From the Cookshelf: Amor y Tacos
I'm going to be honest with you: I'm pretty much infatuated with Mexican food. From the real-deal street foods I've eaten in-country to the pseudo-comida I occasionally indulge in when I'm Fourthmealing with my teens. So, you have to know that when I received this cookbook for review, I was predisposed to love it, and you know what? I do.
Amor y Tacos: Modern Mexican Tacos, Margaritas, and Antojitos is a small book stuffed as full as a dorado taco with recipes for tacos, antojitos (think appetizers or tapas), and cocktails, each one sounding more urgently delicious than the last. Liberally seasonning the text are dichos, folksy Mexican proverbs along the lines of, "Si quires el perro, acepta las pulgas" ("If you wanted the dog, don't complain about the fleas").
Author Deborah Schneider, a working chef and award-winning author, envisioned this collection of recipes as a "party book," and I'm definitely on board. Tacos are perfectly suited to serve buffet-style. Scalable for a crowd, ideal for "make your own," they're the ultimate fiesta food. Offer guests some of the delectable, even unusual antojitos (everyone else can serve chips and dip, people ~ you'll be bringing out the Scallops Aguachiles in Volcano Sauce!) you'll find here and a selection of the outrageous cocktails, and your party can't help but succeed. Schneider even makes planning easy by providing suggested menus suitable for parties from 4 to 20 guests or more.
If you're a fan of Mexican food but taco night at home typically means ground beef sauteed with an envelope of seasonings and spooned into brittle shells that taste a lot like the box they came in, do yourself a favor and run pick up a copy of this book as soon as you possibly can. Trust me, you'll want it on hand for the entire summer season of entertaining. Consider the following:
- Toritos ~ Little Peppers Stuffed with Garlic, Shrimp, and Oaxaca Cheese (p. 62)
- Lobster, Chayote, and Mango Tostadas with Chipotle Crema (p. 69)
- Garlic Shrimp Taco with Poblano Chile Rajas (p. 92)
- Grilled Lamb Taco with Salsa Borracha and Salsa Verde (p. 93)
- Deep-Fried Fish Taco Capeado with Spicy Coleslaw (p. 102)
- Carne Asada Taco Vampiro (p. 107)
You'll want to make up a big pitcher of Watermelon Agua Fresca (p. 39) or sip on a Blackberry Mint Margarita (p. 41) to wash all that down.
Cinco de Mayo is the perfect day to test-drive the recipes in this spicy little volume. Invite your amigos over and get cooking. And you might just want to give a few copies of Amor y Tacos
Amor y Tacos: Modern Mexican Tacos, Margaritas, and Antojitos
Stewart, Tabori & Chang; May 2010
This book sounds awesome! My boyfriend would love it. He adores Mexican food (as do I). I'll keep my eye out for it!
ReplyDeleteIt's such a fun book ~ and the food is totally doable. Not like every other Mexican cookbook I've seen ~ lots of interesting, fun stuff and get-together tips. I really like this one. :)
ReplyDelete