Last Call...

Coffee ☕️ , Legit Margaritas 🍹 & Killer Guacamole 🥑

Greetings Friends 🍹

Fully packed drop today with 2 recipes you can add to your library.

(1) Killer Guacamole… not the bland, green paste you can buy in the store. Rich, explosive and delicious 🥑 Guacamole.

(1) Legit Margarita recipe… Margaritas can be delicious but have become the Applebee’s of cocktails… widespread and gross. Fixing that for you today.

And we’re gonna take a stroll through the core Mexican 🇲🇽 Food Regions to give you a brief intro to the amazing variation of flavors and ingredients within the country.

Last Call… ☕️

April Coffee’s are roasting and being shipped out in the next 48 hours… which means… last chance to get your orders in for April!

Remember, this month I’m sending all who order my Best Coffee Ice Cream recipe as an added “thank you”. This recipe is insanely delicious and you’ll have the best coffee’s in house to enjoy with.

Preview of the Recipe Card being sent to those who order

The (2) coffee’s being shipped in your order:

Brazil 🇧🇷 (Washed)

Flavor Notes: Nutty, Chocolate, Raspberry

Colombia 🇨🇴 (Honey Process)

Tasting Notes: Cherry, Lime, Brown Sugar

… thanks to all who have ordered. For those procrastinating… last call!

Regional Mexico 🇲🇽

You really start appreciating specific dishes and ingredients when you you can see where they come from. 

Here’s a quick rundown of the 7 macro-regions in Mexican Cuisine. 

Image from FoodRepublic

Norteño:

The Northern region has lots of cattle ranches, milk and wheat cultivation. This naturally influences the food and preparations. 

Known For: Fajitas, Cabrito (roasted baby goat 🐐), Fresh Cheese 🧀 (Queso Fresco) Flour Tortillas & Bolillo 🍞 Pudding’s, 

Bajacaliforniano: 

The area of Baja that runs down from California, there is a fair amount of wine produced here and, most famously, seafood 🦞 🐠 🍤 🐟 

Known For: Fish Taco’s, Tempura Fish Taco’s, Ceviches, Caesar Salad & Margaritas. 🥂 

Poblano:

This region contains Puebla and Mexico City with a lot of Spanish influence here.

Known For: Milanesa, Barbacoa 🐂, Mole Poblano & Chalupa’s. 

Jaliscense:

Possibly the most widely known cuisine in the US 🇺🇸, Jalisco’s are very popular restaurants with some iconic dishes ⬇️

Known For: Birria (Goat 🐐 & Chile stew), Torta Ahogados 🥪, Caldo’s of all kinds and Pozole Rojo. 

Veracruzano:

On the Gulf Coast, lots of seafood, Spanish and Caribbean influences are present in this cuisine: 

Known For: Huachinango (Baked whole fish, covered in a tomato sauce, olives, garlic, capers, and spices.), Chicken Stew, Chicken with 🍅 and 🥜 sauce, Mole Xiqueño, as well as a Soup made from Hearts of Palm. Really interesting flavors and dishes. 

Oaxaqueño: 

A deep and rich culinary tradition in this region stemming from Mixtec and Zapotec cultures. This is one of the first areas of Mexico that was influenced by European trading. Main ingredients of this region being dried chili’s, corn, black beans and cacao/chocolate.

Known For: Molés (one of my obsessions!). Talk about a rabbit hole, there’s 7 types of Molé: negro, amarillo, coloradito, manchamanteles, chichilo, rojo, verde. Other important foods: Queso Oaxaca (think strechy, warm cheese like mozzarella), empanadas, tamales & mezcal.

Yes, Oaxaca is culinary treasure! 

Yucateco:

The Yucatan Peninsula splits the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. There is a strong French, Caribbean, Mayan & Middle Eastern influences given the important position this landmass had during ship sailing back in the day.

Known For: Achiote, Habanero, Avocado, Pork, and specifically the dish Cochinita Pibil (Pork in achiote and spices). 

This is a very basic intro but should give you a glimpse of how specific regional foods have distinct personalities that make Mexican 🇲🇽 Cuisine fascinating and delicious!

