The Quinceañera Story and A Homemade Mayonnaise Recipe

My mom just recently celebrated her 101st birthday. (It's still weird to say that.)

As people do when they get older, she repeats stories that she particularly likes or maybe it's that the memory gets fresher as time passes. Either way, as her birthday approached, she would tell the story of her 15th birthday. 

In Cuba, as in other spanish-language countries, the 15th birthday is a Big Deal. It's the quinceañera, people! 

For her 15th birthday, which she celebrated in 1929, she received a few gifts from her mother and great aunts. This day might have been lost down the memory hole, but for the other gift that she received that day, which was this photograph.

Her gifts were that beautiful Spanish Comb in her hair and the mantilla she's wearing. She also remembers vividly one of her aunts making her a big jar of delicious homemade mayonnaise. 

This is the memory that stops her in her tracks. She gets this dreamy look on her face as she time travels back to the taste of The Best, Most Delicious Homemade Mayonnaise. It was made with olive oil and eggs and a squeeze of lemon and apparently it was to die for.

I've heard the Quinceañera and Mayonnaise story a million times. And as we were approaching her 101st birthday, I was at a loss for what to get her as a gift. I wanted it to be special. 

Wait. What if I made homemade mayonnaise?

Yes. Perfect.

I wanted to make it simple, but I wanted the flavor to be exquisite. It's a simple process, but it's also a science experiment that can quickly go wrong if the ingredients don't emulsify well. 

Luza's Homemade Mayonnaise

INGREDIENTS

• 1 egg yolk (at room temperature - very important!)
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (I went with a Meyer lemon for color and flavor)
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 tablespoon mustard 
• 1 cup olive oil (I used garlic infused avocado oil for a lighter flavor)
• Salt to taste (I like kosher salt)
• Container for the mayonnaise, preferably with a top, like a mason jar

Directions

1) Place egg yolk, lemon juice, water, and mustard in jar.

2) Slowly pour over olive oil and gently whisk together. I used a whisk at the beginning, but traded up to an immersion blender towards the end.

What you're looking for is for the emulsification which is a fancy word for "when it thickens up."

3) Season with kosher salt to taste. Can be stored in the refrigerator for about 3 to 4 weeks.

NOTE: It came out that dark yellow color because I used a Meyer lemon and organic egg yolks which tend to have more color. The taste was worth it.

Full disclosure: The unthinkable happened. It didn't emulsify on the first round.

I HAD BROKEN THE MAYONNAISE! I collapsed into a defeated mess. After all that careful choosing of the perfect ingredients and careful blending, I had failed. *sigh*

Thank goodness for Google, my self-esteem (and the mayonnaise) were not beyond repair.

Here's a tip: If your mayonnaise doesn't emulsify, get another clean bowl into which you add 2 room temperature egg yolks and a teaspoon of cold water. 

Now, add your broken mayonnaise to that and blend away. At this point I used the immersion blender because I was starting to feel a little superstitious, but that's not important right now.

Hallelujah! It worked!

My mom loved it. She was thrilled that I remembered the story. (Which, of course, was easy, because she's told it a bizzillion times, but that's not important right now.)

The party was a great success as we celebrated her 101 years on this earth. She was surrounded by those she loves most and it was a super happy day.

Are you looking for a perfect gift for your 101 year old parent? May I suggest a jar of homemade mayonnaise? 

Arroz con Maiz Recipe - An Original Thanksgiving Side Dish Cuban-style

Thanksgiving with my big, fat, Cuban family is usually a very typical American feast. But because my family has so many amazing cooks, we're often trying new recipes and sometimes we like to put a spin on some old classics. 

Our turkeys have run the gamut from deep-fried to classically oven-baked to (my favorite) the Guavalicious Bird. 

I started mentally listing the side dishes we usually enjoy with our Thanksgiving turkey:

• Mashed Potatoes
• Stuffing
• Green Bean Casserole
• Sweet Potatoes
• Cranberries
• Corn

And as much as I love these foods and the lovely blending of these flavors with the turkey, I sometimes crave the familiar. By that I mean something that starts with a sofrito, of course.

So I opted to take a traditional Thanksgiving side dish (corn) and added a Cuban spin to it. (Because I can.)

