Mexican food is a highly distinctive fare; it is a simple, nutritious, peasant cuisine, yet it is as varied as the food of France or China. Therefore, it is no surprise that Mexican cooking has become one of America's favorite ethnic eating experiences.
Mexican cooking had its beginnings in the culture of the Aztec and Mayan Indians whose diets included corn, beans, peppers, squash, pumpkins, tomatoes, avacados, chocolate and vanilla. To these tasty ingredients the Spanish conquerors added dairy products, honey, raisins, garbanzos, chicken and other European foods. This combination has created many imaginative new dishes and the US has adopted quite a number of them.
Mexican meals begin now, as in Aztec days, with tortillas, the "bread of Mexico", and only those who have tasted them hot off the griddle know how good tortillas can be. Almost any kind of food that is not too liquid can be dumped on a tortillo and rolled up in it. This rolled combination is called a taco, the Mexican equivalent of a sandwhich. It can be taken directly from the griddle, in which case it will be soft, or it may be stuffed, rolled and fried. Whether soft or fried, tacos may contain nothing more than chopped chili, or they may be bursting with meat and rich sauce. If so, they should be eaten with caution to keep the contents from squirting out the far end.
A more elegant adaptation of the tortilla is the enchilada. This is a tortilla that has been dipped in a thin sauce, usually green or red tomato, and fried rapidly. It is then rolled up like a taco, but unlike the improvised taco the enchilada can have a elaborate filling of pork or chicken. The remaining sauce is poured over the enchilada and the top may be decorated with cheese and chopped onion. Most Mexicans are crazy about chili, that vegetable dynamite, which they inherited from their ancestors and which comes in at least 140 varieties. Oddly enough the dish that Americans are most apt to identify as Mexican ---- chili con carne ---- isn't Mexican at all. It was invented in western Texas, though it was patterned after the stews that are sold in Mexican markets. This is just one of many dishes developed in the US, but inspired by the cooking of Mexico. Residents of the Southwest call it Tex-Mex cooking. Tex-Mex food has spread beyond the boundaries of Texas and is now enjoyed in almost every state in the nation.
Creating Mexican food in miniature is particularly enjoyable because of its color, texture and distinctive look. The following projects are a sampling that are meant to inspire you to delve further so that you might create your own favorite Mexican or Tex-Mex dish. So get out your Fimo, resin and X-Acto knife, put some classical guitar music on the stereo, mix up a pitcher of sangria and enjoy this "recipe" collection!
Tex-Mex Fare
Though often hot and spicy, Mexican cooking has become one of America's favorite ethnic eating experiences
MAY 1985
by Mary Eccher - page 1 of 4
1985 photo by Mary Eccher
Shown on the Mexican party table above are Chicken Enchiladas, Tacos and Chorizo, Chili con Carne, Flan, Gazpacho, Guacamole with Tortilla Chips, and that sweet and spicy beverage, Sangria. Once exclusive to the Texas/Mexico border area, "Tex-Mex" cuisine has recently set tastebuds all across the nation "on fire."
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Handcrafted Collectible Dollhouse Scale Miniature Foods, Beverages and Accessories
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