EHS Journalism students were tasked with writing a travel story for JOU2041 (Arapahoe Community College course). Because we are in the middle of 4th quarter, students are not able to get on a plane, so they landed on the next best thing for their stories; a trip around the world through family recipes. Enjoy the stories and food choices below.
Irish Shepherd's Pie
Molly Hoglund - Heather Martin (Mother)
Q: Do you like cooking? A: I do like to cook.
Q: What kinds of things do you like to cook? A: Well, I like to cook for two reasons. The first reason I like to cook is because it's kind of creative. I get to pull together different ingredients. And then I make something that can be eaten by my family. And so it feels like I get to make choices and be creative, but it also feels like something that's useful and helpful. And so, in terms of the kinds of food that I like to cook, I like to cook healthy food because I feel like it. It brings like good health and nutrition to my family and so I feel good about that. But the other things I like to cook are things that make me think about my family that makes me think about my grandparents made me think about my own childhood.
Q: We don't always eat healthy but it's always good. A: The food that makes me makes me think about my family are like heavy, yummy, meaty dishes, so I'm Irish, so we ate a lot of meat and potatoes. I love dishes that bring together meat and potatoes in really yummy, gooey and delicious ways.
Q: What kind of Irish meals do you cook at your home or enjoy? A: I make a couple of things but hands down my favorite one is a dish called Shepherd's Pie. It was it was my favorite meal when I was a kid and my mom would always offer us to make our favorite meal on our birthday and I would always ask for shepherd's pie
Q: What's in Shepherd's Pie?
A: Shepherd's pie is what it sounds like. It's looks like a pie, but it's actually the base of the pie is mashed potatoes. And the other ingredients are ground beef and inexpensive vegetables like onions and carrots and peas. The name Shepherd comes from shepherds in Ireland. Making shepherd's pie is very inexpensive because they had a lot of potatoes around and they also had a lot of sheep around. So it used to be made with lamb but my family, we always made it with beef.
Q: Is the fact that your are Irish that related to your relationship with this dish at all? A: I don't have a super strong connection to my Irish heritage in terms of having family back there. But the dish is an Irish dish and it came down from my paternal grandmother so my dad's mom taught my mom how to make this recipe and then my mom taught me so even though I don't really know any of my ancestors, I visited Ireland a few times and felt really connected to it. But this is a dish that makes me feel like I'm continuing a tradition that was started a really long time ago by my ancestors. So I like that part of it.
Q: Do you want to reveal the secrets on how to make this dish? A: I think it's definitely top secret. But what I will say is that I think another interesting part about this recipe is that it's changed over time. So it used to be made with all fresh ingredients. But then with the rise of convenience foods, things like a can canned mushrooms, or add Velveeta cheese have been added to the recipe and certainly my ancestors back in Ireland did not have access to canned mushrooms or Velveeta. So um, so I feel like I also have agency to make changes so I like to cook things fresh and not from cans. I like to make a roux and melt make my own cheese sauce instead of using Velveeta which was clearly introduced later in the life of the recipe. So I feel like I can modify it.
Q: Is there any other family history that you would like to talk about to conclude this interview? A: I do think it's nice that we can eat this food and even though we're not connected in a real way with our ancestors by eating this food and sharing the shepherd's pie with each other and having a fun meal together at the table, I feel like that connects us across many many many years.
Great-great-great grandma's Home
Pupusas - The national dish of El Salvador
Ana Neal - (cousin of Desean Neal)
Ana Neal is originally from California and her mother is from Mexico. Her family describes her cooking as savory. The moment you walk in her front door, you can smell the ingredients of the food she is making. Most of the time, she makes steak tacos, warm soup, and her families Mexican fare. She is only 26-years-old but carries on many of the traditional foods made by her family.
Q: How does it make you feel when you make Pupusas? A: It makes me feel at home with my other culture and with our past.
