Wednesday 2 May 2012

Tiempo para FIESTA! Cinco de Mayo

My son in law Nate Dogg!! A shot of tequila while hanging like a marlin!!

Cinco de Mayo is a holiday celebrating Mexican heritage. It commemorates the Mexican victory over the French at the Battle Of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Cinco de mayo means 5th of May.Cinco De Mayo is celebrated with music, feasting, and dancing. Parades and festivals are held all over Mexico and the United States. Recently Cinco De Mayo has become more and more commercialized. in fact when we lived in Mexico, we found out they don't even celebrate!! They will have celebrations at Cabo Wabo, El Squid Row, etc., but, it's more for the Americans!!
Today's Celebration
For the most part, the holiday of Cinco de Mayo is more of a regional holiday in Mexico, celebrated most vigorously in the state of Puebla. There is some limited recognition of the holiday throughout the country with different levels of enthusiasm, but it's nothing like that found in Puebla.

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo has become increasingly popular along the U.S.-Mexico border and in parts of the U.S. that have a high population of people with a Mexican heritage. In these areas the holiday is a celebration of Mexican culture, of food, music, beverage and customs unique to Mexico. 

                          Fiesta Time!

The Attire:
It's a fiesta! Not a upscale shindig! Laid back- wear a tropical shirt, the brighter the color the better! There is no such thing as a "too tacky" tropical shirt to party in. The sarong, ladies only please! These floral-print wrap dresses are  a fun way for lovely ladies to party! Sombrero's for all! While fun footwear is acceptable, you may also prefer bare feet or a pair of flip flops. In either case it is important to let your toes breathe free..........or not!

                                             En Fiego! (On FIRE!)

The atmosphere:
 Bright colored table cloths, Mexican flag's, paper umbrella's in the drinks. Use colorful sand buckets filled with sand, flowers, flags and paper umbrellas as centerpieces. Lots of funny signs, some ideas follow.


Pictures of this vase are at the end of this blog. It is a vase in a vase. I have filled the outer vase with various peppers, molding a well, for the inner vase.
T
The drink puts the "happy" in happy hour!


                                           Gold Margarita

2 ounces tequila
2 ounces simple syrup
1 ounce Grand Marnier
1 ounce lime juice
1 ounce lemon juice
lime wedge for garnish

Combine the ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a glass. If serving frozen, combine the ingredients in a blender with 3/4 cup crushed ice and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.



                   EL PINA DIABLO MARGARITAS

Ingredients
  • 2 oz of Pineapple and Chili Serrano infused Tequila
  • ¾ oz Cointreau
  • Splash of pineapple juice
  • Fresh sour mix
Preparation
  • In a pint glass filled with ice add 2 oz of Pineapple and Chili Serrano infused Tequila, ¾ oz of Cointreau, a splash of pineapple juice, and fill glass with sour mix.
  • Shake vigorously until frothy and pour into glass.
  • Garnish with a lime wedge and serrano chil
Virgin or NOT!

                     Frozen Virgin Margaritas

INGREDIENTS:

2 tablespoons kosher salt
1/2 lime, cut into 4 wedges
1 can (6 ounce size) frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup orange juice
4 cups ice cubes


DIRECTIONS:

Place the salt in a shallow dish. Rub the rim of individual margarita glasses with a lime wedge and dip the rims into the salt; set the lime wedges aside.

In a blender, blend the limeade, orange juice, and ice cubes on high speed for 1 to 2 minutes, or until well blended and the ice cubes are crushed.

Pour evenly into the glasses and garnish with the lime wedges. Serve immediately.


Activities: Have activities to do, some ideas!

Arm wrestling competitions! My son in law is on the right, Ross.



Push up competitions! Son in law in the mix!

Dancing! Me, Ross(son in law) and our daughter Laura.
                               
                          The Fiesta Food



                                                 Ceviche

I know most people think enchiladas, tacos and tortilla chips when asked what food comes first, for me, I think Ceviche! This dish is particularly good on a hot Summer day.
Yes, I used all my peppers in the table arrangement! Note, buy more peppers!!

1/2 lb. small scallops
1/2 lb. baby shrimp
1/2 cup Lime juice
1/2 cup Tequila (Yummy)
2 Jalapeno's, chopped
2 T. Cilantro, chopped
1 RED bell pepper, chopped

Toss all the ingredients together in a glass bowl, cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Serve very cold on lettuce leaves or with tortilla chips. Serves 4-6



                                          Wee Bears Favorite!

                                          Queso Fundido


8 oz. Asadero or Monterey Jack cheese
1 oz green onion
4 oz. Mexican chorizo sausage
1/4-1/2 C. Pico de Gallo
1 package flour or corn tortilla's

Cook the chorizo in a skillet, then drain off the grease.


In a baking dish, spread half of the grated cheese, green onion and pack down. Cover with the drained chorizo, then top with the rest of the cheese and onion.


Set the oven to broil (450-500 F) and cook 4-6 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling.



Warm the tortillas in a dry skillet. To serve, fill the tortillas with hot cheese-chorizo mixture and top with the pico de gallo. Serves 2





* A picture of the vase without peppers or flowers. I use it a lot!! Bought at Safeway Floral, for $19.95.



*Fridays blog will continue the Cinco 'De Mayo fun! Lobster tacos and Ibarra flan! Ibarra is mexican chocolate, if you can't find it, you can substitute chocolate with a bit of cinnamon!! So get some friends together and let's party!!

2 comments:

  1. Great Cinco de Mayo blog entry. You covered so much. Drinks, food, flowers, activities, attire and more. I love all the pics from Mexico. Good times! Ross is trying to remember if he won that arm wrestling competition.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ROSS....are you kidding me!!!? Of course he won!! Yes, I had fun going back into some old pictures!! We had our little fiesta last night, while watching the Coyote game on the patio. Wee Bear loves his Queso fundido! I had lobster taco, Wee Bear had ground beef!! I made my Mexican chocolate flan, yum yum!! On the blog on Friday! Thanks for your comments!

      Delete

Please leave a suggestion or comment for me! I would love to respond to it!