Dairy Free

This classic Tex-Mex stew (see photograph page 10) is rich and delicious without the hours of simmering that most stews require. I cannot imagine ever eating this without Aunt Edna’s Homemade Flour Tortillas (page 171) to soak up every last drop of flavorful sauce.

There are as many different styles of tortillas as there are regions in the parts of the world where they are eaten. I make tortillas like the ones I grew up eating in my Aunt Edna’s kitchen in Texas: thick, fluffy, and addictive! This dough can be used to make them any way you like: small or large, thick or thin. With practice, you’ll get more efficient and turn into a one-person assembly line: cooking one tortilla while you roll out another. Nothing is better to sop up the creamy gravy of Aunt Didi’s Carne Guisada (page 107). Or eat them warm, straight off the comal (a flat griddle, see below) and spread with butter. I still love them for breakfast, these days usually with beans rolled up inside.

This is a Christmas favorite at my house, perfect for everything from big holiday parties to a quiet winter night at home. Sometimes I put a batch of it on to simmer just because its delicious fragrance of warm spice and apple fills the house and makes me happy.

As they simmer, the pears send enticing wafts of fruit and vanilla through the air, a fitting invitation to a supremely elegant dessert. I’ve also served these at Thanksgiving with the main course in place of traditional cranberry sauce. The tea bag adds undertones that complement or highlight the fruit in the simmering liquid—fruity or floral, depending on what you use. Choose a fruit tea that you like—I use tropical green tea or passion fruit.

One year when I was very young I wanted to give pan de polvo, also called Mexican wedding cookies, as Christmas presents to my teachers at school. My mom taught me “her” recipe. In fact, it was this one—Aunt Elsa’s! I went to the flea market and spent my allowance on a collection of cookie cutters. I returned home and set out to make about 15 dozen in different shapes. Unfortunately, many of them broke because, as I discovered to my great frustration, pan de polvo is a very delicate cookie that doesn’t hold shapes well—especially intricate ones like snowflakes. Those cookie cutters were probably my first purchase of kitchen equipment—but far from my last. They were so cheap that when I washed them for the first time, they rusted the next day! Polvo means “powder,” an apt description of a delicate cookie, generously rolled in sugar, that shatters on your tongue. I roll these very thin, just like Aunt Elsa used to, so they practically melt in your mouth. They are often rolled a little thicker, to about 3/8 inch—if you do so, just bake them a little longer.

The origins of this recipe are still a matter of open and often heated debate among my sisters and me, but there is one thing on which we can all agree: It is a favorite of my sister Elizabeth who has special needs. This recipe allows her to come into the kitchen with the rest of us and make something truly delicious. Salted peanuts are best; either cocktail or dry-roasted works well.

We always understood where our food came from. More often than not, the source was the land outside our back door! Pumpkin bread began with the pumpkin seed that we planted, tended, and eventually harvested. My mom never bought cans of cooked pumpkin, so the only time we could have pumpkin bread was when there was a surplus of pumpkins in our garden. This made me keenly aware of why pumpkins and pumpkin treats are a tradition for the autumn holidays—this is when pumpkins are actually in season! In fact, pumpkin bread is a Halloween tradition in my house. Those jack-o’-lanterns offer more than just spooky light—the pumpkins give us the makings for baking as well. I love cinnamon and this bread is definitely cinnamony, though you can use less if desired. As the bread bakes, the kitchen fills with a sweet, caramel aroma. The bread is very dark outside and very moist within.

The corn tortilla was first made many thousands of years ago. Today it usually begins with masa harina, a powdery meal made from fresh corn dough that has been dried and ground to a powder. Full of sweet and earthy corn flavor, homemade corn tortillas are very different from store-bought. The moment you pull off the lid from the tortilla warmer or the napkin covering a basket of warm tortillas, a sweet, corn aroma fills the air. Serve these with Chili-Rubbed Skirt Steak Tacos (page 102) or in any recipe that calls for corn tortillas.

My sister Esmeralda uses this on her excellent BBQ Chicken Pizza (page 91), and it’s also good brushed on burgers on the grill. Dried barbecue seasoning can be found in the spice aisle at the grocery store.

