Since Cinco de Mayo was a Monday night this year I decided that I wanted to forgo a night out for tacos and margaritas and try my hand in the kitchen instead. (I’ve never been a ‘have a drink on a Monday’ kind of girl, lame I know.) My primary source of inspiration was Mexico One Plate at a Time by Rick Bayless. I’ve made his Chorizo-Potato Tacos with Simple Avocado Salsa and Casserole-style Zucchini Tamal and really enjoyed both recipes, so I knew I could trust him for a special recipe for Cinco de Mayo. I decided on Cornish Game Hens with Apricot-Pine Nut Mole (adapted version of the recipe can also be found here). Since I knew the dish was going to be rich and spicy I decided to pair it with Gourmet’s Cactus, Chayote, and Green-Apple Salad. I’d never cooked with Cornish hens, cactus, or chayote before so I knew this meal was going to be both an adventure and a challenge. However, one of the best things about cooking for yourself (as I did this Cinco de Mayo) is that it’s okay to take a risk because if the meal doesn’t turn out you’re the only one that has to know.
It turned out that gathering the ingredients for the meal was actually more frustrating than making it. First, I had a blonde moment when I’d intended to buy nopales (prickly pear cactus paddles) and instead accidentally bought fresh aloe. There was no sign and I was in a hurry so I assumed it was prickly enough. It wasn’t until I was checking out and the cashier asked me what I was going to do with it that I realized I’d gotten the wrong thing. Regardless, none of my local grocery stores seemed to carry fresh nopales so I had to settle for ‘tender cactus’ in a can. Whole Foods was also out of Cornish Hens so I had to hit a few stores before I found some, which seemed like a lot of effort for a girl that doesn’t normally like poultry.
Thankfully, once I was back in my own kitchen and ready to go, the meal came together easily. Mole does have a fair number of steps, but they are all relatively easy and if you make it the night before (as I did) all you have to do the day of is roast the hens and prepare the salad. Because you’ve got so many ingredients to toast and blend it’s also one of those instances when having a mis en place is worth it.
was pleasantly surprised with the Cornish hen. I’ve never been a huge fan of poultry (I usually stick to side dishes on Thanksgiving), but I really liked it. It was extremely easy to roast, moist, and the perfect amount of meat for a meal for one with some leftovers. The mole was also very delicious. Although to be honest, this is my second time making mole and I preferred the first recipe, which actually was from Cooking Light. Though the ingredients were not as unusual (i.e. raisins instead of apricots and almonds instead of pine nuts), I remember its flavor being more complex. I still have some leftover mole from my first batch frozen in the freezer so I’d considered pulling some out for a side by side taste test, but it hardly seemed fair given my previous batch had been in the freezer for a good couple of months. As for the salad, I really liked the combination of flavors, but am not sure how I feel about cactus as a stand alone ingredient. The variety I got was canned with onions, jalapenos, vinegar, salt, and spices so it had a lot of flavor and heat. It kind of reminded me of a spicy green bean. However, the vinegar was a bit overpowering in my opinion even though I rinsed it before adding to the salad so the cactus tasted best to me when eaten in a single bite with an orange slice to balance out the vinegar and heat. The chayote reminded me of a cross between a cucumber and an unripened melon. It was very mellow and crisp and added great texture to the
salad. I’m not sure how it stacks up to cucumbers when it comes to price, but I would definitely buy it to eat with a dip of some sort.Overall these dishes were a great way to celebrate the tastes of Mexico on Cinco de Mayo. I’m not sure the salad turned me into a cactus lover, but I’m definitely open minded about using it again in the future.
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