Most of you are of the Old Stovetop School of Cuban Coffee Making Goodness. (Yay!)
And can I just tell you right now how much I love when you tell me about even the minutia of your life? I feel like we're sharing a cafecito at my kitchen table. So thank you all.
The winner of the Red IMUSA® Coffee Maker and Red Espresso Cups is:
Aida Nava said...
i'm not ashamed to say this, we fail at making any kind of espuma.. we have a stovetop maker but haven't mastered making anything delicous from it! but if i could get my hands on turkish coffee i'd be happy!
and...
The winner of the IMUSA® Nine Piece Stainless Steel Espresso Set is
Suzy said...
It's all about being old school. I first learned how to make espumita with my Tia Olimpia. She use to blend her coffee and sugar in one of those weird bottle/glasses that already made shrimp cocktail came in. (Not sure if they had those in Cali, but my guess is probably). Anyway I was always fasinated by the foam that was created in that weird little glass.
Congratulations to you both! Please shoot me an email with HEY MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG! in the subject line (so I don't accidentally delete you). Please include your snail mail address so that I can forward to IMUSA® and they can get your goodies out to you.
I'd like to thank the very generous folks at IMUSA® for sponsoring this giveaway. And if you thought this one was cool (and it totally was)....they have very generously offered to partner with MBFCF and do some more fabulous giveaways in the next few months, so stay tuned for that.
Check out their fabulous products and visit them online at www.imusausa.com. Or go "like" them on Facebook - they have the best cooking tips every day. Thanks again, IMUSA!
I have lots of giveaways coming up this summer, so please keep checking back in. Seriously, I'm a little overwhelmed with all the coolness I get to share, but that's not important right now.
In the meantime, I hope you're all practicing your Killer Espuma®.
I think I learned how to make Cuban coffee when I was about 8 years old and able to maneuver in the kitchen without hurting anything. It wasn't just a matter of making the coffee itself, there had to be a frothy topping to that café and just the right amount of sweetness. Of course, like anything else, some people can make it happen with apparently less effort than others. Hence the artistry.
My dad always smelled of a pleasant mix of Vitalis, puros, and Bustelo. If Cuban music is the soundtrack of my life, the aroma of freshly brewed espresso is the fragrance.
Obviously, you can use a fancy espresso machine to get your café made for you at the press of a button. But I'm from the old espresso-maker-on-the-stovetop school of Cuban coffee making.
Why?
Because of the ESPUMA. That's what we call the frothy stuff on top. (I would say "espumita," but the stuff I'm talking about is much more powerful than the diminutive suggests.) Killer Espuma - I should trademark that! - is a matter of personal pride in our family. Today, my daughter, Amy Kikita, who is The Official Family Killer Espuma® Maker will share her secret for the Perfect Cuban Espresso with Killer Espuma®. ;-)
(By the way, she doesn't really talk like that, but that's not important right now.)
In keeping with today's theme of All Things Coffee, I am grateful for the generous folks at IMUSA® for providing today's fabulous giveaway gifts.
Thing 1) An old-school (of course!) Aluminum Espresso CoffeeMaker in RED. (It's the same as the beautiful red one in the video.) Along with a set of four RED espresso cups & saucers.
Thing 2) A nine piece Stainless Steel Espresso Set. Beautiful, no?
They also have a wonderful and varied line of espresso related items. Check that out right here.
So, for a chance to win one of the two featured prizes above, please leave a comment on this post and answer one or both of the following questions:
Do you use a new-fangled espresso machine to make your café, or are you an old-school stovetopper, like me?
Do you like your espresso with Killer Espuma®? ;-)
I'll choose 2 winners on Thursday, June 16th at 6 pm Pacific Time.
First of all, can I just say that you are quite an impressive group of bakers. I loved what each of you had to share in the comment section and I appreciate each of you taking the time to comment and give me some of that Nestle® love.
I'm so glad I don't have to choose a winner based on merit. *wipes forehead*
And the winner of the Very Cool Nestlé® Gift Basket is......
drum roll, please......