Pupusas are believed to have originated with the Indigenous Pipil tribe over 2,000 years ago. According to solid-ground.org, when the civil war broke out in El Salvador during the 1980's, many fled the country and brought pupusas all over the globe.
Q: How do you make pupusas? A: I make them a lot of different ways, even by hand and often include cheese, beef and chicken
Experts in the dish say that at first, pupusas were vegetarian. You would often find them filled with squash blossoms, herbs, and mushrooms. In the 1570s, that all changed and meat became very common in the filling.
Authentically Mexico
Pozole Rojo passed down generations
Guadalupe Claveria - David Claveria's Mother
Red pozole or pozole rojo is a brothy soup that mainly includes corn, pork, and chili. There are many different versions of pozole including white and green.
According to Yucatan Times website, Pozole has a dark history. Click on the story link to read all about it. The name Pozole originates from Nahuatl. The main ingredient in Pozole is Hominy, which is made from corn. Long ago, it was believed that humans were made by the corn gods. In Mexican Aztec history, corn was considered a sacred plant. Therefore, the Aztecs and other Mesoamerican peoples cooked Pozole only on special occasions.
Ingredients: pork, hominy corn, garlic, guajillo chili pots, salt, bay leaves, garnish cabbage, onion, radish, and lemon
Guadalupe Claveria is from Tinguindin Pueble in Michoacan Mexico. She hails from a family of strong cooks. Her mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and sisters are all highly efficient in the kitchen and love making cultural dishes. Their favorites include Pozole, tamales, and tacos.
Q: Can you tell me a little about pozole?
A: Pozole is something that we as Mexicans eat a lot, especially during some kind of party or holiday and it's a tradition in our culture.
Q: Where does the recipe come from?
A: I do know that the recipe has been passed down and taught throughout the generations, as I got it from my mom, and my mom got it from her mom, and so on and so on.
Q: Is the pozole only specific to a certain region?
A: No, there are different variations throughout the states of Mexico. I know there are white and green Pozole, but in Michoacan, we mainly eat red pozole.
Homemade Crescent Rolls
Handed down from mom and family friends
Vicky Selby - Jason Selby's grandmother
Q: What is your favorite recipe?
A: It would be my mom’s Sweet Yeast Dough, that my mom made into crescent rolls. Every Thanksgiving and every Christmas, everybody always looked forward to them and couldn't wait to get a bite.
Q: What is Special about the Rolls?
A: They were soft, and golden brown, and really tasty.
Q: Do you know where your mom got the recipe from?
A: No, she never told us where she found the recipes, but most of them came from family friends or newspapers.
Q: Can you share the recipe?
A: I don't want to share the recipe, but the ingredients are of course yeast, shortening, water, salt, eggs, flour, and it looks like she put sugar into them so thats surprising to me, and even some grated lemon
There are several recipes online. We chose one that is easy for all level of bakers.
Chicken Mole
Grandma's recipe made by a father
Antonio Avitia - Samone Avitia's dad
Antonio Avitia is 49-years-old and is not the primary cook for the family but he says he enjoys making certain foods, particularly those that remind him of his culture.
Chicken mole is a thick sauce that tastes like chilis. According to the Food Museum, a nun at the Santa Rosa convent in Puebla is said to have invented the recipe in the 17th century. It is said that when she found out that important guests, Juan de Palafox, Viceroy of New Spain and Archbishop of Puebla were visiting, she pulled out all the stops for a special food dish. To honour her guest, she emptied the larder, mixing indigenous ingredients (chilli peppers, tomatoes, cocoa, etc.).
Q: Where did you learn this recipe? A: From my grandma.
Q: What part of Mexico are your parents from? A: Durango, Mexico.
Q: Who is your biggest inspiration when it comes to cooking? A: My grandma.
Q: Who do you consider a good cook? A: My grandma.
Q: Where were you raised? A: In Durango Mexico.
Q: Do you enjoy cooking this meal? A: Yes, I like cooking traditional food.
