In case you were not aware, my husband and I are a little crazy. And we love food.
About a year ago, we stepped in to help out with a lasagna lunch at the church we attend. We brought garlic toast, traditional lasagna, mushroom vegetarian lasagne, and butter chicken lasagna. The full post can be read
here.
Since then, we have helped with several lunches. One was a rice bowl Sunday, with options of Korean bul-go-gi, butter chicken, and
satay chicken. We also did Christmas dinner, with
vegetarian quinoa and cranberry stuffing, turkey and ham, goat cheese mashed potatoes,
red and green salad, and
gravy, among other things. And there were a few parenting seminars, for which we did Mexican food.
The most recent church lunch was focused on fundraising for a humanitarian project in Guatemala, so we decided to make Guatemalan food. We have never made anything Guatemalan. We have never even eaten anything specifically Guatemalan. This was a first.
See? I told you so... crazy!
We researched, planned, and chose various dishes based on their apparent authenticity, having no first-hand knowledge to rest on.
Armed with recipes adjusted to feed 140 people, $550 worth of ingredients, a car load of kitchen tools, and three volunteers, we set to work.
Here are the recipes, all adjusted to feed 6:
Picado de Rábano / Guatemalan Radish Salad
Ingredients:
- 1 pound radishes, sliced into thin rounds
- 1 bunch mint, chopped
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup lemon juice (one large lemon)
- salt & pepper to taste
Method:
> slice radishes with a food processor or knife
> mix all ingredients into bowl
> chill for a few hours (or overnight) before serving
Guatemalan Vegetable Salad / Potato & Green Bean
Ingredients:
- 1.5 cups shelled squash or pumpkin seeds
- 4 medium tomatillos, husked and quartered
- 0.5 cups roughly chopped yellow onions
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
- 1 pound potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 pound green beans, cut diagonally into 1-inch pieces
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Method:
> in a medium pot, combine the potatoes and 1 teaspoon salt with enough water, to cover; bring to a boil and simmer until tender; drain; set aside
> combine the green beans and remaining teaspoon of salt in water to cover; bring to a boil and simmer until tender; drain; set aside
For the sauce:
> in a large, dry skillet, the pumpkin seeds over medium-low heat until golden and fragrant, about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally; remove and let cool
> add the tomatillos, onions and garlic to the skillet and cook over medium-low heat until the skins are slightly charred, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally; remove from the heat and let cool slightly
> pulse the roasted squash seeds in a blender or food processor; add the tomatillo mixture and 0.25 (1/4) cup water; puree on high speed until smooth, adding more water as needed
> season to taste
> combine the cooked potatoes and green beans in a bowl; toss with the sauce and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving
> serve chilled
Guatemalan Guacamole
Ingredients:
- 4 ripe but not mushy avocados, diced in large cubes
- 2 small tomatoes, diced
- 0.5 (1/2) cup finely chopped red onions
- 1 fresh green chilies, chopped
- 1 bunch chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 lime, juiced
Method:
> put avocados into bowl and mix with lime juice
> mix in other ingredients gently; serve as soon as possible
Hilachas / Guatemalan Beef Stew
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds beef, cubed
- 5 cups water
- 2-3 tbsp oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes
- 1 cup chopped tomatillos
- 2 to 3 guajillo (say 'gua-HE-yo') chiles, warmed over a flame, deseeded and chopped
- salt and pepper - to season
- 1 pound potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 2-3 carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
Method:
> place the beef, water, and a big pinch of salt in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat
> reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the beef is very tender
> while the beef is simmering, place the onion, tomatoes, tomatillos and chiles in a food processor or blender and puree, adding a little water if necessary
> heat the oil in a large pot over medium; add the onion-tomato puree and simmer until the puree is cooked down and darkens somewhat in color, about 10 minutes; do not burn
> add the shredded beef and about 3 cups of the broth to the onion-tomato puree and season with salt and pepper; reserve the rest of the broth
> stir in the potatoes, onions and a little more broth if necessary
> simmer until the potatoes and carrots are cooked through, about 15-20 minutes
> stir in the breadcrumbs to thicken the sauce (optional)
> stir in the chopped cilantro, adjust seasoning and serve hot with corn tortillas or rice
Variations:
- add 2 teaspoons achiote seasoning to the onion-tomato puree for added flavor. Bricks of achiote seasoning can be found at many Latin markets
- the potatoes and carrots can be eliminated if you like
- canned tomatoes and tomatillos work just fine in this recipe
- tomatoes can be used if you would like to eliminate the tomatillos
- if you can't find guajillo chiles, use anchos or pasillas (say 'pa-SEE-yas') or substitute with 1 tablespoons of paprika and 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
Jocón / Guatemalan Chicken in Tomatillo-Cilantro Sauce
Ingredients:
- 3 pounds chicken, cut into serving pieces
- 4 cups water
- 2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- 1/4 cup sesame seeds
- 2 corn tortillas, chopped, soaked in water, drained
- 1 cup tomatillos, hulled and chopped
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
- 1 bunch scallions, chopped
- 1-5 jalapeño or serrano chile peppers, chopped
Method:
> place the chicken, water, and salt into a large pot over medium-high
> bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour
> heat a dry skillet over medium; add the pumpkin and sesame seeds and toast, stirring, until lightly browned; remove to a coffee grinder or food processor and grind to a fine powder
> add the sesame and pumpkin seeds, tortillas, tomatillos, cilantro, scallions, and chile peppers to a food processor or blender; add 6 cups of the broth from the chicken and process until smooth; you may have to do this step in batches
> pour pureed sauce into the pot with the chicken pieces
> heat over medium-low and simmer for an additional 15-25 minutes; adjust seasoning and serve
Kaq Ik / Roasted Pepper Turkey Stew
Ingredients:
- 1/4 turkey (hind quarter, breast "roast")
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 head of garlic
- 1/2 pound of tomatoes
- 1 onions
- salt
- 1 large tomatillos
- 1 onion
- 1 fresh sweet red peppers
- 1 dried chile guajilla
- 1 dried chile pasilla
- half to 1 tbsp chopped chipotle peppers in adobo
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 tbsp achiote
- 3 corn tortillas
- 1 bunch fresh cilantro
- 1 bunch fresh mint
- salt
Method:
> place the turkey and the whole garlic head in the chicken stock; salt to taste.