Arroz con maiz

That's right. This year, our Thanksgiving table will be graced by a big, fat, pot of Arroz con Maiz (that's Rice with Corn for those of you who dimly remember Spanish 101). 

Arroz con Maiz Recipe - Cuban-style

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 1 medium green bell pepper, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cups long grain white rice
• 1 envelope Goya Sazón con Azafran
• 1/4 cup white cooking wine
• 3 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup canned corn, drained
• Salt & pepper to taste

Sofrito ingredients

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic, and saute for 5 to 7 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Be careful not to brown them.
3. Add the tomato sauce and bay leaves, cook for 5 minutes.
4. Add the rice and stir well.
5. Add the Goya seasoning, white cooking wine, and stock, stirring to combine.
6. Reduce the heat to low, add the corn and fluff the rice with a fork.
7. Cover the pan and continue cooking for about 20 minutes, until the rice is tender and fluffy.
8. Taste the rice, adding salt & pepper to taste.

Buen Provecho and Happy Thanksgiving!

Churrasco con Chimichurri Recipe

A Simple Barbecue

My husband, Eric, invited one of his clients over for dinner the other night, and he asked me not to make a fuss.

“Let’s just barbecue,” he said.

“Fine,” I said, “I’ll just do a simple Cuban-style barbecue.”

So, I didn’t make a fuss . . .

I made a mouth-watering Churrasco con Chimichurri. 

For the uninitiated, Churrasco is a garlicky, marinated flap or skirt steak that is barbecued and served with a flavorful sauce called Chimichurri.

“Umm… Honey? If this is simple, what’s an elaborate Cuban barbecue?”

Churrasco

Churrasco Estilo Cubano Recipe

• 3- 4 lbs. Skirt or Flap steak (NOT Flank)

Ingredients for Marinade:

• 20 – 30 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
• 1 ½ cup bitter orange juice
• ½ cup white onion, minced
• 2 tsp. oregano
• ½ cup olive oil

For Steak Marinade:

1) In a food processor or blender, process garlic and pepper to form a paste.

Churrasco garlic

2) Remove from processor and stir in bitter orange juice and oregano.

3) Let sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

4) Whisk in the olive oil until it’s well blended.

Preparing steak:

1) Remove steak from package and pat dry.

2) Place in a large bowl or flat Pyrex dish and cover with marinade.

Cuban garlic marinade

3) Cover and refrigerate for approximately two hours.

Chimichurri Sauce

1 bunch of cilantro leaves (or fresh parsley leaves)

8 cloves garlic

¼ cup vinegar

Juice of one lime

½ cup white onion

¼ cup sweet sweet roasted pepper strips (Vlasic)

3 Tbsp. oregano

2/3 cup olive oil

Salt & Pepper to taste

Chimichurri sauce

1) Put all ingredients EXCEPT olive oil in blender or processor and pulse to a thick mixture.

2) Do not over-process!

3) Remove from processor and whisk in olive oil - very important! .

4) Add salt and pepper liberally.

To cook:

1) Remove meat from marinade and grill on a pre-heated grill over medium high heat. Cook to desired doneness, but the more rare, the more flavorful.

Churrasco steak

2) Serve hot, topped with Chimichurri Sauce.

Here's a video with step-by-step instructions on how to make the Chimichurri Sauce of Awesomeness®.

Churrasco con chimichurri

WARNING! Chimichurri is highly addictive! Have lots of Cuban bread available for extra dipping! =D

Buen Provecho!

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Cuban S'mores Recipe. Believe it.

We're gearing up for the 4th of July around here. And frankly, that means All-American food. Burgers and hot dogs and stuff like that.

Eric picked up a fire-bowl-thing a few weeks ago from Home Depot. He thought it might be fun to enjoy a fire in our back yard every now and then. And he was right. We're kind of loving it. 

The combination of 4th of July, hot dogs, summer, and fire-bowl-thingy just scream "S'mores!" to me.

When I was a girl scout and went on my first camping trip, "s'mores" were on the menu. I was about 10 years old and still fairly new to this country.

All of us were given un-bent (<--is that a word?) wire coat hangers and marshmallows and I followed the lead of the other girls as they put their marshmallows into the fire. What strange food ritual was I being initiated into? 