Guacamolé

There are many versions of guacamole. In certain parts of Mexico it’s very basic as a mashed up avocado with some salt, and lime juice used as a condiment for tacos.

In other areas, and especially outside of Mexico, guacamole is used as a dip.

One thing is certain, guacamole should have texture. This should not be a smooth puree 🚫. To make sure of this you can mash the avocado with a fork and breakup with a sturdy whisk, but my favorite is using a potato masher. It’s quick and easy.

Red onion is essential, IMO. As are serrano but jalapeno (usually) will be more mild if you don’t like spice. The rest of the ingredients are somewhat to your preference. I have opinions but most important is that you enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

3 avocados (approx 20oz), ripe; but not bruised and soft.

Salt & White Pepper (optional), to taste

2 TB fresh lime juice

1 tsp grated lime zest

1 large clove garlic, minced on microplane

½ c finely chopped red onion

1/3 c chopped roma tomato (ripe)

1/4 c finely chopped serrano chili (This is totally up to your level of spice like. For less heat, remove the seeds and veins or omit completely)

1/4-1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro

METHOD

Place the avocado in a mixing bowl and mash until chucky (approx 1/2 inch pieces still visible).

Add the garlic, liberal seasoning of salt, serrano, white pepper, onion, tomato, lime zest and juice; fold gently to incorporate.

Taste for seasoning; adjust. Finally fold in the cilantro with the seasoning adjustment.

Serve with Carnitas & your favorite Salsas… or with Fajitas… or as a dip… you get the idea 😉

Enjoy!

Legit Margaritas

My favorite part of my first visit to Mexico 🇲🇽 was seeing that no one drank margaritas 😂

Paloma is the cocktail of choice which is fine by me because I love grapefruit.

There are at least 5 different origin stories/legends on where the Margarita was born. Whichever you believe is immaterial. The Margarita is one of the most popular bar drinks ordered now. There’s a version on any menu of a bar or restaurant that is wanting to make money.

At it’s core… a good Margarita is built with a) tequila b) orange liqueur c) lime

The thing about “simple” cocktails is that quality of ingredients is paramount. In an effort to lower costs and drive efficiency, lime juice was replaced by “sour mix”. Bulk bars and restaurants make this by using bottled lime juice and mixing with simple syrup. This saves a ton of labor juicing and cost for fresh limes.

Important to note here that bottled citrus juices (esp lemon and lime) taste horrible. Avoid in cocktails and cooking in general. It’s on par with jarred garlic IMO.

The flipside of sour mix is that it does cover over using inferior tequila… which… again…. helps with better $$$ margins for the bar. Tequila and Mezcal are both iconic Mexican exports. There are high quality, artisan produced spirits that are truly magical. It’s a long and laborious process… so there are a ton of cheap/cut versions that most people are familiar with. Avoid any ‘tequilas’ that are cut with NGS (Neutral Grain Spirits).

I’ll skip the Tequila deep dive and get straight to this recipe… which has a twist that is really delicious while keeping the integrity of what a good Margarita should be.

Another note: Balance. A good cocktail shouldn’t taste like chugging a bottle of booze. The sweet, sour, bitter (if necessary) and alcohol notes should be balanced. There’s nothing cool or macho about making a margarita so strong you can only taste tequila.

Without Further Ado… the Octopod Legit Margarita 🐙 🍹

1 1/2oz. Espolon blanco tequila

1/2oz. Combier

1/4oz. Luxardo Maraschino

3/4oz lime juice, freshly squeezed

1/4oz. Simple syrup (1:1 sugar to water)

*The recipe was made with these particular spirits listed. There will be variation if you substitute brands

Method:

Prepare a rocks glass, by rubbing the rim with a cut lime and dipping in kosher salt (or chili salt 😋 )

Fill a shaker 2/3 with cubed ice. Add all the ingredients and shake thoroughly. (You want to shake enough to chill the drink without watering it down).

Double strain (ideally) and serve with a lime garnish (optional). You can add a cube or two of ice, as pictured, but not necessary.

Let me know if more cocktail drops would be appreciated… have some more up my sleeves that are extremely tasty!

Next up we are talking Lamb and a Special Dessert for the upcoming Holiday Weekend.

Until Next Time! 🥂