***********************************************
Which means the winner is:
Carmela C. said...
Yes, I love to bake. The best thing I make is a Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake, Nestle Toll House Cookies and Chocolate Sambuca Cookies. I love trying new things and just started teaching my son to bake and cook. We love it!
***********************************************
And doesn't that comment just make you wonder what the recipe is for CHOCOLATE SAMBUCA COOKIES?? (But that's not important right now.)
Congratulations, Carmela! Please send me an email with HEY, MARTA! I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG IN THE SUBJECT LINE, so I don't accidentally delete it and I'll forward it to the generous folks at Nestlé®.
By the way, aren't you impressed with the way I've learned to add the registered trademark sign to just about Everything I Blog About®? ;-)
When I was a kid, it was a given that Nestlés made the very best choc-olate. If you're over a certain age, you're totally singing that in your head, aren't you? You are. It's true. Embrace it.
Imagine my delight to be invited to spend an entire day in the Nestlé Kitchens!
They invited me and a few other Latina Bloggers for an amazing lunch. To read the recap from Nestlé's point of view, click on this link from the Meals: from Nestlé Kitchens.
And were then invited to put on some aprons and join Chefs Chris Garboski and Ani Simón in the legendary Nestlé Kitchens to help create this delectable feast.
* I volunteered to help bake the cookies. Recipe and details of how I ended up on Cookie Detail follows. =D
I'm sure they didn't know what to expect when they met us. "Us" included myself, Liz from Thoughts of a Mommy, Dariela from Mami Talks, Ericka from Nibbles and Feasts, and Catalina from Greenery in Mommyhood. But, when you get bloggers and mothers and foodie-types in a kitchen working side-by-side to put a meal on the table there's an instant familiarity that's formed.
I was lucky enough to get Chris Garboski, Manager of the Nestlé Kitchens to myself to help make the Classic Nestle Toll House Cookies. (I may or may not have knocked over a few people when it came time to volunteer for this, but that's not important right now.)
But, hello?! I have been baking Nestle Toll House C0okies since I first learned how to read in English and I laid eyes on the recipe on the back of that famously familiar yellow and brown bag.
Besides, there was also an iconic REDKitchenaid Stand Mixer involved in this process.....I could barely help myself. ;-)
We made the Toll House Cookies with DARK Chocolate Chips which may not be available everywhere yet, but Chris mentioned they had them at WallMart, so there's that.
What was so cool about baking with Chris, whom I will from now on refer to as the Goddess of Nestlé Kitchens (or GNK), is that she gave me some great tips for getting the BEST cookies.
Thing 1) Use an old-school uncoated flat cookie sheet. Nothing with a lip or dark coating. The cookies will not turn out right. In fact, they will burn! To illustrate this point, she made me bake a few on a one of those dark, coated cookie sheets and they were burned to a crisp. After I got over the trauma this caused me, (I burned cookies in the Nestlé Kitchens!) I was glad she taught me that lesson.
Thing 2) Although the original recipe calls for 2 sticks of butter, Chris explained that using just one will make the cookies rise just enough to give them the perfect texture and it wouldn't hurt the taste at all. (She was totally right.)
Thing 3) Using a mini scooper device (not as big as an ice cream scoop) makes cookies that are just the right size.
Thing 4) Reserve a quarter cup of the chocolate chips and add them to the cookies once they're already on the baking sheet in a food-stylist way. Gently push a few of the chips morsels into the cookies just before baking.
Perfect. I know.
Okay, so here's me making the classic Nestlé Toll House® Cookies in the Nestlé® Kitchens. I know. Shut up.
And here's the recipe for the BEST Nestle® Toll House® Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened (This is different from the recipe on the package, remember.)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12 oz. pkg.) Nestle Toll House Semi-sweet (or Dark, if you can find them) Chocolate Morsels
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
Preheat oven to 375º F.
Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Gradually beat in flour mixture.
Stir in chocolate morsels (and nuts if desired).
Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes.
Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
I loved everyone at Nestlé. I loved baking in their kitchens and sharing the day with my fellow bloggers and the knowledgeable Ani and Chris.
If that wasn't enough, they sent us home with a fabulous gift basket full of all kinds of Nestlé goodies. (There's some La Lechera products in there that are not visible here, but which, just trust me, I got into right away.)
So, what does this mean to you?
Well, The folks at Nestlé have generously offered to send one of these Amazing Baskets of Nestlé Fabulousness to one lucky MBFCF reader. (Yay!)
So, for a chance to win a basket like the one pictured above, please leave a comment on this post and answer one or both of the following questions:
Do you like to bake?
What's your specialty?
I'll choose a winner on Wednesday, June 1st at 6 pm Pacific Time.
(I'm going to suggest that you "like" Meals: from Nestlé Kitchen on Facebook. I promise that they have the best recipes EVAH!)
Good luck!
Disclaimer: I received a basket of goodies and got to cook in the Nestlé Kitchens, plus a basket to offer as a giveaway. The opinions about Nestlé and their products are my own.
It's raining like mad here in So Cal. And we live in The Bubble (aka. The O.C.). And Nochebuena falls on a Friday. And the men-folk are all working. What does this mean?
It means that there will be no Cuban Caja China Pig Roasting for us. (*insert sad face here*)
Of course, this does not mean that we won't have our lechóncito. We are, after all, self-respecting Cubans. Going without lechón on Nochebuena is not an option.
It just means we'll cheat a little. ;-)
Super Garlicky Lechón Asado (In the crockpot. I know. Shut up.)
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
1 1/2 lbs. Pork loin chops – the big, thick ones
2 cups Mojo Criollo*
1 white onion – sliced into rings
1 tsp. Parsley
Stab each of the chops two or three times and brown them quickly in the olive oil.
Put them in a crockpot. Cover with the mojo and the onion slices and sprinkle with parsley. Cook on high for 4-5 hours. Or on low for 6-8 hours.
For added Cuban tastiness: Double the Mojo recipe and after the pork is cooked, pull it apart just a bit - it should be very tender - then, move it into a roasting pan.
Pour mojo over the pork and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes.
Serve with black beans and white rice.
*Mojo Criollo You can use the mojo that comes in a bottle, or make your own. Here’s my recipe.
20 cloves garlic
2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Coarse-ground Pepper
2 tsp. Oregano
1 ¾ cups bitter orange juice
¼ cup white vinegar
Using a mortar and pestle, mash together the garlic, salt, pepper and oregano to make a paste.
I love going to new places and trying new things. I also love going to old places and doing thing I've done before, but that's not important right now. ;-)
When December rolls around, I always look forward to having holiday-type experiences. Sometimes those include plays or movies or Disney Magic.
But yesterday, I had the happy privilege of being invited to enjoy Tea by the Sea at the Getty Villa in Malibu.
First of all, the Getty Villa itself is a magical place. And it just so happened that it was a perfectly beautiful, cool and clear California evening.
We stepped over the threshold (with our right foot first - in keeping with the Roman custom - for good luck) and into Rome in the First Century A.D.
We were treated to a tour of the authentically recreated first-century Roman gardens.
After the amazing tour, we were ushered up to the beautiful Founder's Room to enjoy Tea by the Sea, a special experience inspired by the herbs, vegetables, and fruits that grow in this beautiful replica of a first century Roman garden.
Is there anything I love more than a beautifully set and laden table? Okay, there are lots of things that I love, but this was truly lovely. Scones, people! And clotted cream and jam! Freshly made by their executive chef on the premises.
And then......Tiers of Culinary Amazingness...
At the bottom of which was hidden Mrs. Garrett's Carrot Cake of Awesomeness. (Okay, well...I kind of added the "...of Awesomeness" part, but that's not important right now, either.)
