In late March I discovered Groupon, the online coupon site (www.Groupon.com). At the time, they were offering a $15 coupon for eBay for $7. Sounded good to me, so I registered and bought the coupon. A couple of days later I returned to the site and decided to see what offers they might have for Santa Fe. The current offer was for any demonstration class at the Santa Fe School of Cooking, up to an $80 value, for $35. I bought one for Marie and me as a surprise for her (she was in Phoenix at the time). Today was the day we took the class.
The class was entitled "Cuisines of Mexico III", and the menu consisted of Goat Cheese Enchiladas with Tomatillo Sauce, Chorizo Enchiladas with Guajillo Chile Sauce, Frijoles Borrachos (or Drunken Beans), Arroz (Rice) Verde and Key Lime Tart. Just typing it makes my mouth water.The school offers two types of classes; small hands-on classes where the students cook, and larger demonstration classes where the students watch the instructors cook. In both cases, the students get to eat the results. Although we signed up for a demonstration class (the only type covered by our Groupon), our class was so small (7 students) that we were invited to don white aprons and pitch in. Our instructors were Jeremiah Schultz (left below) and Noe Cano (center).
Both instructors were great, and encouraged all of us to get involved. I'm not a cook by any means, but I got really interested when they brought out the Vitamix blender. This is the Ferrari of blenders, and costs almost as much - around $1,000. Someone once said that a chain saw is male jewelry; so is the Vitamix. Must be the latent engineer cells in me, but I claimed the Vitamix as my own. What a machine!
As the preparation progressed, the food smelled and looked so good. With all of the chiles and beans, Mexican and New Mexican cooking is wonderfully colorful.
When it was time to stuff the chorizo enchiladas, Marie jumped right in.
When we were finished cooking, Jeremiah and Noe served us lunch.
And the finished product was absolutely delicious.
We had heard that taking a class at Santa Fe School of Cooking is one of the "must-dos" in Santa Fe, and we couldn't agree more. We're looking forward to taking at least one more during our visit.
EXCELLENT! And I love how you all pitched in. I imagine that it all tastes even better when you've had a hand (or a finger) in it. (Just keep all limbs away from Mister Big Blender!) I assume you got all the recipes, right. I want the one for Chorizo Enchiladas. Deee-lish. Cocina del Suroeste es muy divertido y muy deliciosos!
Posted by: Jan | 05/08/2011 at 08:13 AM
Hey Janet,
Translation, please. And, yes, we walked away with all of the recipes. For a (very) small price we'll share the one for the Chorizo Enchiladas, especially if you share the results with us!
Posted by: John | 05/09/2011 at 12:27 AM
Cocina del Suroeste es muy divertido y muy deliciosos! = Southwestern cuisine is very fun and very delicious!
It's a deal! I will cook 'em up for all of us when I arrive.
Posted by: J | 05/09/2011 at 01:11 PM
Provided you bring along your Elixir of Jalapeño, for the cocktail hour.
Posted by: J | 05/09/2011 at 01:18 PM
Hey Janet,
Thanks for the translation. And the jalapeno
syrup was one of the first things I cooked up when we got here. It'll be waiting for you.
Posted by: John | 05/11/2011 at 01:33 AM