mommy despot

One of my favorite Mexican traditions is the celebration of Dia de Los Muertos–Day of the Dead.   Every November 1 and 2,  Catholic and indigenous traditions blend to honor the dead.  Spirits of the dearly departed are believed to return to their homes and those of friends and family.  They are lovingly welcomed with beautiful homemade altars filled with traditional flowers, fruit, sweet bread (pan de muerto), candy and the deceased’s favorite foods–along with whimsical skulls (often made from sugar) and skeletons.   A magical blend of the macabre and beautiful that ultimately helps to demystify death and loss.  I’ve scoured the web for creative and easy-to-follow/purchase inspirations.  Here are my picks:

I found a great online retailer who specializes in all things Dia de los Muertos and carries everything from sugar skulls to papel picado to folk inspired skeletons.  Check out: http://www.mexicansugarskull.com/index.html

Religious candles can be picked up at your local Latin American market or bodega and add a beautiful touch to your altar or tablescape.

The marigold is the traditional Dia de los Muertos flower.  Known as the flower of the dead, their scent is believed to attract the souls and draw them back. Paper flowers are a great alternative.

Altars and tablescapes can range from the elaborate to simple.  I’ve chosen two minimalist designs below as inspiration:

The traditional sweet bread pan de muerto is a main staple of the Dia de los Muertos celebration.  If you feel like breaking out the yeast and flour, I’ve included a great recipe link above.  An easier alternative, buy ‘em from the baking professionals!  Because I live in New York while my heart is in LA…here are some yummy bicoastal leads:

NEW YORK

Don Paco Lopez

4703 4th Avenue, Brooklyn NY 12200  Tel: 718-492-7443

2129 3rd Avenue, New York NY 10035 Tel: 212-876-0700

LOS ANGELES

Venice Bakery

10943 Venice Boulevard, Los Angeles CA 90034  Tel:  310-839-3478

Panaderia Mexico

6817 Woodman Ave Van Nuys, CA 91405 Tel: (818) 782-6873

Why not add theatrical flair to your festivities with an amazing makeup transformation.  Spellbound skeletons…

Bonus…as Dia de los Muertos falls just after Halloween, you can often find great last minute deals on decorations and supplies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weekday dinners of late have been ass-kickers.  It’s 6:30pm and I’ve clocked some serious miles walking, pushing and pulling my troops all over upper and midtown Manhattan.  My oldest is weaseling her way out of homework by way of an Arthur Miller Crucible inspired nervous breakdown, while my napless toddler (think apocalyptic zombie) is also about to mentally combust right on the kitchen floor…cut to my husband texting me his perfectly timed “What do you want for dinner?” stock phrase.  At this point, I realize most sane-ish SAH (Stay-At-Homes) reach for the phone and order pizza, Thai, (fill-in the blank).  After all this is NYC, very possibly the birthplace of all takeout.  But I am neither sane-ish nor a big fan of the takeout…which, I understand, is sacrilege in these here parts.  Soggy, styrofoam, plastic and aluminum infused food aside…even more emphatically, I got a weird thing about fingernails. My great love of cooking basically stems from my irrational fear of unpleasant fingers.  While I can completely rationalize this phobia is a nutty ode to Howard Hughes, a delivery persons’ hands can make or break a meal for me.  One filthy cuticle bed, an angry chewed nail or an inflamed hanger and I am so eating a stale Wassa topped with the murky year-old pimiento olives from waaaay back in the fridge.  I can’t, I can’t (and I refuse to medicate) I just cannot.  Eating out is even more challenging: my inner Woody Allen all the while pleading, “avert your eyes,  cuckoo bird, avert those darting crazy eyes.”  Nor can an entire hungry family live–in perpetuity–on Amy’s frozen mac & cheese (even if it is organic).  After all, any OCD riddled, non-medicating neurotic housewife knows that a microwave is the gateway to marital discord and the ultimate collapse of the nuclear family.  Close the radiating divorce door (kidding, sort of…though that title would make an awesome Pinterest board curated with sad sallow pictures of Hungry Mans and deflated nuked Mama Celeste Pizzas, of course) and just step away.  This Shrimp Scampi Spaghetti takes all of 15 minutes to make (consisting of things you most likely already have on hand in your pantry and fridge: boxed dry pasta, garlic, tomatoes and frozen shrimp) and might be one of the best things you eat all week. SHRIMP SCAMPI SPAGHETTI Serves 6-8

• boxed dry pasta, I like thin spaghetti or linguine
• 4 large teeth of garlic, finely minced
• 1 pint of grape tomatoes
• 1 lemon (for juicing)
• 4 tablespoons of olive oil
• 20 frozen shrimp
• 1 cup of reserved boiling water of cooked pasta
• a splash or two of dry white wine (whatever you have leftover or on hand)
• parsley or fresh basil, minced for topping
• salt and pepper to taste

Prepare boxed pasta and reserve approximately 1 cup of boiled water.  In a large frying pan or wok, heat olive oil on medium/high heat.  Add garlic and tomatoes to saute with a few splashes of dry white wine.  Once garlic has lightly browned and tomatoes are soft, add frozen shrimp to cook while squeezing the two seedless halves of a lemon into pan.  Saute until shrimp are thoroughly cooked and pink.  Add 3/4 of the cooked pasta and 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water (use more if needed). Salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well and top with minced parsley or basil.

So I’m currently obsessed with this Teavana White Tea: Youthberry and Wild Orange Blossom blend.

While green and black tea have substantial health benefits, white tea is the least processed and has the highest levels of antioxidants which have been shown to protect the body from DNA damaging and age accelerating free radicals.  Hell yeahs…I’ll happily sip myself far from 40.

Ahh, Youthberry and Wild Orange Blossom…the name alone automatically sends your pinky finger into a raised tea salute as this magical elixir tastes as though it was brewed directly from the fountain of youth.  The loose tea smells of a heavenly spring citrus orchard and–when fully steeped–has the most gloriously light and orange accented flavor to it.   I like to add a tiny teaspoon of german rock sugar (really as yummy as it is good looking–teatime visual show stopper also available for sale at Teavana) pure, unprocessed sugar crystals that enhance the natural sweetness of the tea without changing the flavor.

Got the kids at the park with Dad, sun shining bright, my feet up on the balcony, a sliver view of the Hudson River and an ice cold glass of this awesome tea…life sure is um um good.