Tortitas
Tortitas is the generic name for patties. Any food that you can put together coated with egg and then fried. In Mexico, we make tortitas out of anything, from tuna to veggies to flowers, shrimp or grasshoppers. Yes, grasshoppers.
Here are a couple of my favorite veggie ones.
Tortitas de acelga o espinaca (Chard or spinach croquettes).
The amount will vary according to your appetite and # of guests.
2 pounds of fresh chard or spinach. (Do NOT cook). Washed and disinfected. I cannot stress this enough. ANY vegetable should be thoroughly washed and disinfected. (To disinfect place the whole leaves in a bowl with 4 cups of water and one of white vinegar for 10 minutes. Drain. Rinse. This gets rid of bacteria. It does not kill unicelular creatures such as amoebas)
After this, chop the spinach or chard as finely as possible.
4 eggs separated
About a 1/4 of a cup of flour.
About 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cheese. Panela is great, if you can find it.
1. Chop the spinach or chard finely. Mix with the cheese.
2. Beat the egg whites till stiff and glossy. Add the yolks one by one.
3. Gently add the spinach or chard and cheese to the egg. Cover well.
4. Drop spoonfuls of the egg/spinach mix into hot oil and fry till golden.
5. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.
Caldillo: (Tomato sauce)
Traditional
1 lb ripe tomatoes
1/4 onion
1 clove garlic
a small bunch of cilantro, if you like the taste.
salt and pepper to taste.
Wash everything and put it in a pot with enough water to cover the tomatoes, onion and garlic. Set on a medium flame and let it boil.
When the tomatoes pop open, turn off the flame.Let cool a little.
Put everything in the blender. Once it's a smooth liquid, turn it off.
In a saucepan heat about a tablespoon of oil and dump the caldillo in. Let it simmer for a few minutes. It should not be too thick. Check for salt and pepper. Turn off the heat.
Serve the patties covered in caldillo.
Easy version
Put tomato sauce, onion and chicken broth in the blender (about 3/4 tomato sauce to 1/4 chicken broth), salt and pepper. Whiz everything together. Pour into hot oil and let it simmer. Done.
You can add a chipotle or more to the blender, if you want to add a little heat to it.
Tortitas de papa.
Leftover mashed potatoes
1 egg
As much grated cheese as you want (cheddar or Monterrey Jack go great with this).
a sprig of parsley
Mix everything together and put it in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
Take it out. Form little balls and flatten them.
Heat two tablespoons oil
Place the patties in the hot oil. Turn them over when the edges look golden. When both sides are done, drain on paper towels.
Serve warm with caldillo and a salad. YUM!
(If you don't want to use cheese, you can substitute tuna).
Tortitas de flor de calabaza.
These patties are made of zucchini blossoms and are delicious.
About a pound of blossoms (20 blossoms more or less).
about 1/2 cup panela or fresh cheese cut up in small pieces.
2 eggs separated. The whites beaten till stiff and glossy the add the yolks one by one, beating gently.
about a handful of flour
Remove the base of the blossom( scratchy green part) and the pistil.
Stuff the flower with the cheese.
Cover it with flour. Shake off the excess.
Put it in the egg.
Take out and fry in hot oil till golden.
These are chard patties.
