New Mexico Archives - Page 2 of 3

New Mexico

Enjoying the culinary versatility of green chile

Posted on January 27, 2023May 15, 2023 by Pat

At home, we make a pretty traditional version of green chile cooked with onion, garlic, a little ground beef, and freshly crushed cumin and coriander seed. (We also add puréed tomatillos, but that's another story.) It's a staple of our diet, served over rice and topped with a bit of sour cream to soothe the heat. Or we spoon the sauce over eggs and tortillas as a verdant variation of huevos rancheros. My last visit to Santa Fe proved that green chiles are much more versatile. They can star equally in both casual and fine dining. The green chile cheeseburger, for example, has become an icon of New Mexican cuisine. The state tourism office modestly admits that it didn't invent the hamburger sandwich. (That honor...Read More

Going green (chile, that is) in northern New Mexico

Posted on January 20, 2023January 18, 2023 by Pat

Green chile is the signature flavor of New Mexico. The plant seems to thrive in the thin soils along the river and stream valleys feeding into the Rio Grande. Many cultivars are named for the towns north of Santa Fe, like Española and Chimayó. Albuquerque-based Hatch Chile Company has become synonymous with the best green chile peppers on the planet. Simply put, chile is the cornerstone of New Mexican cuisine. To get a taste of the state's traditional cooking, my friend Patti and I drove about 25 miles north to the little town of Chimayó. Situated in a valley of the Sangre de Cristo mountains, the town is perhaps most famous for the Santuario de Chimayó, a Catholic chapel some believe to have healing powers....Read More

Toasting Santa Fe’s Day of the Dead

Posted on January 13, 2023January 10, 2023 by Pat

Someday I'll look back and say that I was there at the beginning. When my friend Patti and I left San Antonio, Texas, we flew to Santa Fe, New Mexico, for that city's first official Day of the Dead observances. Santa Fe's two-day gathering was more modest that San Antonio's well-established event. But what it lacked in size, it made up for in heart. We missed the Friday-night kick-off, but were on hand for the full-day of events on Saturday. Early in the day, people gathered in Santa Fe Plaza to prepare ofrendas (as the altars to deceased loved ones are called), listen to strolling mariachis, and have their faces painted as skeletons and Catrinas. As darkness fell, lights twinkled from the trees and the...Read More

World on a Plate: the cult of New Mexico chile peppers

Posted on August 28, 2020August 29, 2020 by Pat and David

It was a very different August when we stumbled onto the Santa Fe Farmers' Market (santafefarmersmarket.com) on our way back from Abiquiú, and the scent of roasting green chiles transported us to a kind of nirvana. (We're happy to report that the market is open and following careful health and safety protocols to protect against COVID-19.) There are chile peppers and then there are New Mexico chile peppers. They are in a league of their own, balancing heat levels from mild to mildly scorching. Many chileheads think in Scoville units—the scale that measures perceived level of chile burn. They nibble habañeros and bird chiles with macho abandon, insisting through the tears washing rivulets in their faces that ‶this ain't hot.″ They're probably the same folks...Read More

World on a Plate: Breakfast worthy of Georgia O’Keeffe

Posted on July 3, 2020July 13, 2020 by Pat and David

For us, the first flavor that springs to memory when someone mentions New Mexico is green chile. But to be honest, green chile isn't very picturesque. When it comes to picture-perfect plates from New Mexico, it's hard to beat the breakfast and brunch dishes served at the Abiquiu Inn (21120 U.S. 84, Abiquiu, N.M.; 505-685-4378; abiquiuinn.com). Conveniently located just down the road from Georgia O'Keeffe's Ghost Ranch (1708 U.S. 84, Abiquiu; 505-685-1000; ghostranch.org), the inn has a nice mix of rooms, suites, and casitas. Some casitas are arranged to share central courtyards. The inn might be one of the pricier lodging options in the area, but it's worth every penny. For more details, see our post from 2018. The Abiquiu Inn's Café Abiquiu serves meals...Read More

What to buy in a New Mexico grocery store

Posted on October 25, 2018October 26, 2018 by Pat and David

Sometimes we get a little carried away. On one of our first visits to New Mexico, we became so enamored of the flavor of green chile that we filled a couple of big cardboard boxes with fresh chiles and checked them through as baggage on our flight back to Cambridge, Massachusetts. We soon discovered that it's a lot more trouble to roast the chiles ourselves on a Smoky Joe backyard grill than it is to buy them already roasted from one of the growers at a farmers market. Now we try to be a bit more restrained. Even in a standard grocery store, there are plenty of products that will pack a punch back home. And the good news is that the most essential don't...Read More

Abiquiu Inn serves tasty dishes (and serene casitas)

Posted on October 18, 2018 by Pat and David

There aren't a whole lot of reasons to visit Abiquiu, New Mexico, 56 miles northwest of Santa Fe. Most of us come for Georgia O'Keeffe, who lived in this high-country village from 1949 until shortly before her death in 1986. O'Keeffe fans stream here to see her home and studio, visit her isolated studio at Ghost Ranch, and drink in the luminous, surreal landscapes. If they come to do all three, they likely stay overnight at the Abiquiu Inn (21120 U.S. 84, Abiquiu, N.M.; 505-685-4378; abiquiuinn.com). We did—and we were delighted. The rooms are essentially casitas. Several casitas back up on a shared courtyard, but we almost always had it to ourselves—unless you count the hummingbirds sipping nectar from the trumpet vine blossoms or having...Read More

Bode’s serves quintessential N.M. road food

Posted on October 7, 2018October 7, 2018 by Pat and David

We love places like Bode's General Store (21196 U.S. 84, 505-685-4422, bodes.com) in Abiquiú where you can pick up everything that you truly need. Established as Grants Mercantile in 1890, the establishment was bought by Martin Bode in 1919. When the highway was moved from the the village center to its current location, Bode's moved as well. It now fills a long adobe building on the side of the road. As the commercial and social center of its small New Mexican community, Bode's sells groceries and wine and beer, the tools considered essential for home repairs, fishing and other outdoor supplies, some kitchen utensils, knives, gift items from local artisans, and a good line of books. Gas pumps long ago replaced the stage coach stop....Read More

Little Red Hamburger Hut has that ABQ heat

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Pat and David

We didn't go looking for the Little Red Hamburger Hut (1501 Mountain Rd. NW, Albuquerque, 505-304-1819). We just stumbled across it when we were on our way to the Golden Crown Panadería (also on Mountain Road) for breakfast. Like road runners and skinks (about the only other critters out in the August sun in Albuquerque), we were on foot. Call us suckers for graphic art, but the six-foot-wide rendering of a double burger with red chile sauce would have been enough to hook us. Then we saw the dancing chile peppers. Various signs proclaimed the Little Red Hamburger Hut as the home of the red chile hamburger. Hey, it would only be lunch. What was there to lose? The posted hours were a little confusing,...Read More

Gruet sparkling wines just keep getting better

Posted on September 26, 2018September 26, 2018 by Pat and David

We've been drinking Gruet wines for about 25 years now, and we hope to keep drinking them another 25. That would be something to celebrate—which is appropriate for an American winery that produces sparkling wines that rival good Champagne. Quality can always be had at a premium price, but entry-level Gruet Brut starts at $15. That's hard to beat, even if you step down to bulk-process California sparklers. The top of the line—a grand rosé that sits three years on the lees—is only $39. (Those are winery prices.) When we're in Gruet country, we always try to stop at the Albuquerque tasting room (8400 Pan American Freeway NE, Albuquerque; (505) 821-0055, gruetwinery.com). For one thing, this space has the full line of Gruet wines, including...Read More