow your head off. On the contrary, if used subtly,
chiles enhance the flavor of the food. Armando takes traditional Mexican recipes and fuses them with Asian and European ingredients, giving his
cuisine a contemporary Mexican flare. His use of local organic produce makes it even more interesting.
Mónica is a public relations whiz. Her warm, friendly personality makes diners feel immediately welcome and special. She is decorating an epicurean
corner of the restaurant with contemporary exhibitions of fine Mexican art and art crafts so people can enjoy and learn more about Mexican artists,
culture and traditions. Dining at El Chilar is an amazing experience and one not to be missed on any visit to San Jose. In summer 2005 the trio opened
a wine bar next door to their restaurant, where people can enjoy a glass of wine or c-cktail while waiting for their table in comfort.
Armando told me this recipe reminds him of the corn and scallop c-cktails served right after church on Sundays in plazas all over Mexico. It’s made
with mayonnaise, so Ulises suggests enjoying it with a Pinot Grigio or a Monte Xanic Sauvignon Blanc. Serves four.
2 cups fresh corn kernels
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp chopped epazote
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp butter
1 lb small scallops
2 cups mayonnaise
Chile piquin powder to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
2 limónes (Mexican limes) or key limes
Queso cotija (can use feta) to use as garnish
In skillet, sauté corn in butter. Add garlic and epazote and a little water to make it slightly juicy. In another skillet, melt butter and olive oil.
Sear the scallops over high heat for a minute on each side. Add to corn and then add in mayonnaise, chile powder, salt and pepper. Serve in shrimp
c-cktail glasses and garnish each serving with a halved lime and a sprinkling of cheese.
[Edited on 1-8-2008 by David K]Slowmad - 1-8-2008 at 11:07 AM
Last year's Baja! Cooking on the Edge, by Deborah Schneider, is the absolute category killer in the genre.
Schneider is one of the top executive chefs in California, and a fine writer and researcher.
More important still, she knows Baja like the back of her hand, and is an outspoken advocate of wilderness preservation.
I consider this not just a fine collection of essays and recipes, but a strong candidate for the Baja book canon.
[Edited on 1-8-2008 by Slowmad]
Baja 'Home Improvement' Cookbook
Pompano - 1-8-2008 at 11:11 AM
Baja cooking: Picture yourself faced with starvation when the chief cook/baker is away..and not looking over your shoulder. Ingenuity comes into
play.
Many of us Baja souls have power tools sitting around our casas or campers going un-(or seldom)-used. Almost all of them, with a little imagination,
can be adapted to cooking.
A good belt sander will peel spuds in a jiffy. Take your power drill and poke a hole in the lid of a 15oz styrofoam cup and..presto..you've now got a
blender that's ideal for high-speed whipping. That jigsaw is great for slicing and dicing. A butane torch is perfecto for Pop Tarts Flambe au Grande
Mariner.
One Baja Home Improvement Recipe
Extra Sharp Carrot Cake (by special request for Natalie Ann - Nena)
This extra-easy Baja version of an old favorite is almost indistinguishable from traditional recipes (the Mexican cola and spices even turn the
Bisquick a rich, golden brown color). You can double the recipe and use a regular aluminum pie tin.
Ingredients
- 2 or 3 skinny carrots
- 1/2 handful brown sugar
- 1 can Mexican cola
- 1 pot pie tin
- 1 handful Bisquick
- 1/2 handful pumkin pie spices
- electric pencil sharpener
- butane torch
Instructions
1. Shred carrots in pencil sharpener (clean out shavings first)
2. Line bottom of pot pie tin with carrot shavings.
3. Add Bisquick, sugar, and spices.
4. Knead slowly with hands...release girlfriend/wife/significant other... and knead the Bisquick mixture slowly with hands, adding a small amount of
the cola. Continue to knead and add cola til batter is the consistancy of fresh Play-Doh.
