"Where did you go?"

The question of the summer/fall.  

Well, I've been busy - but not busy eating out or even making food myself, unfortunately.  I took on a supplemental position as an assistant band director for the school at which I teach (yes, I do have musical background, but I assisted with more non-musical roles - uniforms, attendance, etc.), and it took up a LOT of my time.  In addition, I went from teaching ESL and 2 levels of Spanish, to teaching ESL and 4 levels of Spanish - only 1 of which I had taught before.  So, my summer and fall have been filled with lesson planning, football games, band festivals, and parades. 

And let's not forget my other job at your favorite Pittsburgh amusement park.  That's not over until Christmas.

I don't regret any of it one bit.  

However, you know I like to stay busy, and all of the band stuff is slowing down now that football season is over, so it'll be time to tackle some new restaurants, try some new recipes, and make some Hispanic/Latino foods that I have been dying to try out making myself (Empanadas? Arepas?...)  I'll be looking for some other ideas as well, and I'm hoping to see more of what the Hispanic community in Pittsburgh has to offer.  If you have any ideas or suggestions, please do not hesitate to let me know via email (senoritacibulka@gmail.com), Facebook, or Twitter!

I hope to hear from you soon, and watch for more posts!

….A Request for Feedback (ATTN: Hispanic/Latino Groups/Restaurants in the Greater Pittsburgh Area)

I need a favor.

I started this blog for 3 reasons:

1.)  To broaden the horizons of my students by making them aware of the Hispanic/Latino culture that is present in the Pittsburgh area.

2.)  To broaden the horizons of people in and around my community, who are normally stuck in their routines and need to try new things.

3.)  To broaden my own horizons – to try new things, to meet new people, and to educate myself

After 2 ½ months of blogging and 1 ½ months of school, #3 has definitely been most successful.  I have learned much, tried things that I have never done before (food and activities included), and met some great people via Twitter and Meetup.com. 

My students are trying new things – not all of them, but a lot.  I have had two students turn in their reports for extra credit, and both of them commented on the fact that they tried foods that they had never tried before.  I have other students that have visited restaurants that haven’t written their reports yet (procrastinators!) that have also told me that they tried new foods and restaurants and liked them – this thrills me every time I hear it!

I need help with #2 – people in and around my community. 

I can’t force people to go out into the world and discover new things – sometimes we need to bring the new things to them to encourage the “broadening of horizons”.  I try to do that in my classes, but my students are just a small sampling of my community – and let’s face it, children are products of their environment, not vice versa. 

Not everyone from the area will travel outside of the United States at some point in their lives, but that does not mean that they should be ignorant of other cultures, perspectives, and customs. 

Ignorance results in intolerance.

I want to make my community aware of the Hispanic/Latino culture.  Even if it is not their own culture, perhaps seeing how a different culture lives, eats, and entertains will make them willing to open their minds to the perspectives of other cultures as well.  I can’t force them to go outside of our community – so I want to bring the culture to our community.

Here is my proposal:

I want to have a huge Hispanic/Latino cultural event in the West Mifflin/Whitaker/Duquesne area.  I need Hispanic/Latino restaurant owners and group leaders to email (senoritacibulka@gmail.com), tweet (@senoritacibulka) or comment (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Se%C3%B1orita-Cibulka-Savors/255069364535085) with answers to the following questions:

1.)  What time of year would be best to have a HUGE event, in which we would charge admission (I am planning a trip to Spain, and I am co-sponsor of our Spanish Club, and we need funds!)?  Spring?  A specific month?

2.)  Which day of the week would be best? 

3.)  What time of day would be best?

4.)  In what kind of event are you willing to participate? 

a.    Food competition (best guacamole, best salsa, best appetizer, best main entrée, etc.)

b.    Event (like Spain’s “La tomatina”, or something similar)

c.     Cultural exposition (dance groups, demonstrations, etc.)

d.    Other ideas?

5.)  What specifically can your group do for the event? 

