Everyday Gourmet. William Maltese

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СКАЧАТЬ yes, I have provided a few embellishments of my own, including the title’s play on words, “Tortilla-Seraped”, based upon the fact that the tortilla gets “wrapped” around the sandwich contents like a serape often gets wrapped around a Mexican. And, yes, while I DO know that “Greek” Yogurt is hardly indicative of Mexico, I have, through much experimentation, discovered, as have my guests, that substituting Greek Yogurt for the ordinary yogurt I initially used when preparing this dish does provide an additional certain “something”.

      Tortilla-Seraped Black Chipolte Bean Burritos

      4 Chipotle Black Bean patties (such as “Morning Star Farms”)

      4 large non-fat, low-carb, high-fiber, whole-wheat tortillas

      4 TBS jalapeño Greek Yogurt

      8 TBS fresh pico de gallo

      4 TBS grated cheddar cheese (optional)

      Cook Chipotle Black Bean patties according to directions on package.

      Heat tortillas.

      Spread yogurt on tortillas.

      Cut the patties in half and arrange two patty halves onto one side of each tortilla.

      Top each piece of patty with pico de gallo and grated cheese.

      Wrap un-piled half of the tortillas over filled parts to form sandwiches.

      Cut each sandwich into 3 pieces.

      Serve immediately.

      NOTE: I’ve been known to serve this with cold Mexican beer (it’s almost always Negra Modelo—although Corona is a good choice). By way of white wine, I usually opt for chilled Idaho State Ste Chapelle “Soft White” (a favorite of mine).

      WINING, DINING, AND BULLFIGHTING

      If you’re a fan of bullfighting (which I am)...and if you’ve the time and money to spare (as I once did) to go to Mexico and follow the bullfights for a whole season, between November and April, selecting from among the fights occurring every Sunday afternoon in over 220 of that country’s bullrings (which it was once my good fortune to do)...then, by chance, you may eventually meet enough fellow aficionados (as I did) to get invited to one or more of the country’s bull-breeding ranches.

      The Mexican state of Tlaxcala has been the center of Mexican bullfighting ever since Cortes and his fellow conquistadors stopped off there on their way to conquer the Aztec in Tenochtitlan, and is home to over forty “ganaderias”, including the country’s most famous ranch, Ganaderia La Laguna de Terrenate, established (with cows from Tepeyahualco and a breeding bull from Ibarra) in 1908; the ranch has produced more bulls for the Plaza de Toros in Mexico City than any other supplier.

      It’s a fascinating experience for those who have only been to U.S. ranches to learn how all of the bulls on Mexican gandarias are never approached on foot lest they become too accustomed to seeing people that way—before a matador does just that in the bullring.

      Interesting, too, is watching the tientas in the corridas of the gandarias where full-grown bulls aren’t usually “put to the cape”, rather heifers, since it’s the ongoing belief of most breeders that the bravery of the mothers determine the bravery of their offspring.

      Usually following a tienta, there’s a meal to be enjoyed, and it was during one of these that I first became acquainted with the dish that follows.

      Corrida Frittata

      7 eggs

      2 TSP milk (for the diet-conscious, skim works for me)

      ½ tsp salt

      ¼ tsp fresh ground pepper

      2 TSP olive oil

      1 lb asparagus, trimmed and cut into ½-inch pieces

      ½ Roma tomato, sliced

      Pinch of salt

      3 oz Fontina Cheese, diced

      Preheat broiler.

      Whisk eggs, milk, salt, and pepper together in bowl. Set aside.

      Heat oil in a 10-inch oven-proof skillet, preferable nonstick, over medium heat. Sauté the asparagus until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Turn heat to medium-high.

      Add diced tomatoes and a pinch of salt and sauté for 2 more minutes.

      Add egg mixture and cook until eggs start to set. Reduce heat to medium-low.

      Sprinkle cheese on top and cook for about 2 more minutes, until frittata is almost set (top will still be a bit runny).

      Put skillet under broiler and broil until top is set and golden brown, about 5 minutes.

      Remove from broiler and let stand for 2 minutes.

      Garnish with the tomato slices.

      Serves 6.

      This is nicely accompanied by a salad of strawberries, bleu-cheese crumbles, and candied walnuts, on a bed of romaine lettuce, tossed in huckleberry vinaigrette...with crisp garlic toast strips on the side.

      NOTE: Egg dishes, such as this one, usually have me serving crisp, dry white wines in accompaniment (from Mexico or otherwise), and I’ve successfully paired this with Rieslings, even Chardonnays, as well as, most preferably, various Champagnes and/or Sparkling Wines. Then, again, there are some people, and that may well be you and any number of your guests, who simply don’t think any wine goes well with asparagus.

      YES, IT’S CHICKEN, BUT...

      I was at the train station, waiting to embark for the three-hour ride to the ancient once-lost-now-found Incan mountain retreat of Machu Picchu, Peru. It was pre-dawn, only because the sun hadn’t yet made its official appearance by actually topping the snowy high-Andean peaks in the East, only just beginning to paintbrush that horizon with a faint shade of blushing pink.

      That my point of departure was Cuzco, a city with more than a quarter-million people, made the accompanying sounds of unseen crowing roosters, all in herald of the upcoming dawn, genuinely incongruous, especially to this city boy who wasn’t used to any barnyard sounds occurring—morning, noon, or night—in U.S. cities of far less population.

      Once on board the train that began its series of switch-backs that would take us up one side of the mountainous bowl enclosing Cuzco, even to a higher elevation than the city’s 11,000+ feet, then slide us down the other side to the still-lofty Incan Citadel, at 8,000 feet, I could look out the window and get up-close views of many Peruvian shanties with backyards whose hard-packed dirt provided occasional views of chickens...which made my traveling companion genuinely ecstatic.

      “God, do you know how long it’s been since I’ve seen a free-range chicken?” she said, more than once. “I’ve not seen one since I was a kid back on the farm. And, let me tell you, there is no comparison to eating one when it’s in a contest with one of those hormone-laden mutations we get in our local U.S. grocery stores.”

      In fact, she had me so convinced of what I’d been missing, that СКАЧАТЬ