Sopa de Tortilla~perfect for a rainy day or any day?

When the rains keep falling we make soup in Mexico.
Mexico has many traditional sopas, guiso & caldos but our all time favorite is Tortilla soup. I love soup when cooler temperatures hit but in Mexico that's not always the case. When our recent flooding & rains continued I used it as an excuse for cooking up a pot of Sopa. Lord knows, at the end of a day of rain & navigating flooded roadways it really hits the spot.


When it rains in Mexico it pours. Last week's downpours did bring cooler temperatures but the roads in Santiago were difficult at best to navigate for several days. Our entrance to our Colonia was completely flooded out & of the 2 alternate routes only 1 was was open. The flood control arms we are used to seeing in the states are non existent here. My driver had to be enlightened on the amount of water it takes to move a car off of a flooded spillway. He seemed prepared to fearlessly head into the high water at one point. I told him in the Texas public service announcement format: "Turn around, don't drown", "Two feet of water can lift approx. 3000 lbs"!!! Under no circumstances would I sit in the back seat quietly with flood waters hitting the underside of the Audi! (Fearless Latin driving has no place on a flooded roadway.) After arriving back at our house I knew it was soup weather if not temperatures in Mexico.
















































Sopa de Tortilla
12 small corn tortillas, cut into strips
6 cups Chicken stock
2 large chicken breasts with skin & bones
3 chiles pasilla, lightly fried & crumbled*(see below!)
6 Tbsp. Grated Queso Chihuahua or Monterrey Jack
3 large tomatoes, broiled (can substitute 13 oz can, drained)
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
2/3 cups chopped carrots
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. cumin
Cilantro
Avocado, diced onion for garnish

Cook chicken breasts in stock, pull off meat,skin & chop & reserve stock leaving 6 cups of original stock along with the meat. Set this mixture aside.
In a large dutch oven heat 6 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil. Fry tortilla strips till crisp & drain on paper towels. There should be a remaining 2-3 Tbsp. oil. Use a blender to blend tomatoes, onion & garlic to rough puree. Cook this mixture 5 min. in oil, Add Cumin, black pepper, carrots, 3 Tbsp. Cilantro, add in the Chicken stock & chicken. Simmer soup 15 min.
Serve Soup with garnish of tortilla strips, avocado, onion, cilantro & cheese.
*Frying the dried chiles pasilla for the first time was a dangerous undertaking, I didn't realize they tend to explode, make certain to fry the peppers at low to med. heat & very quickly. These peppers add a wonderful flavor, don't omit them altogether. Enjoy!

A long busy Texas & Mexico Summer!

Between travel & our trip home for some much needed home repairs & painting we ended our Summer on a very busy note. At one point in during the full scale painting & sheetrock work our crew was threatening to quit...my rudimentary Espanol came in handy then. Yes, I have picked up a few things living here in Mexico. (It's called Tex-mex for a reason!) I could see the handwriting on the wall & made nice with the painters each morning giving them encouragement & breakfast. We did have time with our 2 favorite girls but it was work, work & more work while we were in Texas. The "honey do" chores continue but once again we are back in Mexico~






The "Home" project has made us do some weeding out & going through 27 years of things somewhere between family "stuff" & junk. The up side to painting is that everything feels fresh & new once it is all put back in place. We are still getting there...

















Since returning to Mexico I am once again keeping busy creating, cooking & doing what we do here South of the Border. This Chutney is excellent with Chicken, Lamb or Pork. It has a little more bite than a Major Grey's Chutney. Enjoy~
Spiced Mango Chutney
2 lbs chopped ripe mango
2 cups tart green apple, chopped
1 small red onion, diced
1 clove garlic, diced finely
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 small fresh jalapeno, diced & seeded
2 cups mascabedo sugar (raw sugar)
1 cup dried cranberries, soaked in boiling H2O
1/2 cup crystallized ginger, diced
1/2 tsp. mustard seed

Place all ingredients except Ginger & Cranberries in large dutch oven. Bring to low boil & lower heat to simmer. Cook Mango mixture for 30-45 minutes until the fruit is bubbly & rich golden color. Add the diced Ginger & drained Cranberries into the mixture. Immediately ladle Chutney into sterile pint or half pint jars, seal & close immediately. Process 15 minutes in hot water bath. Remove, cool jars & store.

