Traditional Mexican buñuelos are a crunchy, crispy dessert snack, Mexican fritters, if you will, or crisp pastries made from dough that is flattended and shaped to resemble a king size tortilla.  There are many ways to make buñuelos, my family makes them the easy way and why not share this traditional dish that could be made in a SNAP?

For me, Christmas wouldn’t be the same if a pile of buñuelos were not sitting on a plate for all to enjoy as a nosh.  Some folks make their own tortilla dough, but in a pinch, we use the store bought tortillas.  You could prepare them in sprinkled  sugar and cinnamon or glaze them in a syrup sauce.  Take this simple recipe and enjoy a little taste of a Mexican Christmas.

Ingredients for buñuelos:

1 – cup vegetable oil

1 – dozen flour tortillas

1 – cup surgar

3 – teaspoons cinnamon

Ingredients for glaze:

2 – cups water

1 – piloncillo

1 – cinnamon stick

2 – anise stars

1/2 – cup honey

In a large frying pan add oil over a medium high flame.  Once oil is hot add a flour tortilla and fry till golden crisp on each side (about 3 to 4 minutes).  Remove from flame and drain for 5 minutes on a paper towel.  Then either sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon or brush with syrup glaze.

How to make sugar mixture:  Mix sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.

How to make syrup:  In a sauce pan over a medium flame add water, piloncillo, cinnamon stick and anise stars.  Mix till piloncillo dissolves.  Then let boil for 5 minutes.  Next add in honey and mix to combine/melt into syrup.  Remove from flame allow to cool for 10 minutes then brush on buñuelo.

Photos taken by: Mando Lopez and Nicole Presley

Feliz Navidad!

I was invited to take a drive up the coast to Los Olivos with a group of my favorite pals.  Last weekend Sprint hosted a group of us Latina Bloggers from Latina Bloggers Connect to a wine and cupcakes event.  We made a couple of stops along the way.  First stop, Fess Parker Winery the owner played Davy Crockett.  You might remember him from the Disney movies in the 60’s.  My mom and Grandfather knew who he was right away.  Fess Winery is located in a beautiful vineyard in northern Santa Barbara.

It’s a sprawling piece of land with breathtaking views. One of the scenes from the movie Sideways was filmed there. The wine was fantastic and got us all feeling very happy, as wine does.

Since they have picnic tables on the grounds, my friend Ericka (her blog is called Nibbles and Feasts) and I made lunch for all our friends. We spoiled them with many treats (I will link some of the recipes at the bottom of this page).

Then we made our way back to our limo and were off into the afternoon towards Los Olivos.  We came across the cutest wine tasting room my eyes had ever set sight on ….. Saarloos and Sons.

I have to say the atmosphere was amazing and the gentleman who owns the place, Keith gave one of the most inspirational tutorials I had ever heard.  I listened with open ears and found all his words came from the heart.  Wish I had Saarlos and Sons closer to my town.

Find your way there for excellent wine and chat.  It was such a perfect day, glad I was able to spend it with my friends.  Thank you Sprint for letting me come along for the ride.

Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post. I simply had a fantastic day and wanted to share it with you.

Photos taken by: Nicole Presley and Rachel Matos

This summer I entered a picnic side-dish recipe contest held by the market chain Fresh & Easy (Western states).  GUESS WHAT?  I WON THE GRAND PRIZE!!!  My salad is going to be packaged and sold at Fresh & Easy stores Summer 2012!  I am completely beside myself and thrilled beyond belief!  Just wanted to share this with you all.  More details to come on the recipe submitted as the warm season approaches next year.  Hip Hip Hooray!

My friend Lacey is no joke when it comes to nuts.  I recently had a little poker gathering at my place and she brought over her spicy roasted nuts and all you could hear were sounds of pleasure from everyone munching on them.  They were all the rage and I was just as blown away by this bowl of nuts as everybody else was.  I twisted her arm to not only share her recipe with me, but to come over and make them so I could write down all the measurements and share them with you, my dear confidants.  Here is the uber-delish recipe Miss Lacey agreed to part with.

In the words of Lacey, “Make sure to pull your hair back while making these nuts…. No one likes hairy nuts!”

Ingredients for spicy nuts:

6 – cups unsalted nuts (we used almonds, pecans, cashews, and pistachios)

1/2 – cup unsalted butter

1/2 – heaping cup  brown sugar

1/3 – cup fresh rosemary (chopped)

5 – teaspoons cayenne red pepper

1 1/2 – teaspoons salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set to the side.

In a large mixing bowl add nuts. Mix well.

In a sauce pan over a medium flame add butter just to melt.  Then pour the melted butter into the nuts and mix well.

Next add in brown sugar and mix well. Now add the rosemary and cayenne pepper, and mix well. Lastly add salt and give it a final stir.

Lay out nuts on cookie sheet and bake for 23 to 25 minutes.

When you first pull nuts out of the oven, they will be a bit chewy.  They harden as they cool.  Allow to cool for 20 minutes then dig in!

Greetings!  I’m so excited to share my very first webisode with you!  This is numero uno of many, many more to come.  Sit in a comfy place cuz this is a 15 minute instructional recipe.  Meet Flavio the Bolillo and watch me cook up one of my specialties…. Chile Rellenos!

Ingredients for chile rellenos:

6 – anaheim chiles

vegetable oil

onion

garlic cloves

huerito chile

flour

black pepper

oregano

Lawry’s seasoning salt

garlic powder

tomato sauce

water

El Pato

Jack cheese

a dozen eggs

A big thank you to my crew…. we made it through the heat! 

