We had a couple missing in action, but I won’t name any names (Keith, Jen).

Here are some takeaways from this feast:

• a 55 gallon drum of guacamole would not be enough – a huge bowl was devoured within minutes
• ditto on sweet potato chips
• make a list of what you’re supposed to take with you when catering an event such as this, and check it three times; we forgot a myriad of ingredients: 5 avocados (see above), quart of cream, eggs, two huge heads of romaine, and probably a couple of things I’m still forgetting
• when empanada dough made from ripe plantains requires the empanadas to be soft (from roasting about 45 minutes at 350 F), they really need to be soft; I rushed and added cream (fat) to the mixture to make it doughy, which does not work if you’re going to be frying them! We’ll be doing this one again soon.
• taking the fryer is a good idea! If you run out of things to fry, you can start frying up shoes, severed fingers, whatever for wholesome party fun!
• ’tis best to take the time and bring implements to make a proper fry station, i.e., dry-wet-dry dipping for things like chiles rellenos. using shallow bowls and your fingers makes for splotchy batter coverage
• definitely no drinking whilst you’re preparing the feast, especially in the days leading up; we wouldn’t have gotten half the dishes done if we had been
• tune in BeatBlender on SomaFM and crank it as loud as it will go while cooking!!! Loud deep house music creates the best energy in the kitchen ever. Perhaps we can start powering cars on house music?

My personal favorites:

• the roasted tomatillo serrano salsa rocks! Tangy, zesty, spicy with a hint of sweetness. This is a distinctive green color.
• the roasted tomatillo chipotle salsa – tangy and spicy with a touch of sweet. This one is mahogany colored (uses dried chipotles not ones in adobo).
• enchilada suiza – made this a gillion times and it’s always a fave, esp for such a simple dish
• guacamole always a fave – my shortcut on this one is to make the fresh chopped tomato jalapeño salsa as a stand-alone dish, add several tablespoons of the salsa to mash fresh avocados with a fork, chop up several cloves of garlic and mince with coarse salt, throw it all together and voilá!
• simply made, freshly fried corn chips with any salsa

Finally here are some pics from the party! Click on an image to zoom in and get a full description.

Until next time . . .

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All I gotta say is, we threw down some serious groceries tonight! Paul and I cooked for a solid 5 and a half hours, both running 120% speed. Thing is, we’ve got about 2 more hours full speed cooking tomorrow, so we’ll be getting to Reggie’s a little early, schedule permitting. So what is the MF menu exactly?

For conidemento, or accoutrement, we have:

• roasted, simmered tomato jalapeño salsa
• fresh chopped tomato serrano salsa
• fresh chopped tomato habanero salsa
• roasted tomatillo serrano salsa
• roasted tomatillo chipotle salsa
• fresh guacamole
• plantian chips with chimichurri (yes a little further south but what the hell)
• sweet potato chips, dusted with chipotle salt
• chihuahua cheese
• queso fresco
• tortillas de mais (corn tortillas)
• fresh romaine lettuce
• cremini and shiitake mushrooms
• freshly made tortilla chips

For starters, appetizers, side dishes and main dishes:

• ripe plantain empanadas with cheese filling
• picadillo stuffed jalapeños (chiles jalapeños rellenos de picadillo)
• fresh enchilada suiza
• shredded poached chicken in seasoned broth for tacos
• freshly grilled flank steak (carne asada) with spicy ancho seasoning paste
• chile rellenos (poblano) stuffed with chorizo and queso fresco in a tequila lime sauce

I’m sure there are things I’ve missed. The general motif is kind of like a taco bar (kind of like a bruschetta bar party if you’ve ever done one of those – and that word, just like chipotle, is almost always mispronounced; it’s bruce-KETTA, not brooshetta, bershetta, broshitta or any other such nonsense). We’ve basically got three proteins, chargrilled beef, shredded poached chicken and roasted pork. These can be served up in warm, soft tortillas with a myriad of choice ingredients and condiments as you so please. The only exception would be the chile rellenos, enchiladas suiza and empanadas.

I’ve got some pictures of our preparations this evening for your enjoyment. Click on the links to get the full pic and description:

• Poaching Chicken
• Decimated Sausage
• Tacos
• A vertible garden!
• Eating a Habanero
• Ancho Chiles
• Spooge
• Poblano Rajas
• the “flip”
• Roasting Serranos
• Suiza Beginnings
• Pollo y Spooge
• No. 10 can of tomatoes
• Fresh Whipped Cream
• Let them eat cake!
• You can’t stop me!!
• Cooling Suiza

Ok as you can see it’s very late and there is much to do tomorrow. I look forward to seeing all you MF-ers out there and hope you enjoy the vittles as much as I’ve enjoyed making them!

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