Welcome! This my first attempt at blogging. As the title says, this blog will explore the wonderful culinary flavors of Mexico & beyond.For the past 20 years I have been the Pastry Chef at Zarela's (one of New York's finest and truly authentic Mexican restaurant this side of Mexico). Both desserts and the restaurant received great media reviews, which I will share with you on my next posting.
The flavors of Mexico vary with its regions; each bringing a different flavor and history to the culinary table. I had a feast at this table exploring all these avenues of flavors which afforded me the needed tools to create my postres that reflected the robust flavors,colors and spices of Mexico and
the spirit of the Aztec's, who have given us some much.
Through this blog I hope to share with you many of these desserts and experiences. I hope you will be inspired to play in your kitchen and share with friends and family the flavors of Mexico.
As in New Orleans, I also have a Holy Trinity of Flavors- but I call it the Holy Trinity- plus One; Canela (Cinnamon), Vanilla, Chocolate and plus one Chile!
These ingredients have given me a treasure of desserts, which were both enjoyed by customers and critics alike.
Before I start sharing recipes with you, I would like to publish kind of a primer on the various ingredients we will be using to create these desserts including their history and myth. We will be exploring Chocolate from the Aztec's, vanilla from the Black Orchard, Canela from Ceylon and the world of the fiery chili. We will also explore the endless spices of Mexico. Also we will bake the breads of Mexico and build the altar for the Days of the Dead.
Hopefully, this blog will become a culinary classroom, a discussion forum, an on- line cookbook.