These are ingredients I always have on hand, so this grill sauce is easy to pull together in just a few minutes to add luscious flavor to grilled steak or ribs. When I have a little more time, I make it an hour or two in advance and use half to marinate the meat before grilling and the other half to brush on while grilling.

Chipotles in adobo are smoked jalapeños in seasoned tomato sauce sold in cans available at most grocery stores. When you make this, it looks like it won’t work with such a small amount in the food processor, but once the oil is added it will come together. Most important is that you add the oil very slowly, just a few drops at first. If too much goes in at once, the sauce will separate into a gloppy mess and you’ll have to start all over again. This smoky aïoli is well worth the effort: The heavenly VeraCruz Corn (page 151) depends on it. And drizzle it over the Flautas (page 93) in place of the tomatillo-avocado sauce.

I am lucky to live near the Grey Moss Inn, one of the most beautiful restaurants in San Antonio, which also has the most amazing wine list in the area. I love to eat there whenever I can, and this dressing is one of the reasons. After tasting it the first time, I once again found myself in a restaurant kitchen asking for the recipe. The chef graciously agreed. Try it tossed with tender romaine hearts, or spoon over asparagus (page 145), tomatoes, or steamed green beans.

Few ingredients awaken the taste buds the way fresh lemon does. This dressing has a clean, pure flavor perfectly suited to a light salad of tossed greens. It may also have some magical qualities—it’s the one dressing that gets my nieces to eat salad! It can also be used as a marinade for grilled chicken, shrimp, or pork.

This vinaigrette is excellent on just about any green salad. I especially like it on butterhead lettuce, oak leaf, and other delicate greens. Sweet-and-tangy balsamic vinegar is the star here, so choose one that is good quality.

Broiled asparagus is the vegetable side dish I prepare most often when I’m throwing a big dinner party because it’s sophisticated but quick and easy to make. Actually, I prepare it as often as I can, whether I’m having a dinner party or not, because it is my absolute favorite vegetable. I’d eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if I could. The timing here depends on how thick the asparagus are—they can be pencil thin or super thick. Just pierce them with a knife; when it goes in easily, they’re ready to be broiled to get some nice, brown color.

My family knows that roasting is my favorite way to prepare Brussels sprouts (it’s one of my Thanksgiving specialties), so when my sister Emily found a version with kimchi in a magazine, she sent it straight to me. Kimchi, a staple in the Korean diet, is a delicious, tangy, fermented cabbage. It can be found in well-stocked grocery stores and in Korean markets. The flavor of the finished dish really depends on the kimchi, so find one you like. If you don’t like a lot of spice, just roast the Brussels sprouts as directed here and leave out the kimchi. Roasted Brussels sprouts on their own are both sweet and savory.

I call this Mexican spaghetti. In Mexico, sopa de fideo is truly a soup, while fideo seco is much drier. I like a texture between the two. As with Mexican Rice (page 124), the trick is to cook these without touching them very much at all. Any stirring will make the noodles sticky, so when checking the level of the liquid in the pan, just use a long-handled spoon to gently move the noodles aside and check the bottom of the pan. Note that the longer this sits, the more the noodles will absorb the broth. This is a great method for cooking chicken, so even though I’m serving the noodles only as a side dish, sometimes I take advantage of the simmering pot to cook some chicken for the next day. I add as many drumsticks as possible without crowding, and the well-seasoned broth turns out tender, juicy, and really flavorful chicken every time.

I always struggled to make perfect black beans, and then my friend from ArtBites (page 63) gave me this recipe, and now my black beans are just as good as my Borracho Beans (page 128)! Black beans are delicious refried (page 130). Black beans, unlike pinto beans, cook more evenly and fall apart less if you skip the soaking.

White rice (arroz blanco) is the quintessential Caribbean food and is always a sure choice for a simple side dish that will complement rather than outshine the main course. It’s especially excellent for sopping up the delicious juices from Crock-Pot Cuban Ropa Vieja (page 113).