Where did I read about Elote?

In Mexico and Mexican parts of the SW a popular street food is Elote, which is an ear of corn which has been dipped into a mixture of lime juice, cheese, chili powder, etc. You just hold the cob and eat.

In fancier restaurants, they cut the corn off the cob and serve the same dish in bowls.

My neighbor went to a restaurant called Elote on a trip to Arizona and is planning to make the dish as part of a nice meal tomorrow.

But darn it, where did I read about it?

FWIW Elote must be from Elotl, an Aztec word for corn.

Oddly enough -- Louise and I have been going crazy because we can't find our cylindrical white ramekins. Complete mystery where they all went. And that was a problem last weekend with the oeufs en cocotte. Tomorrow, our neighbor has asked me to make a pumpkin flan. Guess how you make pumpkin flan?? Ramekins, baked in a bain marie...

[Robin Garr]

Frank, elotes en vaso is a popular treat, especially among Latinos, at Mexican street-food trucks here. In this setting (and, I assume, in Mexico City, which I'm told is its origin), corn off the cob is poured into a styro cup ("vaso") and topped with a dollop of mayonnaise, lime juice, cheese and chili powder. Stir it together, eat it with a plastic fork or spoon. Mary hates it. I kind of like it.

During corn season, we often grill corn with chili powder (sometimes chipotle, or ancho, or aleppo pepper, mixed with fresh lime juice. Never cheese.

Oddly enough -- Louise and I have been going crazy because we can't find our cylindrical white ramekins. Complete mystery where they all went. And that was a problem last weekend with the oeufs en cocotte. Tomorrow, our neighbor has asked me to make a pumpkin flan. Guess how you make pumpkin flan?? Ramekins, baked in a bain marie...

Do you have kids who leave close? They sort of like to borrow mom and dad's stuff.

We had some weird heart-shaped ramekins that Louise had bought for Valentine's Day. And I borrowed several from my neighbor. We also have those Pyrex bowls that everyone has (at least everyone our age) and because the flan is unmolded, those were fine. I am thinking now of buying some since the old ones can not be found.

If anyone asks I can type in the recipe for this pumpkin flan which is really rather good.

The cheese on the Elote is Cotija which I had to go to the Mexican grocery to buy. It was only available ground up, looking like grated parmigiano.

My neighbor's whole inspiration for this meal was that they stayed in Sedona and had a great meal at the Elote Cafe.

http://www.elotecafe.com/

She bought the cookbook and everything in tonight's meal is from that. The main course is lamb shanks in what looks to be a variation on molé sauce. There are seafood tacos made with some Copper River Sockeye Salmon I bought. And of course there is Elote. And for dessert my pumpkin flan.

F

If anyone asks I can type in the recipe for this pumpkin flan which is really rather good.

I would love to see this recipe, Frank, if it's not too much trouble.

First -- go on YouTube or somewhere and look up "Caramelizing Sugar." They usually don't say this but 1) use a silvery pan so you can see the color of the caramelizing sugar better and 2) have a pie plate with ice water so you can stop the sugar from getting browner as you pour it. I used a sugar water mix which seems to give you slightly longer between tan sugar and black burned sugar.

This is supposed to make 8 ramekins, I used 11 or 12.

Start by clearing a shelf in your fridge so you can cool the desserts. The tray you use as a bain marie should fit on the shelf.

I buttered all the ramekins as another prelim step. And boil a big kettle of water. You need a pan with high sides so that the ramekins can sit in hot water as they bake.

OK.

2 cups sugar -- for the caramel

Stir together all of the following:

6 eggs plus 2 yolks
2 cups half and half (this is the container size here in NJ)
1 cup sweetened condensed milk (the size of a can here in NJ)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon -- recipe says ground canela -- I used a Chinese cinnamon -- not Vietnamese which is too sharp.
7 oz pumpkin pie filling. NOT the canned pumpkin, the pie filling is sweetened and spiced. Can is huge, measure 7 oz
pinch of kosher salt (or any salt AFAIK)

Cream to whip

- - - - - - - -

melt sugar, cook until lightly browned, pour into ramekins

place in baking pan (bain marie) with water half way up

fill with flan mix and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Surface of flan should be slightly puffed up and knife come out clean.

Refrigerate for 4 hours and unmold before serving. Top with whipped cream.

BTW the bain marie baking technique here is exactly what you do for the delicious breakfast/brunch dish, eggs en cocotte. Put an egg in a ramekin with a tablespoon of cream, some fresh thyme leaves, and a few drops of truffle oil plus salt and pepper. Bake 15 minutes and scoop out with hard toast to eat.

Thank you so much, Frank.

I'm an old hand at dessert making, so I'm sure I'll have no trouble with the techniques. This one goes on the To Make list soon!

Frank -

How about copying-and-pasting that into a separate post? That's the kind of recipe folks might want to look up in the future, and it will be easier to find if it has the "RCP" designation in the subject line. (OK, when I say "folks", I mean "me"...)

Looks like really good stuff!

Frank, elotes en vaso is a popular treat, especially among Latinos, at Mexican street-food trucks here. In this setting (and, I assume, in Mexico City, which I'm told is its origin), corn off the cob is poured into a styro cup ("vaso") and topped with a dollop of mayonnaise, lime juice, cheese and chili powder. Stir it together, eat it with a plastic fork or spoon. Mary hates it. I kind of like it.

Robin, thanks for this reply, I like the idea of calling a styrofoam cup "en vaso." Of course it doesn't mean "vase" but that's my mental image.

The version we had at my neighbor's dinner was very civilized, and very enjoyable, but I want to try a version that is closer to the roots. The restaurant version grills the corn in the husks which to me seems pointless, the husks are blackened outside but there is not even a hint of smoky flavor in the corn kernels. You might as well have boiled or steamed the corn. I like the idea of husking the ears and THEN grilling, so that everything is scorched. The "primitive" recipe I am seeing online mainly is 1) spread mayo on the corn and 2) sprinkle with powdered queso cotija. People do suggest substituting parmesan for those who can't find cotija, but I don't think it's a good replacement. And often the cheese is mixed with chili powder, and lime juice squirted on. I liked it enough to do some further experimentation. We are lucky to have a fairly big Mexican grocery here.

Ever had fresh epazote? It smells a little like gasoline. I love it with black beans, very Mexican flavor...

This is corn grilled over charcoal for about 8 minutes.

Try to imagine how it SMELLS.

Coated with butter, mayo, and then sprinkled with chili powder and queso cotija.

Yum.

corn.jpg