Ginger Tea - Té de Jengibre

My mother always had some sort of 'remedio' to take care of our ailments while growing up. Many times I felt like 'what in the world?' But as I grew older and had my own children, it occurred to me that all these meds we're putting into our kids bodies can't be good (ie: antibiotics, etc.).

What really struck a cord with me was when my youngest son used to suffer from chronic ear infections. One Friday morning he woke up once again with an ear infection. I knew exactly how things would go that day. After my chiropractor appointment I would call his pediatrician, make an appointment for that morning, they'd see him, and prescribe antibiotics. Because even though you can't know for sure it's an ear infection at this early stage, just in case he does he'll get the antibiotics so they can start working their magic. 

So at my appointment I mentioned the ear infection we had to deal with that day to my chiropractor. He told me to consider seeing his partner as he specialized in chiropractic for children and he was really good. They fit me in to see him that same morning and once he checked him out said the discs in his head were dislocated and no matter how many antibiotics he took, he was always going to suffer from that 'chronic ear infection'. Because it wasn't an ear infection at all. He adjusted his head that very moment. We went back on Monday for another adjustment and that was the last 'ear infection' he had. 

He spoke to me about natural remedies a bit. And after starting my own research I started doing 'remedios' on my kids. I became my mother!! If only I could be half the woman she is...

As an ode to those 'remedios' and to my AH-HA moment, I've decided to share this tasty ginger tea. I recently had this at my mom's and boy did it hit home. 

Ginger has many proven health benefits as seen in this article. It helps with nausea (including morning sickness), reduces muscle pain and soreness, is anti-inflammatory, lowers blood sugar and improves heart disease risk factors, may  help prevent cancer, helps with menstrual pains improves brain function and protects against Alzheimer's disease amongst other things.

Ginger Tea

2 cups of water

1/4" fresh ginger sliced thinly 

1/4" fresh ginger squeezed with garlic press

Agave to taste

Boil water. Place sliced ginger in a cup and squeeze the other 1/4" of ginger in the cup (I throw portion left in the garlic press into the cup as well). Pour boiling water in the cup and sweeten to taste with agave. You can even throw a lemon slice in it for taste.

Enjoy your cup of tea and reap the benefits of this all-natural, warm beverage.

XOXO,
Sonia

A heartfelt Thanks

Who knew when Sandy and I started this blog that we would end up making so many friends with people across the globe...over Mexican food. We are thoroughly humbled by your support and friendship. May you enjoy today, with your family and friends.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sonia and Sandy
-Mexican Family  Recipes

A Recipe for Creativity- Memories With My Grandmother and Cable Knit Pillows

From a very young age I've been pegged as being creative. So I've grown up thinking that and just figured I have a talent. I'm always creating something whether it's scrapbooking, sewing, decorating, knitting, drawing, gardening, hot gluing, or even designing ads for my work. 

But I've recently come to realize that all this creativity, I've channeled from my grandmothers and my mom. I grew up watching my mom be creative with her resources. She used to make our costumes.  She crocheted these beautiful bedspreads when we were kids. She even took fashion design courses. My paternal grandmother, from what I understand, was also great at sewing and very talented in making very precise patterns for garments with no formal training. I guess creativity was a part of living back then. My ancestors had to be creative with their limited resources. It's just the way it was.

But some of my greatest memories of creativity are with my maternal grandmother. My Nina Chayo. I used to spend time during the summer with her at her home in Mexico. This place called El Chante, Jalisco. A little ranch we very quickly learned to love when we were kids. Those were days of carefree fun, when we could through caution to the wind. Walk to the local market unsupervised, stay out "late", ride horses, swim in the river, etc. I made great memories with my cousins. To say that we LOVED visiting my grandparents in El Chante, is an understatement.

So back to my memories of creativity. I spent vacations with my grandmother and on many occasions it was just her and I. So after getting up in the morning, helping with chores and running small errands for my grandma, like going to buy freshly made tortillas...yum, oh the memories of the smell in the tortilleria...Ok back to the story....She would tend to her jungle of plants and trees. Out of bordome, I joined her. This is where she would teach me to prune them, and pick the ripe fruit, and eat the fruit right off the tree...forget washing them, just eat them right up. She taught me that plants need love too. Talk to them with kindness and tenderness, like they're your babies. When they're not doing well, provide encouraging words, and compliment them when they're beautiful.

So again....back to the creativity portion of this blog....it's so easy for me to get lost in those memories. On our down time, my Nina Chayo taught me to make tortillas, make a pinata with crepe paper and a cantaro, cross stitch, embroider, crochet (although my mom started this lesson back at home in California), and she taught me to improve my knitting. From the age of 10 to 15, my father moved us to Mexico City where my cousin and I took a. knitting class. So on my next trip to El Chante I took my knitting. And guess what, my Nina Chayo knew how to do that too. And so she taught me a couple new stitches and we sat and knitted together. The details of those memories, of actually sitting there and talking for hours on end have faded. But I know we did it. I know that when I felt home sick she comforted me with her hugs, kisses, love and our little creative projects.