5. Adjust sugar and spices to taste.
6. Bake with butane torch at 400 degrees for 15-22 minutes.
7. Remove from heat. When cool, carrot cake can be frosted with canned or aerosol frosting. A real health treat.
This cooking/baking business is piece of cake...carrot cake!Natalie Ann - 1-8-2008 at 11:51 AM
Oh thank you ever so much, Roger! This is exactly the kind of recipe I was hoping for. It's rich and sweet, easy and fun to make. The
torch has been my favorite horno for years and I'm excited about the sander. Use of power tools makes one feel so.... powerful.
Obviously you've heard of my addiciton to coca cola. But dough made with coca - never thought of that. What a good idea! Perhaps when I want to
make a 'healthier' cake for folks like Al, I'll include some of the pencil shavings. Good fiber, you know.
Well, I'm off to the kitchen now. Please thank Phyllis for her contribution to this recipe.
NenaAl G - 1-8-2008 at 01:16 PM
Nena... Gotta go to the store...got plenty of power toolsNatalie Ann - 1-8-2008 at 01:34 PM
Getting pencils, Al?
NenaAl G - 1-8-2008 at 01:40 PM
I usually start with a case when I an practicing with My belt sander... Hate spreading carrots...oh.. you said pencil sharpener...I have the suck on type.
EDIT: uh-oh that was suppose to be shredding carrots
[Edited on 1-8-2008 by Al G]bajajudy - 1-8-2008 at 02:04 PM
We do have Ann's book available and several other Mexican cookbooks. The "Baja, Cooking on the Edge" is also a good one.
I kind of like the ones from the local ladies. Almost every town has one. I have one from Mulege, Los Barriles, LigaMac here in Los Cabos. The
good thing about most of these local cookbooks is that the ingredients are readily available.elizabeth - 1-10-2008 at 10:26 AM
CONACULTA (Consejo Nacional para la Cultura y las Artes) published a series of cookbooks from each of the Mexican States. There is one entitled "La
Cocina Familiar en el Estado de Baja California Sur. It is published in Spanish With an introduction giving the history of BCS and providing a bit of
an understanding of how the "cuisine" of BCS developed.
I got my copy years ago at the Ley's in Hermosillo. Maybe Judy knows about how to get this book from CONACULTA.805gregg - 1-13-2008 at 09:07 AM
Not Baja but the best Mexican cookbook I have found is "The Cusines of Mexico" by Diana Kennedy. Try the carnitas easy and delicious.TMW - 1-13-2008 at 10:40 AM
There was a Baja cookbook out several years ago about wrapping food in foil and putting it on the engine and it cooked while you drive. Anyone
remember the name of it?
[Edited on 1-13-2008 by TW]Paulina - 1-13-2008 at 11:18 AM
TW,
I think I remember something to that effect. If it also contained making meatloaf inside of an onion, wrapped in foil and put into the campfire to
cook, then that's the same book. It's on my shelf in Bahia.
My dad was a heavy equipment operator. He used to cook/reheat his lunches on the motor of his Cat loader.
P<*)))><Pompano - 1-13-2008 at 11:32 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by TW
There was a Baja cookbook out several years ago about wrapping food in foil and putting it on the engine and it cooked while you drive. Anyone
remember the name of it?
[Edited on 1-13-2008 by TW]
TW...there are several cookbooks with engine or manifold cooking recipes. The originals have become collecter items..such as this one at Amazon
books:
When a few of us kids went on road trips-fishing or hunting way back when...we would always have some Beenie-Weenies, Dinty Moore beef stew, and an
aluminum foil packet handy. You just punched a couple of holes in the can tops and lunch was ready in a few minutes. When you raised the hoods of
our old jalopies you could always catch the aroma of pork and beans or burned macaroni-cheese. We had no cookbooks, just lots of heartburn.
It was a Baja-thing for us many years ago, too. We had quite a few hot lunches off the Jeep manifold back in the boonies. Hmm..I've still got quite
a supply of Beenie-Weenies left...