Q: When did you start cooking your family's recipes and creating your own? A: 10-years-ago
Recipe
8 cups water
salt
chicken thighs
vegetable oil
Garlic cloves
4 1/2 cups diced plum tomatoes
3 1/2 cups diced yellow onion
8 dried guajillo chiles steamed
6 dried chiles de árbol stemmed
4 dried ancho chiles stemmed
3 dried pasilla negro stemmed
2 dried mulato chiles
1/2 cup peanuts
1 (about 3-ounce) Mexican chocolate disk (such as Dandelion or Ibarra)
Red Enchiladas
The way great grandma used to make them
Anabel Flores - Mother of Abisai Quezada Flores
Anabel Flores is a 47-year-old mother of four from Englewood. She comes from a long line of Mexican cooks going back several generations. Many of the cultural dishes she loves to cook for her family can be traced back to her great grandmother. In addition to red enchiladas, she makes Caldo, tacos and frijoles.
Q: Who did you learn the recipe from?
A: I learned how to cook this recipe from my grandma because my mom would sell the food while my grandma would cook it sometimes my mom would cook the red enchiladas as well.
Q: What is the recipe for the red enchiladas?
A: The recipe for our red enchiladas is a corn tortilla, oil to fry, queso fresco for the filling, lettuce, and radishes, and for the last thing it would be the sauce on top of it all. The sauce and the enchilada are all different recipes and for the sauce, it'll be 8 guajillo peppers, 1 ancho chile, ¼ of an onion, 1 large garlic clove, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, 2 cups of beef, 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil, and 8 oz of tomato sauce.
Q: Do you sell these red enchiladas as well?
A: I stayed selling red enchiladas in Chihuahua and I went over here and I still make the red enchiladas to this day not just for me but for the whole family but I don't sell any of the red enchiladas I make.
Q: What does this recipe mean for the family?
A: It means a lot for the family because the family made this recipe so this recipe is special to the family and is starting to become a tradition for the family to cook it for the whole family once a year.
Q: Is this the only recipe that the family has?
A: No, we have many more recipes from the family but this recipe is the most favorite one from the family and is liked by all of our family and the most special one and it's the most special one because it's the oldest recipe of the family.
Homemade Flour Tortillas
Made with love and a grandma's recipe
Lidia Ruiz - Mother of Bryan Ruiz
She is often called on to cook for parties but enjoys cooking for her family. Lidia Ruiz loves it when her family gathers in the kitchen to help with meals. She is adept at cooking real, quality, traditional dishes.
Flour tortillas originated from some Northern States in Mexico like Chihuahua, Durango, Sonora, and Sinaloa. More specifically, Spain was a major factor during the Muslim conquest of Spain which lasted for eight centuries. Before tortillas, it was flatbread which had many recipes throughout the 13th century that many cultures followed. It came to California when it was still tied to the Mexican Republic and was mass-produced. They have been used on American Space Flights to solve the problem of handling food in space.
Q: Why are flour tortillas important to your family?
A: They are important to my family because they are such a versatile food, they can be used for burritos, tacos sometimes if the tortilla is small enough and so many other things which is what makes them such a fun food.
Q: Where did you learn to cook tortillas?
A: I learned to cook from my mom at such a young age which is such a useful skill to have as I am a stay-at-home mother who is always cooking for my children who get home hungry from school or work.
Q: How long has this recipe been in your family?
A: I honestly don’t know, I have just been making tortillas since I was a young girl who was still living in Mexico.
Q: Why do you make flour tortillas?
A: They are very enjoyable and easy to make and are a good food that adds flavor to other dishes.