{NOTE ABOUT - Tea by the Sea and Mrs. Garrett's famous carrot cake:Tea by the Sea was inspired by the Villa's authentically recreated first-century Roman gardens—and by visitors' fond memories of the Villa's beloved Tea Room, which closed in 1997. In a further tribute to early days of the Museum, the menu features Mrs. Garrett's carrot cake, made by our pastry chef from the personal recipe of Jean Garrett, the late wife of the Museum's first director, Stephen Garrett.}
And because I want to share the entire experience with you (you know that I love you, right?) here's the recipe:
Mrs. Garrett's Original Carrot Cake
1 1/2 cup corn oil
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 cups flour
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp. salt
2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup chopped walnuts
1.2 cup crushed pineapple
Combine oil, sugar, eggs, flour, cinnamon, soda, vanilla, salt, carrots, walnuts and pineapple in a large bowl.
Mix until blended.
Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
Ice with cream cheese icing.
Cream Cheese Icing:
3 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/8 cup crushed pineapple
1.4 cup chopped walnuts
Mix cream cheese, sugar and butter until fluffy. Add pineapple and walnuts. Mix well.
You're welcome. =D
And thanks, Jana, for sharing the day with me.
It was the absolutely most perfect way to say, "Hello, December."
I should technically be waking up in my own bed right now (sleeping-in would be more accurate, but that's not important right now). Instead I am groggy from a difficult night and anxious for the next 2 hours to fly by. (No pun intended.)
Yesterday I woke up in my penthouse room at the Ritz-Carlton with a panoramic view of Miami Beach.
After a quick, but extremely satisfying breakfast of pastelito and a cafecito,
I headed out to the beach, to a waiting chaise, where I was able to stretch out and soak in the sun. Of course, I went in the water and just floated and pondered how lovely and charmed my life was.
My blog-partner and friend, Carrie brought me lunch, we had a fabulous brainstorming session and then she graciously agreed to give me a ride to the airport.
Remember that I had been in a conference for the entire weekend. I had no idea what was happening out in the real world, let alone in Miami. (No, I don't think the world revolves around me, I was just busy with conference stuff. Don't judge me.)
So I arrived a little early at MIA (that's Miami International Airport for those of you who are not wannabe-jet-setters like me), I managed to get through security with relative ease, and I stocked up on provisions for my flight. ;-)
I was completely content with my iPad and internet access and I was happy to be alone and soaking up the airport ambiance. (I'm convinced that MIA is the best airport for people watching.)
That's when the craziness began.
Announcement after announcement of delayed flights and changed gates. I started wondering who was in charge. "Que desorganizados!" How could you run an airport like this? More announcements. More gate changes. More delays.
Then came the most dreaded announcement. My flight was going to be delayed. Not only that, but it looked like because of this, I was going to miss my connecting flight in Dallas, which meant that I was going to miss my flight home!
Nooooo!
Deep breaths. The situation was out of my control. Best to relax and not stress about it. No need to create more drama. It was best to just Embrace the Pain. (<--okay, so maybe I got a little dramatic.)
Even after we boarded our already delayed flight, with the assurance that "You might make your connections," we were still on the tarmac two hours later. *sigh*
They started the movie before we even took off. And while it was entertaining and I was grateful, it was not a good sign.
So finally we flew. And we arrived in Dallas late. And there was a guy waiting to give the 83 of us who had missed our connections, vouchers for the flights we missed and the promise of a shuttle bus to take us to a hotel for the night. Embrace the pain.
And so it was that when I thought I would be just getting home to my own comfortable bed and my own sweet family (that I was missing terribly) I was checking into my room at The Psycho Motel in Dallas. (No, not the real name of the place, of course. Just my vivid and exhausted imagination making an Alfred Hitchcock reference, but that's not important right now.)
It was really more of a lair than a room.
And I began to wonder (not for the last time): what had happened to my idyllic semi-vacation?
This is the view from my Psycho Room:
Seriously, what happened?
Well, the POTUS was in Miami. And he stopped at El Mago de las Fritas to indulge in some Cuban food. (Here's the article.)
Photo credit: JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images
This decision to stop for a frita by the POTUS began the chain of events that led to flight cancellations, gate changes and numerous passenger delays and had a very specific and personal impact on me and my life.
