St. Junípero Serra's Black Mission Figs

Fig Cookies and The Mission Bell (OOP) - The story of Father Junipero Serra's travels in the California wilderness, of his interest in the Indians and of his building of the missions.

July 1st is the feast day of St. Junípero Serra who was canonized a saint on September 23, 2015. You can find lots of other ideas in the Commemorating the Canonization of Junípero Serra post over at Shower of Roses. 

The Black Mission Fig was named after the mission fathers who planted the fruit as they made their way north along the California coast! Black Mission Figs or fig filled cookies (Trader Joe's Fig Bites, Fig Newtons, etc) would make an easy and simple treat for today.

Black Mission Figs from Trader Joe's

Mission Figs Back in Black Supersnacks from Made in Nature

St. Junípero Serra, Ora Pro Nobis!

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Canonization of Junípero Serra - Tortilla Making

With the canonization today of St. Junípero Serra, we had a little community celebration at our house. Lots of kids learning about California mission life and how they lived and what they ate.  The culmination of the event was making our own corn tortillas which were eaten with toppings of frijoles, peppers, and cheese. We are doing another similar event tomorrow.

We started out by learning about how to grind corn on a makeshift metate. (Just for fun - we didn't use this flour in the actual preparation or cooking.)

Then everyone rolled out their own tortillas, placed between sheets of wax paper.

They were then fried on the griddle. The kids patiently waited and kept an eye on their special creations.

And finally everyone enjoyed their finished tortillas, topped with frijoles, peppers, and queso fresco. 

If you are learning about St. Junípero Serra and celebrating his canonization this week, give fresh tortilla making a try!

Making Corn Tortillas From Scratch

Ingredients

2 cups masa harina
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups hot water

Instructions

Mix the masa harina and the salt together in a mixing bowl. Pour in the water and stir to combine.  Using your hands, knead the dough for a minute or two in the bowl. The dough is ready when it's smooth, but no longer sticky, and easy forms a ball.

Rest the dough for 15-30 minutes to fully absorb the water and texture of the tortillas. When ready, pinch off a few tablespoons of dough and roll it between your hands to form a ball.  Adjust the amount of dough to make larger or smaller tortillas.

Without a tortilla press: Place the ball of dough on a piece of wax or parchment paper. Place another piece on top of dough ball. Use a rolling pin to flatten the tortillas. Start in the middle and roll out to the edges until thin and about 6 inches in diameter. Peel away the top paper, flip the tortilla over onto your palm, and peel off the back paper.

Warm a large, flat cast iron griddle or skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook for 2 minutes, until the edges are starting to curl up and the bottoms look dry and pebbly. Flip and cook another 1 to 2 minutes on the other side.  Serve with selected toppings. Makes about 20 6-inch tortillas.

St. Junípero Serra, Pray for us!

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Celebrating St. Junipero Serra with California Mission Foods

The Spanish influence on California and other areas of the Southwest, is still very evident in the culture including the food. The Spanish missionaries who founded the chain of missions in California brought with them their culture and traditions and also adapted them to the products of the new world. In the United States we recognize the July 1 optional memorial of St. Junipero Serra, the Spanish Franciscan, who is the Father of the California missions.

In Bess Anderson's California Mission Recipes cookbook, she acquaints readers with the various foods that would have been traditionally prepared and eaten in the missions. The ingredients used were mainly those harvested at the mission or occasionally those brought by ship. The preparations of the food in the missions most often was under the direction of a padre, with the preparation carried out by Indian women of the mission. Anderson indicates that from various records we know the missions had both lean and rich years. There were times, for example, when the daily ration of Father Serra consisted solely of 3 tortilla cakes and wine.

Anderson's book as well as the various mission preservation organizations are sources of traditional mission-style recipes. Enjoy a recipe from the California mission tradition on the feast of St. Junipero Serra.

POSOLE
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 T. vegetable oil or lard
1/2 t. black pepper
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. cloves
1/2 t.cayenne
1-1/2 lbs. pork shoulder, cooked and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 cups canned white or yellow hominy (drained and rinsed)
3-5 cups pork broth, degreased and strained
1 cup canned green chiles (chopped)
2 whole Jalapenos, canned or fresh
salt to taste

Sauté onion and garlic in oil. Add spices, stirring to blend. Add pork, drained and rinsed hominy, pork broth, green chiles and jalapenos. Cook at a simmer, covered, for 45 to 60 minutes or until the meat and hominy are tender. Add more water or broth as needed to keep pork covered in the final minutes of stewing. Remove posole from heat and cool slightly. Degrease the stew. Check to see if salt is needed. Reheat before serving.

BUNELOS
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup shortening
3 cups sifted flour
1 T sugar
1 t salt
fat or oil for deep frying
sugar cinnamon, ground

Beat eggs until light in color and thickened, add milk and melted shortening. Combine the flour, sugar and salt. Sift into egg mixture slowly and blend well, making a soft dough that doesn't stick to hands. Shape into walnut-sized balls and roll on a lightly-floured board into a round-shaped cakes similar to a tortilla. Fry in deep hot fat until golden brown in color - about 3 minutes on each side. Drain well. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Make s 30 bunelos.

LOIN OF PORK WITH WINE
3-4 pounds pork loin
2 T butter
2 onions, sliced
2 medium tomatoes
2 carrots, diced
2 springs parsley 1/2 cup dry white wine
salt and pepper

Brown the pork on all sides in the butter. When brown add the vegetables, wine, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 2-3 hours or until the meat is tender. Serve on a heated plate. Strain the liquid in the pan over the meat.

PUMPKIN CAKES
1 cup pumpkin mash
1 cup corn meal
1/4 fat.

Gradually add meal to the pumpkin mash, stirring constantly. Then add butter a little at at time. Mix thoroughly, stirring very hard to form a stiff dough. Shape into round flat cakes and bake over a high heat on a well=greased hot griddle for 5 minutes on each side. Serves 4

CHAMPURRADO

2 cups warm water
2 cups milk
1/4 cup masa harina (or 1/3 cup nixtamal)
1 disk Mexican chocolate, chopped
3 piloncillo cones, small, (one ounce each) chopped
1 pinch of anise seed, ground (optional)

In a large pot, whisk masa harina into the warm water until thoroughly combined. Add milk, chocolate, piloncillo and anise. Bring to a simmer and whisk with a molinillo (a special tool to whip the drink) until chocolate is melted and sugar is dissolved.

ICED MEXICAN CHOCOLATE
2 cups milk, scalded
4 T ground coffee
1 cinnamon stick
4 squares unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup sugar
4 cups cold milk
2 t vanilla

Add coffee and cinnamon to the scalded milk. Cover, let stand 5 minutes and strain. Heat chocolate over water, add boiling water, and sugar and cook until smooth and thick. Add the coffee-cinnamon liquid. When ready to serve, blend in the cold milk and vanilla. Serve in tall glasses with crushed ice. Serves 6-8.

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