Ingredients:
Flour
Baking powder
Salt
Butter
Water
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl
Form into small dough balls
Heat up an iron skillet
Use a rolling pan to flatten it into that tortilla-shape
Place on the skillet to heat them up
Peach Mold
Two generations have made this unique holiday dish
Jennifer Morrison-McLean - Mother of Karma McLean
Peach mold is a long-standing family recipe passed down from my great-grandmother's great-grandmother. It's a holiday dessert typically made during Thanksgiving and sometimes Christmas
According to The Kitchen, Jello is widely underrated as an ingredient. It was once called, “America’s Most Famous Dessert”, Jell-O has fallen from favor since its heyday in the 1950s, "This often misunderstood treat was once the medium of the creative post-war housewife to make inventive meals and desserts, but it has since been relegated to ranks of hospital food."
Q: Do you like cooking/baking
A: Yes, tremendously depending on mood.
Q: Has cooking or baking been significant in your life if so how?
A: Cooking and baking has been a tradition in our family. It has been used to signify our moods or intentions.
Q: Are there any family recipes that you learned and still make?
A: Yes! Peach mold.
Q: Okay, who taught you the recipe?
A: Granny taught me the recipe and I don’t know if she taught me more so just learned it while being in the kitchen.
Q: Is there a specific recipe for it or is it more of a general thing?
A: There is a specific recipe I guess it’s more of like the basis of it. I know for a long time there wasn’t and Auntie Jessica and I eventually wrote it down in the best approximation because Granny doesn’t cook with recipes she cooks with ancestors.
Q: Is there a specific history of the recipe that you know of?
A: With you, yes with anyone outside of the family only in the finished product.
Q: Okay, so just the ingredients then?
A: It's a mix of peach, gelatin, cream cheese, walnuts, pineapple, celery, and evaporated milk.
Q: So when do you normally make this?
A: Holidays, like Thanksgiving usually.
Q: Alright, is there anything else you want to add?
A: I think that food is definitely how to qualify the experience of our family and I’m glad I can continue to pass down these important recipes through the years.
Piernitas de pollo Asada
Mom's recipe
Monica Lopez - Mother of Marco Lopez
My mom, Monica, has been cooking all her life. She started learning how to cook when she was little. She would help my grandmother cook and other things in the kitchen. Cooking is a huge part of her life it resembles traditions and more.
Q: How long have you been cooking this dish? And is it a seasonal dish?
A: I have been cooking this dish before you were born. I’ve always made this dish with your grandmother since I was your age. It's really well-liked around our family. This dish is always year-round but is preferred around winter and the middle of spring.
Q: What dish are we going to cook today?
A: Today we will be cooking grilled chicken legs. This dish includes an entree that is a cream soup. The cream soup includes zucchini, squash, and carrots. The main dish is two grilled chicken legs, with white rice, broccoli, and a tostada topped with tomato and onion.
Q: How important is this dish to you?
A: This dish is important for me as eventually you and your brothers will learn the things I cook from me. It's not just a dish it’s the love I show to you guys. Me and my mom would make this dish and family members would enjoy it.
My mom has one of the best-tasting foods. She makes simple dishes that taste amazing.
Crema de vegetales
1 acorn
1 squash
1 zucchini
1 carrot
Boil for 5 mins
Blend and boil for 5-10 min
Add a pinch of salt and pepper and a pinch of garlic powder.
Piernas Asadas
Season chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and a bit of consume de pollo.
Grill and serve
Plate with white rice and steamed broccoli
Receta Biscochos
A recipe through the ages
Conception and Carmen Ortega - Briseyda Martinez
Carmen and Conception grew up in Mexico and both do a lot of cooking and baking for their family and community. They are the go to cooks for parties and events. Before Conception passed in 2022, her kitchen was full of great smells and a lot of love.
Q - De donde aprendió la receta?
A - Mi mamá siempre los hizo y me enseñó
Q - Que son Bischochos ?
A - Son galletitas con canela
Q - En que ocasiones se hacen?
A - Se hacen en las fiestas para dar a los acompañantes pero se pueden comer en cualquier lugar
Q - Porque te gusta la receta?
