Calabacitas, a tasty Mexican squash and corn dish, is the perfect complement to tacos, burritos, and other Mexican entrees. My brother-in-law, Mark Zalmanek, developed this recipe after eating it in a Mexican restaurant many years ago. Thank you, Mark, for another delicious recipe. The trickiest part of preparing calabacitas is cutting the […]
Made with carnitas, diced chipotles, corn tortillas, and cheese, grilled tacos have flavors similar to birria tacos, with a fraction of the effort. (They are grilled in a skillet or griddle like grilled cheese, not over a charcoal fire.) On a recent motorhome trip to Albuquerque, I struck up a […]
Tomatillos are a key ingredient for this black bean salsa. When a friend recently gave me fresh tomatillos from her garden, I dug through my old recipes to find this favorite from the 90s. Back then, it was a staple at many gatherings. If you have leftovers, use the […]
The best chili rellenos I ever tasted were stuffed with cheese, pecans, and pork. My friend Eduardo Cavazos spent all afternoon making them from his mother’s recipe. To enjoy similar flavors in a fraction of the prep time, I improvised this chili rellenos casserole. In Maria Eugenia Cavazos’s original recipe, […]
Carnitas nachos! Imagine Mexican slow-cooked pork over tortilla chips and topped with jalapeños, avocados, tomatoes, cheese and sour cream. Doesn’t that make your mouth water? Not long ago I saw that on the appetizer menu in a barbecue restaurant. I didn’t order them, but didn’t forget about them either. One […]
I married into a family of fine cooks. This recipe comes from my sister-in-law, Roxanna Zalmanek. She makes this soup without carefully measuring the ingredients and promises you can’t mess it up. Use your favorite bottled salsa; that will be the predominant flavor. For years, Pace Chipotle was my favorite. […]
Hi! My name is Mary Zalmanek and I love to cook. My husband Jim and I also love to travel in our motorhome, which means I cook a lot of meals in the tiny one-butt kitchen in our motorhome. My recipes come from various sources: my family and friends, successful experiments, and inspiration from restaurant meals enjoyed during our travels, various cookbooks, and food blogs. All of my recipes are gluten-free.