Please feel free to share this post with anyone you feel can add to this event – whether you think they are related to the Hispanic/Latino culture or not – you may be surprised where resources can be found!

Thank you for your time and attention.  Hope to hear from you soon!

Señorita Cibulka

E-mail: senoritacibulka@gmail.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Se%C3%B1orita-Cibulka-Savors/255069364535085

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/SenoritaCibulka

…Giant Eagle’s Latin Food Fiesta with BONUS The Pampered Chef Mango Wedger

This title sounds like a really bad infomercial, I know – but it needs to be said this way.

I was so excited when I read the tweet from @Giant_Eagle on Thursday that they were having a Latin Food Fiesta to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15)!  I tweeted the link to the website with the info, which @Giant_Eagle then re-tweeted…ooh, I’m famous! 

Not really. 

I became skeptical, though, when I saw that there was a link to see WHERE this was being celebrated.  Uh oh.  I knew that the Kennywood Giant Eagle wouldn’t be on the list, but I held out hope for The Waterfront location.

They ARE!  AND they are the only Pennsylvania location holding it all 4 days – September 16, 17, 23, and 24!  AMAZING!  AND I do my grocery shopping on Fridays there anyway, so I could check it out!

It’s sad what gets me excited these days, I guess.

Later, I opened my Giant Eagle ad at home, which had arrived the day before – I probably should have looked at it sooner, but I was busy going to Mallorca for dinner the day before (more about that later).  They were advertising many Latin American brands that were on sale for the fiesta – Goya, La Preferida, etc. – brands that are widely sold at Giant Eagle, but can also be found at Reyna Foods in the Strip District.  I was excited to see what was going to be offered.

When I arrived at Giant Eagle on Friday afternoon, I went about my normal produce-buying routine – apples, bananas, kale…- and then came across these babies:

Ahhhh, mangoes.  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I love mangoes.  4 for $5?  SOLD.

Not far from the mangoes was a display for produce related to the Latin Food Fiesta celebration:

Ok, yeah, hot peppers, tomatillos, avocados, cilantro, limes, sweet onions, bell peppers…I get all of that.  Nothing too out of the ordinary or exciting, though.

I remembered seeing in the ad about rambutans, which I had never seen at Giant Eagle before – I had no idea what they were, but I did remember that they were $6.99/lb. in the ad.  That’s insane!  $6.99/lb.?  No way was I buying them.

I was tempted to buy them just because they looked interesting, but I didn’t, and not just because of the price.  I didn’t know what they were.  I don’t know what they taste like.  I still don’t.  Wait, let me Google it…

Well, you can read about it at http://www.rambutan.com.  It’s totally not related to anything Latin or Hispanic – but here’s a pic:

Here’s a tip, Giant Eagle – if you want me to buy something, educate me on it…and offer a sample.

Anyway, I continued through the produce section to buy ingredients for Pumpkin Chili (I’m super excited that it’s almost fall and appropriate to eat anything with pumpkin once again), and I came upon another section of exotic produce.

GUAVA!  I have been looking for guava for months!

Yucca root!  I LOVE the yucca fries from Chicken Latino!  Maybe I can try to make my own!

Ugh, really?  Hispanic Heritage Month, and jicama is STILL $3.99/lb.?!  At least now I know that I can buy it at Stan’s Market in the Strip District for $.89/lb.

I continued about my normal shopping routine, and the usual ladies were across from the meat section, offering samples, as usual – but today I noticed that everything that they were offering samples of was a Latin brand-product – some sort of Spanish rice, some Goya product…

Oh boy.  There was prepared mole.  I had to try it. 

The woman offering the sample said that it was a chicken enchilada with mole.  I told her that I love mole, and ate my sample.

Ick.  It was cold.  And it pretty much tasted like a commercial-brand flour tortilla, covered in mole, rolled up, and cut into small pieces.  Chicken enchilada?  Barely.

No sale.