A - Toda la gente le gusta cuando los hago y me recuerdan a mi madre
Receta
9 T. Harina 2.L de Manteca caja Azul 1.T de Azúcar 2 Huevos 2 c. de Levadura 2 c. de Vainilla y una pizca de sal. Se bate primero la Manteca con el azúcar y los huevos después se le va agregando la harina poco a poco y la levadura, la vainilla y la sal y se incorpora todos hasta quedar una masa suave se hacen las galletitas a 350 grados se checan que estén doradas y listo. Ya cuando estén listos y calientes se les hecha azúcar con canela molida.
Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
Measured with his heart
Marco Lopez - Brother of Josue Lopez
My brother Marco Lopez likes to cook food and make dishes sometimes he has a ranch that we have all enjoyed. Marco is a senior at Englewood High School. He plays soccer and has been an important part of the broadcast live-stream team providing the community with a way to take part in all events at EHS before and through Covid.
Q: What sauce are we going to make?
A: We made a ranch sauce that is really good and the whole family can enjoy it.
Q: What made you make this sauce and why do you like ranch?
A: I wanted to make my own sauce for a while now and I like ranch so I decided to make my own
Q What was the outcome of this recipe does your family like it?
A: My brothers really like it and when they foods such as chicken and fries they use it a lot
Q Do you like to make new things in the kitchen
A: Yes usually when I'm bored I like to make food, but this is not often.
The recipe:
One and a half cups of buttermilk and mayo.
Two Ranch seasoning packets restaurant style.
Filet with Peach Mango Sauce
Dad's special meal
Javier Lopez - Father of Josue Lopez Diego
Javier Lopez is from Mazatlan and has always liked cooking. He learned to cook from his mother when he was very young. He moved here several decades ago and has always worked as a chef.
Q: Why did you choose this recipe?
A: Because of the combination of flavors, the bittersweetness of the mango with the sweetness of the peach and the spiciness of the jalapeno make a good combination of flavors
Q: When did you first try this recipe?
A: About 2 weeks ago when I made it a special at my restaurant
Q: How did you learn to make this dish?
A: I found a variation of this sauce online because I have to make a new recipe for my restaurant and to put on the specials so every 2 weeks I try to find a new recipe and add my own touch to it.
Q: What can you eat this recipe with?
A: It is added to meats like steak and chicken
Mango peach cilantro sauce :
32 oz diced mango
1 canned peach slices
2.8 oz cilantro
4 garlic cloves
2 jalapenos with no seeds
salt and pepper
Blend all of this for 5-10 minutes and use the syrup to blend all of this so it doesn't water down
Filet Mignon:
Slat and pepper
Butter
Any neutral oil
Garlic
Rosemary
Season the meat with salt and pepper and then in a pan add the oil to sear the steak, once it's seared add butter rosemary, and garlic. use the melted butter to baste the steak and then after roast it in the oven for 2-8 minutes to your liking. after all of this take it out of the oven and let it rest in tin foil for 8 minutes. After this put some of the mango peach cilantro sauce on a plate to your liking and add the steak on top. This can also be eaten with a side of veggies or something to your liking.
Homemade Chili
Grandma Betty's Special Recipe
Made by Christa Hamilton - Mother of Sam Hamilton
Q: Do you have a favorite recipe?
A: I do, my favorite recipe would have to be my Chili that Dad’s mom taught me initially but I have, over the years just kind of put my own spin on it and changed the flavor.
Q: What do you add?
A: Sometimes I add corn or cilantro to change it. Mom would always put sugar in it and I omitted that years ago and I think it tastes much better without the sugar.
Q: Do you like that you added your own touch to it?
A: It’s kind of nice that it started initially with your grandma giving it to me and I've kind of put my changes to it and it turns out delicious.
Cheesy Grits
Three generations enjoy this southern treat
Ann Pratt and Leann Garan - Great grandmother and grandmother of Abagail Williams
I believe that food can invoke tons of memories and relationships, especially due to the fact that food is in all of our lives. Both my grandma and great-grandma collect and have tons of recipe cards, but wanted to share a recipe for cheese grits. These two fantastic ladies harken from the paternal side of my family. They both help my mother and me a lot and show their love through many avenues. Cooking is just one of their many talents.