"S'mores!" They said it with such passion. What was this food that inspired so much ecstasy?

Then I tasted my first s'more. And I got it.

The passage of time has not diminished my love of the graham cracker with melted marshmallows and chocolate prepared over an open flame, but I felt like it needed something slightly different. Maybe a touch of....Cubanity? (<--is that a word?)

Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce you to..... *drum roll, please*

Cuban S'mores Recipe!

I know you're already asking, "How is this fabulousness achieved?"

The secret is in the Marias. Maria cookies instead of graham crackers. Genius. (Deliciously genius.)

INGREDIENTS

• Marshmallows
• Chocolate bars (broken into pieces)
• Maria Cookies (You heard right. MARIAS! It's what gives this s'more its Cubanity.)

1) Heat the marshmallow over an open flame until it begins to melt and brown on the outside.

2) Place a few squares of the chocolate on a Maria cookie.

3) Place the hot, cooked marshmallow on the chocolate.

4) Sandwich with another Maria cookie. If you like the taste of more chocolate, place more squares over the marshmallow before you top with the other cookie.

5) Allow the marshmallow to cool just a bit before eating.

Come back here and tell me how much you love this.

You're welcome!

You can get Maria cookies online at the Cuban Food Market.

{Full disclosure: This idea came from one of my Facebook followers. If you are not yet part of that "relajo," please follow My Big, Fat, Cuban Family on Facebook. Who knows what they will think of next? Damn Cubans.}

Pastel de Pollo

Viva La Difference!

I started grade school here in the U.S. without speaking a word of English. In fact, I was one of only a handful of newly exiled Cuban kids at the time. Yes, only a few Cubans in Miami. I know. Weird.

I tried hard to fit in and learned to speak English pretty quickly (I’m a living argument for English immersion, but that’s not important right now). I learned the ways of my new country and the inflections and nuances of my new language. I swear I was assimilating beautifully most days, except for... LUNCH TIME.

If there was anything that screamed, “I’m different!” it was the lunches my mom packed for me.

Picture the lunchtime scene with all the American kids opening their lunch boxes and reaching for their Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches on Wonder Bread, and little Marta trying to covertly eat a Papa Rellena, or some Galletas Preparadas, or a Pastel de Pollo. (sigh) This is where my new language failed me. “Umm… it’s like a mashed potato, but with meat in the center…” I would try to explain but couldn’t find the words to describe Picadillo. (I still can’t, but that’s not important right now, either. =D) However, I can still remember the puzzled looks and the feeling of being oh-so-different. (heavy sigh)

In retrospect, I think, Papa Rellena?! Croquetas?! Pastel de Pollo?!! Versus Peanut Butter and Jelly??
You know, come to think of it, "Different" is a VERY. GOOD. THING.

My Cuban lunches ROCKED!! 

Pastel de Pollo

• 1 pkg. Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Sheets
• 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (you can use breasts if you prefer, the thighs fall apart better. =D)
• Garlic powder
• Olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 – 6 oz. can tomato paste
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup green, pimiento-stuffed olives, diced
• 1 small jar diced pimientos (sweet red peppers)
• 1 small can young peas
• Salt and pepper to taste

1) Place chicken in a large saucepot, sprinkle with garlic powder and cook until tender. About 40 minutes. Drain. Allow to cool and set aside. You can also use leftover chicken. Then trick is to make sure it falls apart easily.

2) In a large skillet, sauté the onion, bell pepper and garlic in the olive oil, until the onion is translucent.

3) Add tomato paste and white wine and cook over low heat for about 5 minutes or until heated through.

4) When the chicken has cooled to the touch, shred and add to the sofrito mixture in the skillet. Mix well.

5) Finally, add the raisins, olives, pimientos and peas.

6) Cook for another 5 minutes, stirring to mix well.

7) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

8) Thaw the puff pastry according to package directions.

9) Use parchment paper to line your pan or cookie sheet.

10) Unfold one of the pastry sheets and place on the pan.

11) Spread the chicken mixture to the ends of the pastry.

12) Unfold second pastry sheet and place on top of chicken.

13) Cut into squares before baking.

14) Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes or until golden brown.

15) Serve hot or cold.

It makes a great lunch… if you’re tired of PB & J sandwiches.