Director: Mando Lopez and James Ford

Producer: Lacey Reilly

Director of Photography: Tony Molina

Editor: James Ford

Color Correction:  Eric Johnson

Set Design:  Linda Sena

Equipment: Paul Hopkins (Thx!)

Music: Anger Bros

Photos: Luz Gallardo

Make- up/Nails: Janine Presley

Necklace designed by: Lisa Rocha

My Mom took me over the Atlantic when I was a wee little one for a family adventure.  My 6 year old eyes explored Europe and my tongue was tickled with new flavors and foods.  I tried many things for the first time during that trip, but one of the foods that planted it’s memory deep within the walls of my cerebrum was the scone.

My first trip back to Great Britain  as an adult took a very different stance on eating and exploring.  I was there with the intention of picking up any and all tips on things I loved and how to re-create them back home.  The scone was my first attempt of bringing the United Kingdom tips I had learned to life.  I made them for the women in my family, they LOVED them with such insane enthusiasm, I started to experiment with the basic scone recipe and finally tried this Cranberry Corn version on my clan.  In short, this is the recipe they request over and over.  I only bring it out during the holidays as a little gift.  I make a big batch Christmas Eve to make sure I have something to leave out for Ol’ Saint Nick.  Pair it with a glass of cold or warm milk and fall in love.  This is the ultimate Santa treat and if you have any left over, enjoy them Christmas morning with a tall swig of milk while you open your gifts!

Since I’m on the topic of happiness and gift giving…. I would like to thank the MASTER OF THE GLASS HALF FULL for giving me one of the best gifts ever…. The words of positivity.  I’m going to jump over to his Facebook page and tell him how much I’ve appreciated all his optimistic expression.  Then I’m going to tweet him with mucho #postivismo and let him know I will carry positivity in my smile for the rest of my life and promise to always drink milk!

Ingredients for cranberry corn scones:

1 – cup flour

3/4 – cup medium grind yellow cornmeal

1/2 – tablespoon baking powder

1/4 – teaspoon baking soda

1/4 – teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 – cup sugar

1 – stick butter (cold, cut into 1 inch pieces)

1/2 – cup dried sweet cranberries

1/2 – cup buttermilk

Topping:

1/4 – cup sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.

Line a cookie sheet with wax paper and set to the side.

In a food processor combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.  Pulse till all dry ingredients are mixed well.

Then add in butter and give a few good pulses till butter looks like small peas.

Then transfer butter flour mixture into a large mixing bowl.  With a wooden spoon mix in cranberries.  Make a well in the center of mixture and pour in buttermilk.  Mix to combine.  There will be a little flour at the bottom of the bowl, the rest of the dough will be a little sticky.  Not to worry.  Let dough sit for 10 minutes.

Gently form dough into 2 inches in thickness balls by rolling in hand.  On wax paper lined cookie sheet drop dough balls two inches apart.   Then sprinkle each ball with 1 teaspoon of sugar.  Place in the oven and immediately lower temperature to 375.  Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until golden.  Let cool and enjoy!

*Disclosure: This is part of a sponsored campaign with the California Milk Processor’s Board and Latina Mom Bloggers. Story and opinions are my own.

All photos taken by: Nicole Presley

 What do I do when my guy asks for a coconut birthday cake?  I think winter wonderland. It’s not my fault his birthday falls in December.  I got to making his cake and instead of going with a traditional decoration I went the holiday route.  In the end I put some birthday candles so he’d have something to blow out…. He didn’t mind, as long as he got his cake!

Ingredients for coconut almond cake:

2 1/3 – cups flour

1/2 – cup sliced almonds (coarsely chopped)

1 – teaspoon baking soda

1/2 – teaspoon salt

1 – cup buttermilk

3 – eggs

1 – cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 – teaspoons almond extract

1 1/2 – teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/3 sugar

2 – cups sweetened shredded coconut

Ingredients for the frosting:

16 – ounces cream cheese (room temperature)

1 – cup butter (room temperature)

1 1/2 – teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

3 – cups coconut

1/2 – cup strawberry preserves

Optional decoration:

Holiday cookies

red candies

dried cherries or cranberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees fahrenheit.

Spray edges of (2) 8-inch round cake pans and place a round piece of wax paper at the bottom of pan for easy removal.  Set to the side.

In a small bowl add flour, almonds, baking soda, and salt.  Mix with a fork and set to the side.

In a mixing bowl add buttermilk, eggs, vegetable oil, almond extract, vanilla extract, and sugar.  Mix on low speed to combine for about 2 to 3 minutes.  Then slowly add in flour mixture till combined.  Fold in coconut.

Fill both prepared pans with cake batter, make sure to give each pan the same amount.

Bake for 30 to 32 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Remove from oven and allow cakes to cool completely.  Then remove from pans and remove wax paper bottom.

Let’s make frosting: In a large mixing bowl beat cream cheese and butter till smooth for about 2 minutes on a medium high speed.  Then add in vanilla and mix for an additional minute.  Next add in the powdered sugar a little at a time mixing until completely combined and fluffy.

Place one cake upside down on a cake plate and frost with cream cheese frosting, then spread strawberry preserves in the inside leaving a half inch away from the edge.  Then top with the other cake.  Fill with frosting all around the edges in the open space between both cakes.

Then frost entire cake.  Once completely frosted place coconut on entire cake.  If you wish place holiday cookies around the edge of cake and make a border with red candies and dried cranberries or cherries.  Happy Holidays!  Or in my man’s case, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

                                                 All photos taken by: Nicole Presley