Legend: GMA = Grandma Leann GGMA = Great Grandma Ann
Q: Do you like cooking? Why?
A: (GMA) You don't really cook anymore. (GGMA) No. Not anymore. I used to like to cook. I could bake bread and make noodles, and I could make cream puffs.
Q: How does cooking bring family together?
A: (GGMA) Well, when you were younger, it was to talk about your day. (GMA) Yeah, that was usually the most important thing I could remember. And now, whenever you or your mom comes up to the house, we do, we just talk about what we’ve been up to. It's just to bring people together, you know? (GGMA) I think that's probably the main thing. (GMA) It’s like with me and mom, even though we’re here 24/7, we eat here in the living room and we have the TV going but anyway, you know, we watch whatever and talk and say “oh, i’m never gonna buy this again” or “don’t buy that again”.
Q: What recipe are you gonna share?
A: (GMA) I think the grits, that was always my favorite. (GGMA) And it's easy for people to understand, theres not a lot of ingredients or directions, and it's good.
Recipe
Half a cup of grits (cooked in two cups of water for 5-7 minutes until thick)
Half a pound of Velveeta cheese
Half a stick of margarine
One egg
Small can of green chilies
Garlic to taste
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes
A: (GMA) It’s a good side dish, a good, yeah. (GGMA) Even to take to a picnic. (GMA) The chilies, you know, they're in a little can, the hatch little chilies, they're not hot. (GGMA) You can buy hot, but we always do mild.
Q: How did it originate?
A: (GMA) I kinda remember my aunt Jeanie making it, a long long time ago. And then I noticed on the box of grits, there was a recipe for cheesy grits, they called it, but they didn’t have anything about the little green chilies which is a key factor.
Q: Do you have any good memories with the dish?
A: (GMA) I just remember it was really good. If somebody said “Oh, I’ll make the grits” we were like “Yeah!”. The cheesy grits with green chilies are just straight-up yummy. I remember taking it to a lot of family functions and no matter who made it, it was always good.
Jollof Rice
A West African treat
Comfort Satoe - Friend of the family of LaMarr Sykes
Q: Do you like to cook?
A: “I love to cook, It’s something I do for my family”
Q: How’d you learn to cook?
A: “I Learned to cook from my mother.
“Each recipe I learned has been a family recipe passed down from generation to generation.”
Q: “What is Jollof rice and how’d you learn to make it?
A: “Jollof Rice is a popular dish throughout Africa. This dish is prevalent and among the favorites in West Africa. This is also a Ghanaian dish. I learned this family recipe from my mother. This is a family recipe passed down from generation to generation. Here is how to prepare Jollof rice Ghana Special.”
Good Ol' Mac and Cheese
Homemade recipe - made with love by mom
Colene VerCande - Mother of Estie VerCande
Colene VerCande says cooking is a bit stressful but she loves to cook. She used to cook a bit more than she does now and really liked fixing her favorites for family and friends.
Q - Okay. Who originated your mac and cheese recipe?
A- Me, myself, and I
Q - Was there a certain dish or person that helped inspire this dish?
A- I've always loved mac and cheese so we were always watching Food Network and Alton Brown had a really yummy looking mac and cheese. And so I started with his recipe.
Q- How many different variations of your mac and cheese did you go through before finding the perfect one?
A- Let me think, I tried Alton Brown's recipe multiple times before I decided to switch it up and add a different recipe that I found online. So I want to say maybe close to like 20 I don't know.
Q- What is the secret ingredient in your dish if there is any?
A - Well, I would lie and say love. But I guess I need to say it's cheese, lots. Lots and lots of cheese. And then there's one ingredient, it's Campbell's cheddar soup.