And while I have to commend him for his good taste - a genuine Cuban frita is to die for - I could not excuse the fact that his personal "antojo" (translation: "craving") so adversely impacted so many people.
Yep, I'm still writing about Betty Crocker. I warned you I had a lot to share!
Again, I want to reiterate that spending those few days with a group of proactive, excited bloggers in the Betty Crocker Kitchens will definitely be one of the highlights of my life. Seriously.
I think maybe because all of us got to just relax and play. You know how it is in Mom World. We watch, we correct, we applaud, but for many of us, we just forget to play.
So this post is dedicated to playing.
Okay, so our little mini-group made this cake. A Jack-O-Lantern Cake. Yep, it was as cool as it sounds. And easy, too. (Tasty is important, but easy is always a bigger selling point for me when it involves cooking or baking, but that's not important right now.)
The cake itself is made in a round oven-proof (Pyrex is my particular brand of choice) bowl.
Our particular group had the added bonus of including Michelle, the food editor for Gourmet Mom on-the-Go who, like a baking-prepared Mary Poppins, carried cake sprinkles and googly eyes in her purse. She pulled them out when it was time for us to decorate our pumpkin cake, much to the delight of myself and our other blog-partner-in-frosting, Julie, of Joy's Hope.
We got to play. In the Betty Crocker Kitchens. For me it was like one of those make-a-wish-type moments.
So we mixed food coloring and added fruit-by-the-foot leaves and an ice cream cone stem/hat. And, of course, the googly eyes. Googly eyes started to show up on everything.
And even if I do say so myself, ours was the best pumpkin. I liked the googly eyes and all, they absolutely gave it personality, but I confess, I liked the finished product better as just a pumpkin cake. (I know. Shut up.)
Here's the recipe:
Jack-O-Lantern Cake
2 boxes Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® devil's food or white cake mix
Water
vegetable oil and eggs or egg whites called for on cake mix box
Betty Crocker® Fruit Roll-Ups® chewy fruit snack rolls (any flavor)
1. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour 2-quart round casserole or 2 1/2-quart ovenproof bowl. Make 1 box cake mix as directed on box, using water, oil and eggs or egg whites. Pour batter into casserole.
2. Bake devil's food cake 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes, white cake about 1 hour 10 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes. Remove cake from casserole; place rounded side up on cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour. (Got that? You're making two cakes, each in the casserole dish.)
3. Make and bake remaining cake mix using same casserole or bowl.
4. With sharp knife, carefully slice piece from top of each cake to make flat surface where cakes will be placed together to form pumpkin shape. (Cake scraps can be saved and added to another recipe such as pudding or trifle if desired.)
5. In medium bowl, place frosting; tint with 9 drops yellow and 6 drops red food color to make orange frosting. On plate, place 1 cake, rounded side down. Spread 2/3 cup of the orange frosting over cake almost to edge. Place second cake, rounded side up, on frosted cake to make round shape. Frost entire cake with remaining orange frosting.
6. Trim ice-cream cone to desired height for stem; place upside down on cake. Cut out eyes, nose, mouth, vines and leaves from fruit snack rolls. Place on frosted cake to form face. Store tightly covered at room temperature.
Or you can just watch us do this.... Enjoy.
We're having some fun now, right?
Which brings me to today's giveaway. (What? Another giveaway? That's madness, Marta!)
General Mills has a very cool company store and I shopped around for the items that I wanted to giveaway. (Thanks to GM for generously agreeing to make them available to MBFCF.) And because I'm a complete uber-nerd, this totally caught my eye:
It's a Yahtzee game! A General Mills Yahtzee Game, people!
(Okay, so I bought one for my daughter, Amy Kikita who is a rabid Yahtzee player and I asked General Mills if they could send me one to offer as a giveaway. (Being the generous folks they are, they agreed. I'm sure they scratched their heads a little on this one - "You want a WHAT??" - , but that's not important right now. =D)
So to enter the drawing for today's giveaway, let's talk games.
