Posted by Lia Bulaong, April 10, 2007 at 6:45 PM
Candice Choi of the AP, on how the flavors of South America are becoming mainstream: "A decade ago, chipotle was virtually unknown in the mainstream. Now today, companies like Sargento Foods are launching chipotle-seasoned Cheddar. Three varieties of it. Kraft, whose iconic Oreo cookies already come in dulce de leche (a caramel-like flavor popular in South America), is rolling out Fresa (strawberry). Wrigley's Orbit chewing gum now comes in a "mint mojito" flavor. "Hispanic cuisine has really taken off and become part of Americana," says Chris Groom, spokesman for Plymouth, Wis.-based Sargento."
Posted by Lia Bulaong, April 5, 2007 at 5:15 PM
Kitty Crider of the Austin American-Statesman recently interviewed pastry chef Dunia Borga, known in Dallas for her Cuatro Leches cake—a twist on the traditional tres leches (three milks) cake—that "begins with a vanilla sponge cake, coarser than American butter cakes but strong enough to hold up to the sauce of three milks poured over it. Then it is covered with a caramelized Swiss meringue and dotted with the arequipe [dulce de leche, or caramel sauce]."
Still not sold? Sarah Phillips of Baking911 sampled Borga's cake at her restaurant La Duni a few years ago and says, "It beats any tres leches cake on the planet, and I have eaten a lot of them! I was interested in the recipe because a few years ago I was on the best tres leche cake quest, and I think this one is the best I have EVER EVER tried in my whole life, and it still holds the title, in my mind. My friends and I must have had a dozen pieces (and then some) of this cake in two days...."
If you're nowhere near Dallas but would like to try cuatro leches, Borga's put the recipe up on her website so you can bake it yourself. Send me a slice if you do!
Posted by Lia Bulaong, March 21, 2007 at 2:55 PM
Great great story by Kim Severson in the New York Times today on how grocery chains have begun customizing their stores to target the increasingly affluent Latino shopper:
Although there is no one typical Hispanic shopper, some generalizations are driving the design of the new Latino-theme stores. Many have wider aisles because, research shows, grocery shopping is often a family outing. Hispanic families tend to be larger, and more people cook from scratch, so produce and meat departments tend to be bigger and better stocked. And loyalty to brands from the home country is strong. At Rancho Liborio, Tide is almost an afterthought. Mexican brands like Ariel dominate the shelves.
But the generalizations end there. The term Hispanic applies to people from many countries, each with particular preferences for things like fruit, meat, spices, bread and beans. Tastes can change from city to city, even neighborhood to neighborhood.
A walk through the dried-bean aisle at Rancho Liborio is a case in point. There are pintos, both the larger speckled brown ones preferred by Mexicans and the smaller, lighter-colored ones used in Peru. Pink beans appeal to Puerto Ricans, and black beans to Cubans, Guatemalans and Brazilians.
You don't have to be Hispanic to enjoy or benefit from shopping at a Rancho Liborio or other ethnic groceries, like those found in any Chinatown; what many people don't realize is that you can find many foods that are both cheaper and fresher than your average supermarket, and they're likely to have wider selections of fish, poultry and meat. Hooray for variety!