Recipe
● 16oz Dry Rotini
● 1⁄4 cup Butter
● 1⁄4 cup Flour
● 3⁄4 tsp Dry Mustard
● 2 cups Milk
● 1⁄4 tsp Paprika
● 1⁄4 tsp Garlic Powder
● 1 can Cambell’s Cheddar Soup
● 2 cups (16oz) Sharp Cheddar Block Cheese
● 1 cup (8oz) Mozzarella Block Cheese
● Ground Pepper to Taste
Directions:
1. Shred 1 1⁄2 cups of Sharp Cheddar Cheese and half of the Mozzarella Cheese,
set aside for the sauce. Shred the rest of the cheese for the topping.
2. Preheat the oven to 400; cook Rotini according to directions on the package.
3. In a Lg Saucepan: Melt Butter on Medium/Low, whisk in Flour then mustard,
whisk in Milk, Paprika & Garlic Powder, Cook over Medium/Low heat until slightly
thickened.
4. Add the Cheddar Soup, 1 1⁄2 cups of Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Half of the
Mozzarella, Stir until Cheese is melted (you should have a beautiful cheese
string pull) Season with Pepper.
5. Toss Cheese Sauce and Cooked Pasta into a 13.25” (L) x 9.62” (W) x 2.75” (D)
pan, Add the remaining cheese on top.
6. Bake for 25-30 min or until mixture is bubbly & golden brown on top.
Mom’s recipe for Guatemalan Tamales
Recipe is more than 50-years-old
Emilia Zamora - Mother of Daniella Tobias Zamora
Q: What is a significant food from your past or a recipe that you enjoy cooking?
A: Lo que mas significado tiene para mi en la comida tradicional Guatemalteca son los Tamales. Regularmente se hacen los tamales para ocasiones especiales y por eso tiene un significado especial para mí. Mis papás los cocinaban para Navidad y Año Nuevo.
Q: When did that tradition start?
A: Desde que yo era pequeña, recuerdo haber visto que mis papás hacían tamales. Entonces si es desde siempre. Osea siempre habían tamales en casa cuando era Navidad o Año Nuevo hechos por mis papás.
Q: Which one of your parents was it that usually cooked it?
A: Era mi papá más que todo pero siempre entre los dos. Era algo que los dos juntos empezaron hacer desde que mi hermano y yo éramos pequeños.
Q: Do you yourself cook Guatemalan Tamales?
A: Si, desde hace como año y medio o dos años, aprendí a hacerlo. Incluso mis papás tuvieron que grabar un video para mí haciendo los tamales desde Guatemala para que yo pueda cocinarlos en casa. Ahora yo lo hago y trato de hacerlos cada Navidad y Año Nuevo y nos han salido deliciosos.
Q: Do you think it is going to be a tradition for many generations?
A: Yo espero que si, espero incluso que algún día mis hijos aprendan porque es algo muy Guatemalteco y que mis suegros tenían esa tradición también. Aprendí la receta un poco de mi suegra y también de mis papás así que es una mezcla de las dos familias. Por eso es una receta especial, son diferentes. Sería mportante que la tradición siga en las generaciones y espero poder hacerlo pasar.
Q: Can you give me a slight description of how Tamales are made and what they are?
A: Los tamales son hechos de masa con cierto recado que se cocina asando todo y luego licuandolo. Llevan carne de cerdo o de res y van envueltos en hojas de plátano y banano.
Q: How come it's so significant to you that it comes from your parents?
A: Pienso que lo hace más especiales es que siempre fue parte de tradiciones nuestras que se hacía en fechas especiales y el dia que ya no estuve al rededor de mis papas por las distancias, yo extrañe la tradición entonces por eso mismo aprendí hacerlos y que voy a compartir con mi familia, mis hijos y esposo, lo que aprendí con mis papas.
Q: Does this tradition come before your parents or did they come up with the tradition?
A: Regularmente son tradiciones de familia en mi país, en las familias allá en Guatemala siempre existe algún familiar que hace tamales para fechas especiales, hasta cumpleaños. Es muy especial en nuestra familia.