To be entered in the drawing for the General Mills Yahtzee Game (A Yahtzee game, people!) , just answer one or all of the following questions in the comment section of this post:
Does your family play games?
Do you have a family favorite?
I'll choose a winner on Wednesday, September 15th at 11:00 AM Pacific Time.
My mom taught us girls how to cook when we were very young.
During the summers, when my sisters and I were out of school, she devised a rotating system of teaching us Homemaking, the Cuban Way.
My older sisters were already married and gone, but the three of us younger ones, Miriam, Alina and myself still needed to be groomed to be Perfect Cuban Wives (or PCW).
The Meal Planning portion of our PCW Education consisted of pulling out all of the cookbooks in the house, finding two recipes that sounded good to us, making a list of ingredients, checking the cupboards for what we already had, and then adding what we needed to the weekly grocery shopping list.
Can you believe I still plan my weekly meals this way? (The whole Clearing and Dishwashing thing is still problematic for me, but again, that's not important right now.)
I always like trying new recipes and I love cookbooks. But every now and then, I remember that we girls made some pretty delicious meals during our Summers of Cuban Home Ec. And I still have a few of my mom's original cookbooks from back in the day.
Exhibit A:
The publishing date on this beauty is 1962. Based on my love of All Things Betty these days, I decided to pull it out and see if one of our favorite recipes still held up. (I love old, grease-stained cookbooks. They make me happy somehow.)
It was called Chipper Chicken. It was a lot like the Oven-Fried Chicken (notice that they still used shortening unapologetically - I love that!) but it was made with crushed potato chips. (<--Brilliant!)
I made it a few times when my older kids were little and it was always a hit, so I thought I'd give it a shot in 2010, with a few personal revisions.
Chipper Chicken Recipe
2-3 lbs. chicken pieces
1 medium bag potato chips
1/4 cup butter (<--YES!!)
1 Tbsp. Garlic powder
Coarse ground pepper
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Crush potato chips finely. (I put them into a ziplock and just crush with my hands.)
3. Melt butter in frying pan and add the garlic powder. (The garlic salt that it originally called for made the thing too crazy-salty.)
4. Pass the chicken pieces through the seasoned butter, then in the crushed chips.
5. Place chicken in oblong baking pan.
6. Bake for just over an hour or until potato chips are golden and juices run clear.
Ta-da! The Chipper Chicken is just as delicious as I remembered. (Umm....yeah....butter and potato chips. Hello?!!)
I have a few more Betty Crocker cookbooks that I've collected through the years. (I think it's those eye-catchingly RED covers that get me every time.)
So, today, I'll be giving away one of Betty Crocker's newest (and elaborately detailed) cookbooks along with a beautiful RED logo serving spoon: (I confess that I loved this book so much that I was tempted to keep it, but happily for you, I'm a giver. *sigh*)
To be entered in the drawing for the cookbook & spoon, just answer one or all of the following questions in the comment section of this post:
Who taught you to cook?
Do you have a favorite "go to" cookbook or recipe?
I'll choose a winner on Friday, September 10th at 11:00 AM Pacific Time.
[Disclosure: General Mills provided this cool stuff because I asked to do these giveaways. They've asked nothing in return. It is my pleasure to write about this stuff because I genuinely want to. Thanks, General Mills, for your generosity!
*And a reminder, if you haven't already voted, please vote for My Big, Fat, Cuban Family for Best Personal and Family Blog in the Just Spotted 2010 Orange County Blog Awards. Here's the link. Please vote before Sunday, September 12th at 11:59 pm, because after that, the “polls” will be closed* Thank you!
I still have so much more to tell you about my trip to General Mills and the Betty Crocker Kitchens. I have some very cool recipes I want to share and also some fun stuff to giveaway. There was so much to take in that I can't possibly write about it all in one post, so I will be writing about this for the next week or so (I'll also do some giveaways to make it worth your while).
