¡cumpleaños feliz Frida de 100 años!

“I must fight with all my strength so that the little positive things my health allows me to do might be pointed toward helping the revolution. The only real reason for living." -Frida Kahlo



Mexico & the art world celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Frida Kahlo's birthday.

Mexico City is hosting the largest ever exhibition of Frida Kahlo's works this week at the Museo de Bellas Artes to mark 100 years since the birth of the artist.

Frida Kahlo was the first Latin American woman to have a painting in the Louvre. Her work caused a storm in Paris in 1939, and the surrealists claimed it as supremely illustrative of their ideas.

To the average person, her paintings may often appear to be very dark. But a deeper understanding of her life gives her imagery a wider dimension, reflecting the psychological & physical pain she endured through her tortured relationship & marraige with Diego Rivera and countless failed surgeries which lead to her early death in 1954.

If you want to know more about Frida Kahlo read: Hayden Herrera’s Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo.


There are untold numbers of tourista items & bric-a-brac with Frida's image today in Mexico making her more recognizable than most of the current Latin American politicians.

I am including one of Frida's recipes on my blog. It is very similar to the Chiles en Nogada which I have posted as a recipe previously on the old blog. She was a woman of great talents & gifts in the kitchen as well as the art world!

Cooking up one of Frida's Recipes~

CHILES STUFFED WITH PICADILLO
• 16 poblano chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded, and deveined
• Flour
• 5 eggs, separated
• Olive oil or lard
• Tomato Broth

Stuff the chiles with the Picadillo, then dust them with flour. Beat the egg whites until stuff. Beat the yolks lightly with a pinch of salt and gently fold together with the whites to make a batter. Dip the chiles into the batter and fry in hot oil until golden. Drain on brown paper. To serve, place the chiles in the Tomato Broth.

PICADILLO

• 3 lb. ground pork
• 1 large onion, halved
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 6 tablespoons lard (olive oil is fine)
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 pound tomatoes, chopped
• 1 cup shredded cabbage
• 3/4 cup blanched almonds, chopped
• half cup raisins

Cook the pork with the onion halves, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste for about 20 minutes. Drain the liquid and discard onion. Heat the lard in another pan and sauté the chopped onion, carrots, and zucchini until the onion is translucent. Add the tomato, cabbage, almonds, raisins, pork and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the mixture has darkened and the tomato is cooked through.

TOMATO BROTH
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 10 medium tomatoes, roasted, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• half cup vinegar
• 3 tbsp sugar
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tsp dried oregano