Cooking with Baja Magic Dos -
Mexican Recipes by Author Ann Hazard
 These recipe will be in featured in Ann Hazard’s
newest book, Cooking With Baja Magic Dos. It is, or will be soon,
available throughout Baja and California. The new cookbook has over 60
new recipes with corresponding stories and all new art. Whether or not you
have Ann’s original cookbook, you will want a copy of Baja Magic Dos! For
more information on Ann and her Baja books, visit
http://www.bajamagic.com or order her book from Amazon.com on the
right.
Thank you to
Author Ann Hazard from BajaMagic.com for this contribution.
MAYAN
SALSA HABANERO
Back when Europe was locked in the dark ages, the
Mayans were thriving, their culture both sophisticated and diverse. The
five Maya nations were originally located in Belize, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico. Although their cities were abandoned
approximately 450 years ago, they’re still thriving as a people and today
inhabit the Mexican states of Tabasco, Campeche, Chiapas, Yucatán and
Quintana Roo.
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All of the artwork on this page is also from Ann's upcoming cookbook.
Click on the images to see a larger view
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 Rellenos
4 poblano chiles, blistered
3 cups salsa ranchera (Salsa section or use Salsa Veracruzana from
preceding recipe)
1 tsp epazote
Salt and pepper to taste
½ lb jack cheese, shredded
2 tbsp butter
8 eggs
½ lb queso Chihuahua, shredded
To make salsa ranchera
In large skillet, sauté bell pepper, tomato onion until
done. Add oregano, bay leaf and salt. Cover and simmer on low heat for
fifteen minutes.
To make rellenos
To blister the chiles: If you have a gas stove, lay the
chiles over the open flame and char skins well, turning with tongs
frequently until they’re uniformly blackened and stop snapping. The more
charred they are, the easier it is to remove the skins. If you have an
electric stove, place chiles in a large skillet on high heat. Turn
frequently as above. Remove chiles to plastic bag, close it and let stand
for 10 minutes. Remove from bag, place in ice-cold water and remove the
skin, veins and seeds. Do not remove stem!
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 When Terry and I visited the Yucatán a few years ago,
our friend Antonio (formerly of Ensenada) acted as our private tour guide.
We visited Chichenitzá and Tulum, swam in cenotes (underground rivers and
lakes) and snorkeled in the Caribbean. If you ever visit the Riviera Maya,
the Mayan people’ll surround you. They still farm the land and live in
small villages throughout the Yucatán peninsula — much as they did
centuries ago. They own and work in the shops where you’ll buy handicrafts
or groceries, the restaurants where you’ll eat and the hotels where you’ll
stay. They are a friendly and proud people. If you’re interested, it’s
possible they will teach you a few words in their language.
For the Maya, eating is an act of spirituality. Their foods are different
than the northern Mexican food most Americans and other tourists are
familiar with. Their chile of choice is the habanero, the hottest chile
known to mankind. It is revered for its healing powers and supposedly will
ward off any number of diseases. I will personally attest that it gives
the best endorphin rush of any chile.
When habaneros are combined with lime juice, they lose
some of their fire. I invented this recipe after a trip to the Riviera
Maya where I did much tasting and asked a lot of questions about the
salsas. If your palate is very heat-sensitive, cut down on the habaneros,
but don’t be a pansy and leave them out altogether. This makes about a
quart.
1 large red onion, finely diced
6 large tomatoes, finely diced
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 – 6 habanero chiles, minced with seeds and membranes removed
Juice of 2 limónes (Mexican limes) or key limes
1 tbsp Controy or orange juice
1 tbsp salt
Mix all ingredients together in bowl. Cover and
refrigerate for up to three days. Use with chips, on tacos or as a
condiment to any Mexican dish. It’s makes a wonderful, simple nacho dish,
when you pour grated cheese over a plate of totopos (tortilla chips),
microwave for a minute or until the cheese is melted, top with salsa
habanero and serve.
 TROPICANA
BREAKFAST RELLENOS
Brad and Diane from Washington, who are friends of Nina
and John, spent a week at the Tropicana Inn in San Jose del Cabo over
Thanksgiving recently. We ran into them there and both were raving about
the breakfast rellenos. They said they ate them every morning. Nina and I
made a vow there and then to get the recipe for Baja Magic Dos. We highly
recommend staying at this hotel if you go to San Jose. It’s centrally
located, spectacularly built and decorated and the restaurant and bar are
as good as it gets! Be sure and try this for breakfast. Better yet, try it
tomorrow and then start planning your trip! Serves four.
Salsa ranchera
2 green bell peppers, thinly sliced
2 white onions, thinly sliced
2 lb tomatoes, thinly sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp oregano
2 bay leaves
Salt to taste
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 In saucepan, heat ranchera sauce. In medium bowl,
scramble the eggs. Add crushed epazote, salt and pepper. Melt butter in
skillet and cook the eggs until done. Make a slit in each chile and stuff
with ¼ of the eggs. Put on a cookie sheet and top with combined cheeses.
Broil for a minute or until cheeses are bubbling and almost brown on the
edges. Move to warm plate and cover each relleno with ranchero sauce. The
Tropicana serves this with fried potatoes or beans on the side.
BEACHCOMBER COCONUT SHRIMP
Christine
went to high school with Nina in La Jolla, CA. Then they lost touch for
nearly 30 years until we ran into each other in Buena
 Vista in 2001.
Christine and her husband, Leo had just bought a house here. Now they’re
not only our good friends, but our neighbors too! When we visited them in
Florence, Oregon a few summers ago they took us to their restaurant/tavern
in Old Town Florence, the Beachcomber. There was a Baja specialty, coconut
shrimp on their menu, so of course Terry ordered it. And lo and behold … I
loved it! So here it is. Make sure those shrimp are nice and crispy and be
brave and leave the seeds in the jalapeños! As Christine says, “Mo hottah,
mo bettah!” They have since sold the restaurant, but the recipe lives on.
Serves four to six.
Leo’s
Coconut Shrimp
 2 lb jumbo shrimp
1 cup flour
1 cup cold beer or ice water
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
1 egg
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup corn or canola oil
Peel, devein and
butterfly shrimp, leaving tail on. Rinse and drain. In mixing bowl,
combine flour, beer, sugar, salt, olive oil and egg. Slightly chop coconut
in food processor and pour onto plate for rolling.
Heat oil in deep fryer or
deep skillet to medium high heat. Dip shrimp in batter and roll in
coconut. Cook in oil until golden brown and crispy on each side. Drain on
paper towel.
Christine's Dipping Sauce
1 cup orange marmalade,
mango or pineapple preserves
2 fresh
jalepeños, minced
For spicier sauce, do not remove seeds. Mix with
marmalade and leave in refrigerator for an hour to give flavors a chance
to blend. Arrange shrimp on a platter with dipping sauce in a bowl in the
middle and serve.
Click here
for other recipes...
The Agave Sunset
Agua de Jamaica
& Limones Cocadas
Crab Salad & Cornbread
Carnitas & Nachos
Tomatillio Salsa, Margarita Pie & Chilequiles
Vallarta
Lobster Puerto Nuevo, Shrimp Papagayos
Sopa Rompe Catre, Shrimp and Smoked Marlin
Open-Faced Ravioli & Chiles en Nogada
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