Mexican Handcrafts~Artesanias Mexicana

In old San Pedro we visited an Artesania Fare with many crafts from all over Mexico. We saw a little of everything from handmade guitars, clothing, woven baskets, Jewelry to handmade Sweets. On the whole the day was such a sensory experience! There were fountains gurgling, birds chirping & soft pan flute music. With the tiny paper flags called Picados fluttering everywhere it was a day which should have been painted rather than simply capturing with film. The oppressive heat seemed to lift for a time as we strolled the tented walkways of crafts & foods. We even stopped for fresh fruit Ice Cream. *The only fly in the ointment so to speak was the crowd gathered to watch a body being removed across from the Artesanias Fare... Oh well. I did stop to ponder the fact that I had never seen such a sight while having ice cream!! Life in Mexico~take the good with the bad!



True Artesanias in Mexico are handmade by master of their crafts & traditions handed down in the same families from one generation to the next.

Summertime eats!

When company arrives South of the Border we try new things & dine on local flavors. This week we had an opportunity to try about 8 new taco flavors @ Tresa Arami's house. Her friend & neighbor served us all savory Mexican flavors from her new Catering menu. I believe my daughter was the first one to try each unique taco flavor. We also cooked some simple foods at home which left us time to visit, shop & sight see! Our current favorite is a Spicy Potato Pancake which is an adaptation from an Indian dish.



















Spicy Potato Pancakes
3 white potatoes, boiled whole in jackets
3 Tbsp. onion diced
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded & diced
3 Tbsp. Cilantro chopped
Salt & Pepper to taste
Olive Oil 2-3 Tbsp.
Grate up the potatoes, mix in all of the ingredients by hand & form small 2 1/2-3 inch cakes. Chill the potato cakes 30 min. Quickly brown on each side on medium heat in skillet with Olive Oil. Serve immediately.















Summertime Pineapple Salad
1/2 Pineapple, cored & diced
1 med. Cucumber, seeded & diced
1 med. Mango, seeded & diced
1 Lime, juiced
1 Tbsp. Chili flakes
3 Tbsp. loosely chopped Cilantro
Toss together, chill & serve.












**FYI~did you know that when you cut up that next pineapple you can plant the top & eventually have another pineapple? Pineapples are quite simply giving back when you plant that top!

A Daughter visit~

Life is fleeting, years rush past....
and little girls grow up so fast!

Visits with our girls are rather jealously controled for the precious time we have with them here South of the Border. This daughter trip we did the normal touristy things & relaxed as well as visited with a few friends. Jackie found out, yes we do have decent Italian food in Mexico, you can totally avoid strange people you meet on the airplane & if you think it's hot in Texas in July just check the weather in Mexico!!!























Some daughter visits we even get a few projects accomplished & "Off our List"! This trip the Memory Quilt was finished & I can finally say I am rid of that box of Tee-shirts which were cluttering up my linen closet!!! Miracles do happen~

Rains finally & Recycling here in the Colonia!

Several stormy days have left normally crazy driving a little wilder than normal here South of the Border!



The drought may have decreased in the Monterrey area this week after the 10+ inches of rainfall. *The drought has been so severe in Northern Mexico as to force the shy Mexican Black Bear from the mountains into residential areas of Monterrey. Since Friday we have had almost nonstop rain. Some local totals are more but here in Santiago it has been a welcome relief with the rainfall adding much needed water back into the springs & rivers.






















Finally, there will be curbside recycling in our Colonia! Not a new concept back in the states by any means. On our first day of "Reciclaje" I didn't see anyone else with glass, plastics & paper at the curbside but I'm trying to lead the example. (With so much recycled this week our trash output is very small.) There seem to be more pressing issues Mexico has to deal with but with flash floods & rains washing toxins & garbage into local streams, rivers & eventually into the Gulf of Mexico... it's a matter long overdue!

* More on the Black Bear story: http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23845731-5005961,00.html

Thinking of home! Happy 4th, Wherever you are:)

Leaving Texas is always bittersweet. After a recent trip home I am still thinking of family, friends & home. I'm happy to be there & while the time is precious, it ends all too fast. We enjoy every single moment we spend with our family. The only thing that makes returning to Mexico a little easier are the friendships we have established South of the Border. Life in the Ex Patriot community is fraught with moves & goodbyes but when we do establish friendships they have a certain resilience & strength. It's truly the Carpe Diem thought of seizing the moment & living in the present which helps me along.










What's not to miss? We always miss our girls mucho!

















I can't imagine life here without friends to share the joys & those little daily aggravations! There are plenty of those but what is life without those grains of sand rubbing us the wrong way now & again? This 4th of July, I'll miss those fireworks & BBQ ~ living somewhere else on Independence day makes me wax poetic & think of home. So, keep those sparklers lit, the beer cold & the BBQ pits stoked! We're thinking of you! Happy 4th of July & God bless Old Glory & long may it wave!












Laughter & Friends!
... I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. ~Woody Allen