First, can I just tell you that I have moments when I'm very aware of my Cuban-ness? I'm aware that I'm pushy and loud and prone to performing spontaneous bouts of stand-up comedy. (I know. Shut up.)
Out of the larger group of 30 bloggers that got to go on this amazing trip, 6 of us were Latinas.
The good folks at General Mills were more than gracious hosts and much to my delight, let us cook in the Betty Crocker Studio Kitchen along with Chef Cristina of Que Rica Vida. (I felt sooo accidentally cool.)
And I fell in love with Chef Cristina. She is the Mexican Nitza Villapol (but with a better sense of humor).
We made 7 (!) recipes in an hour with the cameras rolling and in spite of having the noisy, attention-seeking Cuban on the set (yes, that would be me, but that's not important right now.), she managed to maneuver around the kitchen with tremendous poise and ease, giving instruction and keeping us focused.
We made alfajores (a particularly lovely and flaky shortbread) stuffed with dulce de leche! (Thank you, God!), various types of cookies and bars and crepes, (I know. Crepes! Who knew?) and my personal favorite.....
Churros!
Vegetable oil
4 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 1/4 cups Original Bisquick® mix(<--How awesome is this??)
1 cup hot water
In 3-quart saucepan, heat oil (2 to 3 inches) over medium-high heat until thermometer inserted in oil reads 375°F.
In small bowl, mix 3 tablespoons of the sugar and the cinnamon; set aside. In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, hot water and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar with spatula until dough forms.
Spoon dough into pastry bag fitted with 1/4-inch star tip. Pipe 5-inch strips of dough into hot oil. If necessary, cut dough with knife or scissors between each churro. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, turning frequently, until golden brown. Carefully remove from oil; drain on paper towels.
Immediately sprinkle churros generously with sugar-cinnamon mixture. Serve warm.
Special Touch: For a chocolate-covered delight, dip one end of each cooled churro into melted chocolate candy coating, and place on waxed paper until set. (recipe courtesy of Betty Crocker Kitchens.)
Marta's Special Touch: Personally, I think I'll try injecting them with melted dulce de guayaba. Genius, right?
They are quick. They are easy. They are tasty. (Win!)
So they filmed us and made us look like kitchen pros. Notice how they added cool cooking-show music and the aren't-we-all-that mini-interviews about how easy and fun it was to make these recipes. (<--both completely true.)
But, boy howdy! I couldn't get over just how round my face was on camera! The phrase "cara de papa" (potato face) kept going through my head. They say the camera adds ten pounds to you, but honestly, I think I added those on my very own, thankyouverymuch. So, I came to the cataclysmic decision that there would be NO cooking show in my future. *sigh* (Not that there was really any danger of there being one, but still...)
So now I'm a little depressed, but I know what will cheer me.....
How about a giveaway? (Yes, Marta, that will make us all feel better about the roundness of your face. =D)
I have a beautiful & fabulous RED (!) Betty Crocker Tote Bag with a Dessert Decorator device to give away. There's a Bisquick spatula and some Shake & Pour Bisquick in there, too (I swear it's in there, I just didn't get a picture of it. Don't judge me - I'm a little depressed.)
To be entered in the drawing, just answer one or all of these questions in the comment section of this post:
Do you use Bisquick? If so, what do you make with it?
What would you stuff your churros with?
What should be the name of my cooking show, if I did have one? (I can still dream, can't I?) ;-)
I'll choose a winner on Monday, September 6th at 11:00 AM Pacific Time. (I also have more Betty Crocker giveaways for next week, but that's not important right now. =D)
[Disclosure: General Mills paid for my entire trip and treated us like royalty. Even if they hadn't, I would still gush about the fabulous treatment and I am still a huge Betty Crocker fan. Thanks to Matt Holland Photography for making me look cute in spite of my "cara de papa."]
My Big Fat Cuban Family: A Cuban-American Blog
My Big Fat Cuban Family is all about my Cuban American life. Enjoy my ramblings on my blog about my Cuban family, Cuban heritage, Cuban culture, Cuban life. And some decent Cuban recipes with pictures, too.