I finished my grocery shopping, and went to the checkout.  The girl ringing up my purchases rudely asked me what my Yucca root was, as I guess that’s not a common purchase, so I left, packed up my car, and went home, disappointed that Giant Eagle’s Latin Food Fiesta did not set off the explosion in my heart quite the way that the word “fiesta” does on its own.

I’m glad that Giant Eagle is taking a step to make people aware of their Latin American products, but the execution could be better.  I know that the Shaler location is having a book signing by Aarón Sánchez from Food Network’s “Chefs vs. City” on the 17^th, but that is not enough to make people aware of what Latin cooking is all about.  People need to be educated on the common flavors and ingredients, and how they come together to make Latin food taste as sabrosa y rica as it does.

After dinner at Chili’s (don’t judge me – I’ll explain more later), I came home to taste some of the unusual things that I had purchased earlier.

Well, first I had to get my pumpkin chili prepared and in the crockpot.  That was a priority.

I then took out my yucca root to take a pic for you all to see – and noticed something strange – one of the roots had split into two pieces, and a small piece had come off.  That’s weird.

Oh, that would be why – it was molding.  Fabulous.  $1.99/lb., and it’s moldy.  I had put two roots back while picking them out because they were moldy – I should have taken that as a sign that I shouldn’t buy it.

I then decided to taste the guava – I had bought those guava-flavored wafer cookies by Goya as part of the number challenge reward – they were amazing, by the way - and I had one student who came back for seconds…and thirds…and fourths…so I was curious to see what guava tasted like on its own (and not in wafer cookie form).

I took a spoon to the middle, figuring that was where the most flavor was – and I was right.  Unfortunately, there wasn’t much flavor at all.  I’m thinking that it wasn’t quite ripe enough, so I’ll let the other one sit for a day or two before I try it.

After those two depressing experiences, I needed a sure thing – ahhh, mango.  

I have to say, without a doubt, that The Pampered Chef Mango Wedger has made my mango-eating experiences much more enjoyable.  You may know (or maybe you don’t) that the skin of a mango is not edible (or tasty, for that matter), so only the yellow-orange fruity part should be consumed; however, the pit of a mango is oblong and hard, so getting the fruit by itself is not easy to do – unless you have this magical mango wedger.

With the help of my mango wedger, I have mastered the art of mango consumption.  I wedge the mango, and then cut each of the four sections in half.  This gives me eight sections of mango, plus any fruit left on the pit.  

I put it all in a bowl, and to eat the mango, I treat the skin as I would a cantaloupe or watermelon rind – I eat the fruit all the way down to it.  Mangoes are even better for this, too, because you can use your teeth to peel the fruit away from the skin, and then discard the skin.  I use a fork to scrape any fruity parts off of the pit, and eat that, being sure not to waste any good mango-y goodness.

So that was my Friday night – pumpkin chili in the slow cooker, moldy yucca root, tasteless guava…but ending with sweet, delicious mango.  Oh, and black tea.  Not important, but it was part of my night, and it was comforting.

I guess I should write about my dinner at Mallorca…and explain why I was at Chili’s, of all places, on Mexico’s Independence Day….

Giant Eagle – Waterfront Location

420 East Waterfront Drive

Homestead, PA 15120

Website: http://www.gianteagle.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gianteagleinc?ref=ts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Giant_Eagle

If you are interested in The Pampered Chef Mango Wedger, please contact:

The Pampered Chef

Marie McDonald – Consultant

Website: http://www.pamperedchef.biz/mariemcdonald

…Ají Picante

“A Whole New World”.

I was obsessed with that song from the Disney movie “Aladdin” back in 1992.  I had the entire soundtrack on cassette tape (yes, I know, I’m SO old), and played it constantly.  We played it in Wind Ensemble, and I was thrilled to conduct the song during the homecoming game as drum major of the Titan Marching Band for 2 years. 

Stepping into a Disney theme park makes you feel like you’re in a “whole new world”, one where people are kind and generous, and problems don’t exist.

