Gypsy Jan - 6-28-2013 at 10:03 AM
From Steve’s excellent blog:
http://www.ranchogordo.typepad.com/
"Earlier this year, I met up with my Xoxoc friends, Yunuen and Gabriel (with their one year old daughter) for a short adventure along the southern
coast. We headed for the Costa Chica of Guerrero and the went north to visit Araceli, the woman who makes our chocolate. I've mentioned her before,
but it's no exaggeration to say that most people who meet her have a huge crush on her. She's a strong, small, beautiful, quiet woman who very
cleverly gets things done. The success of our selling her chocolate has cut into the quality of her life but she did manage to host us in
Xochistlahuaca, where we saw how she slow roasts the coffee on a clay comal over a wood fire before grinding it with canela and piloncillo (cinnamon
and unrefined sugar).
We met her lovely parents and brothers and then toured nearby La Guadalupe for local clay pots. We ended up spending most of the trip buying great
clay cookware. There's a distinct coastal style that has red clay and black burn marks that is especially beautiful and makes things delicious.
We ate a lot of great food but a simple squash in a chile sauce was the highlight, especially because it was accompanied by Araceli's mother's
homemade tortillas. Most Mexican dishes seem to favor the squash seeds to the meat but in Oaxaca and parts of Guerrero I'm noticing more and more
winter squash recipes. Try serving some cooked squash pieces in a thin enchilada sauce and see if you don't agree.
After buying more ollas, cazuelas and water pots than a person should be allowed, we drove on along the coast of Oaxaca, swimming and hunting for clay
until we came to Tehuantapec where I was tempted to buy a traditional huipil, skirt and headpiece, just to have them, but I sadly was able to control
myself. And there are no photos, so don't ask!"