So last year when I received my fall Pottery Barn catalog and I oogled over the beautiful chunky cable knit pillow covers that grazed their glossy pages, I decided that since I know how to knit it was impossible for me to justify paying for mass produced knitted pillow covers. So I when out and bought chunky yarn and knitted a pillow. To my surprise, my friends and family loved it. So I made a couple and gave them as Christmas gifts. And when they were well received, it was suggested I sell them, and that's how my Etsy Shop came to be, DeLaCustom Boutique.

As I sit here and knit cable-knit pillow after cable-knit pillow, I can't help but to remember that my Nina Chayo was a huge contributor to my creativity and to my love of crafts and creations. I can't help but to remember the hours we spent together in her ranch home in El Chante, Jalisco. And although Alzheimer's and Dementia have robbed her of those memories, I still hold them very near and dear to my heart, for the both of us.


XOXO,

Sonia

Salsa Verde / Mild Green Sauce

I've been making this salsa at home lately that everyone seems to like. You know it's a winner when EVERYONE likes it, so I thought it would be a good idea to share it.

Ingredients:
4 tomatillos
2 jalapenos (add more if you want it spicy, but two will ensure it's mild)
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 bunch of cilantro
salt to taste
pepper to taste

 
Boil the tomatillos until they're cooked through, around 8 minutes. Do not throw out the boiled water. Place all ingredients in a blender. Add some of the boiled water, just a little so you can add more later if needed. Blend until desired consistency is reached. If you'd like it more runny, add more boiled water. Refrigerate until it chills and enjoy.

This can be served over tacos, eggs, quesadillas, chilaquiles and even for dipping tortilla chips.


Enjoy!

Sonia

Posole

I love me a bowl of posole. Specially on a nice, crisp, chilly day. I've always thought it was difficult to cook, since we used to only have it on special occasions growing up. But I've also always wanted to learn to cook it. So when my son asked me for posole for his 13th birthday, I knew it was time. I called up mom. Hanging on to every last instruction she gave me over the phone, I wrote everything down...and I couldn't help to but say "that's it?". Really? That's it? This didn't sound difficult at all. And it wasn't! 

Mom's posole recipe is made with pork and red sauce. Many people will make it with chicken and with no "color" to their broth, aka red sauce. But given that my intent here is to cook like my mom, I've used her recipe.

For those of you who are not familiar with posole, it is a hearty Mexican stew made with pork or chicken, hominy and aromatics. Some of us add a red sauce to it for extra flavors...yum!

Ingredients:

1 can Juanita's Mexican Style Hominy, drained and washed

*3 lbs. Pork shank or shoulder

**3-4 dried guajillo chiles, soaked in warm water for 20-30 minutes

3 garlic cloves

salt to taste

For garnishing:

lemons cut in quarters

chopped onion

shredded green cabbage

sliced radishes, I don't use these but mom does

Tabasco

salt

tostadas- I buy Guerrero tostadas, or you can fry your own.

*I purchased my ingredients at a Mexican market and requested the "carne para posole", pork meat specifically for posole. Make sure you get the bones too, it adds flavor. You can take the meat off and shred it later.

**Sometimes you can find the dried guajillos as chile entero, chile New Mexico, and other names. But here is a picture of what it looks like and if it looks like this, it works!

Place the pork in a pot of water, a garlic clove and salt. Bring to a boil and boil for about 15 to 20 minutes. Make sure there's enough water in the pot to cover the pork and the hominy that will go in it. 

While pork is boiling prep the sauce. Cut the stem off the chiles and take out the seeds if you dont' want it too spicy. I just cut off the stem and whatever seeds come out I just leave out, but I don't make it a point to empty out the chile entirely. You can also take out the seeds before you soak them, it might be easier that way. Blend the chiles with 2 garlic cloves. Add the chile sauce to the water with the homini. Continue boiling until the pork is cooked and tender.

Take the meat out and cut into bite size pieces or shred, if the pieces of meat are too big to serve. Put the meat back in the pot with the hominy.

Serve in bowls and provide lemon, cabbage, onion, radishes, salt, and Tabasco for garnishing.

So a Happy Birthday we celebrated for the new teenager in the house. He loved it and nothing warms my heart more than my family enjoying my home cooking! Well, maybe sometimes a bowl of my mom's posole... ;-)

Provecho!

Please tell me how it went if you try this recipe, or send in your questions either on the blog or on Facebook.