> in a separate pan, cook tomato, onion, sweet red pepper, chile guajillo, and chile pasilla, chipotle pepper until soft; once fully cooked, puree in blender; partial vegetable chunks also work
> once the turkey is cooked, add the vegetable mix to the stew
> place achiote in a small bowl and add some of the “soup” to it and stir until it is a smooth paste; stir into soup pot with adobo chipotle
> to thicken the soup, tear up corn tortillas into small pieces and add to soup pot; stir well
> bring to boil for about ten minutes, or until tortillas have dissolved and soup has thickened
> add cilantro and mint and season with salt to taste.
Served with rice on the side to be added to the bowl. Garnish with lime wedges and avocado slices.
Variation:
- add corn (fresh or frozen) for the last 10 minutes of cooking
Subanik / Roasted Aubergine (Eggplant) & Mushroom Stew
Ingredients:
For the sauce
- 4 medium red bell peppers, cut in half from top to bottom, then stemmed and seeded
- 9 roma tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
- 1 onion, cut into quarters
- 4 tomatillos, husks removed
- 1 dried ancho chili pepper, washed inside and out, seeds and stem removed
- 1 dried red chili pepper, such as chili de arbol
- 1 or 2 Thai red chili peppers
For the mushroom and aubergine
- 1 to 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1.25 pounds mushrooms
- 1.5 tsp salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- water, as needed
- 1.25 pounds aubergine, cubed into 1-inch pieces
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 to 4 sprigs thyme
Method:
For the sauce
> preheat the oven to 500 degrees.
> place the red bell peppers on a foil lined baking sheet and roast for 20 to 25 minutes, turning them once or twice, until their skins are blistered with black spots all around
> foil another baking sheet and place the tomatoes and onion cut side down on the sheet, along with the whole tomatillos, dried chili peppers and Thai red chili pepper; roast for about 10 minutes, until the tomatoes are quite tender, with blistered skins
> working in several batches, transfer the roasted peppers, tomatoes, tomatillos, onion and Thai red chili pepper to a blender; pulse for 1 to 2 minutes for each batch, until a fairly smooth sauce forms; do not over-process the mixture
> break off pieces of the dried chili peppers and add them through the top of the blender while the motor is running; stop to taste, and add more of the dried chili peppers to achieve the desired level of spiciness
For the mushroom and aubergine:
> toss the cleaned mushrooms and cubed aubergine in the oil with thyme and gently salt and pepper
> place on an unlined baking sheet and place into the broiling hot oven
> broil until golden all over, turning a few times
> add a little water to the baking sheet to scrape up the browned on bits from broiling the mushrooms and aubergine; pour over the vegetables
> in a large pot, add together the puréed vegetables, roasted mushroom and eggplant, and the bay leaves
> cover and cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have blended
> salt and pepper to taste
Frijoles a la Huacha / Dirty Beans
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1/2 onion, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeño chile, diced (use gloves)
- 2 cans red kidney beans
- 500 ml chicken broth
- 1 large bunch of mint
Method:
> fry the onion and chile in the oil until soft but not brown
> blend the beans with broth until smooth
> add beans to the fry pan with onion and peppers
> fry until beans reduce to a thick paste (about 10 minutes)
> add chopped mint leaves toward end of cooking time
Arroz con Leche / Rice Pudding
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of rice
- 2 cups water
- 20 beans coffee
- 2 cinnamon stick
- 10 cloves
- 2 cans of coconut milk
- 1 small lime, whole and washed
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk
Method:
> put the rice, water, coffee beans, cinnamon and cloves in a saucepan with a tight lid; bring to a boil, then simmer until the water is gone and the rice is cooked
> add the coconut milk and the lime (whole); cook over low heat until it reduces again
> remove the cinnamon stick, cloves, and lime
> add the sweetened condensed milk and stir over low heat until the mixture thickens
> decorate with a shake of cinnamon and a few raisins if you like
Guatemalan Banana Bread
Ingredients:
5 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoons allspice
2.5 cups smashed bananas
0.5 cups milk
1/3 cups vegetable oil
2 eggs
zest of 1 lime
2 tbsp lime juice
Method:
> heat oven to 350 degrees; grease bottom only of a pan
> mix all ingredients; beat 30 seconds
> our into pan
> bake until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean
> cool before slicing
And when you bake one that is THIS huge, you bake it a little longer!!
Overall, the lunch was a huge success, which is always nice. At the end of this month, we will visit Mexico for the culinary adventure after church. And I am certain the food will be amazing.