In EPCOT Center’s World Showcase, you really do step into a whole new world – constantly.  You’re in Mexico, and then you walk a little further…and you’re in Norway.  Walk a little further…you’re now in China.  You pass through 11 different countries, including the United States, within the span of about one mile. 

Fastest world tour ever.

When I drove down Murray Avenue in Squirrel Hill, I felt like I was driving through a whole new world.  I hadn’t been down this road in probably about 10 years.  My friends and I had decided to try something new, for once, and we looked up a restaurant – I honestly cannot remember what it was – and decided to go there for dinner one night.  We drove into Squirrel Hill, walked to the restaurant – only to discover that it was closed.  We still had to eat, so we walked a bit further down Murray Avenue to Gullifty’s.  Only once we arrived did we discover that it had some of the most famous, delicious, award-winning desserts in the city, and we just HAD to try them after our dinner. 

Best accidental discovery ever.

I couldn’t help but look around constantly as I drove down the road – so many places that I had heard of, and never tried; so many stores that I had never heard of – and wanted to check out.  This one especially caught my eye, and I took a picture so that I would remember to Google it when I got home (don’t worry, I was stopped when I took the pic!):

I’m intrigued – and I will be going to see what it’s all about in the near future.  In the meantime, you can check out their website here: http://www.mexicolindo.biz/index.htm

I drove down Murray Ave. until I spotted Aji Picante – then I needed to find somewhere to park.  I figured that parking in the garage at the Carnegie Library on the corner of Murray and Forbes was my best option.

I arrived at the restaurant, went inside, and spotted Clara, who writes the “Food Collage” blog, waiting at a table for me.  About a week earlier, we had chatted via Twitter, and since we both wanted to try Aji Picante to review for our blogs, we figured that meeting up and trying it together was a good idea. 

Best Twitter convo ever.

We greeted each other and immediately tried to decide what would be the best thing to try.  We agreed on an appetizer – Torrejas de Choclo.  They are basically corn fritters, seasoned with aji amarillo (a yellow Peruvian pepper) and cilantro.  They were served with 3 sauces – guacamole, a mint sauce, and a red pepper sauce.

The fritters themselves were great – just what you’d expect from corn fritters, with a good amount of flavor.  I was not thrilled with the mint sauce, but the guacamole and red pepper sauce were tasty with the fritters (don’t worry, Las Velas – you are still my choice for best guac!)

Clara and I both decided that the Chupe sounded like our best option for an entrée, although we were both intrigued by the purple potato ravioli that was on the menu as well.  I was a bit put off, though, at the number of dishes that were served with French fries – not unheard of in Latino restaurants, but not exactly authentic.

This bowl was HUGE, and both of us ended up taking about half of it home.  The flavor was amazing – this was like eating a flavorful bowl of a light seafood chowder, with plenty of vegetables and different types of seafood, including shrimp, clams, mussels, and these little guys:

Yup, squid.  Squid is delectable. 

Our waitress, who was very helpful and friendly, asked if we wanted dessert.  Clara and I looked at each other, and asked to just SEE the dessert menu, since it was not posted on the website. 

The descriptions of the desserts made me hungry once again, and I asked the waitress about the Mazzamorra Morada – she described it as a very purple-y Jell-O (“morada” does mean “purple” in Spanish, after all), almost like a compote, with a lot of flavor – and very purple-y (she couldn’t stop describing it as purple-y).  Despite our fullness, Clara and I decided to split one.

When it came out, the group at a nearby table – a very LOUD group, by the way – could not help but check out our dessert and ask what it was.  They then proceeded to watch us eat the dessert (awkward…) to see our reaction to the taste.

I hope they ordered it, because my reaction was one of absolute delight.

I can describe the taste as this – it tasted like sangria Jell-O (non-alcoholic, of course).  Sangria is usually made with wine and fruit, but there are non-alcoholic versions, and that is what this tasted like, in a Jell-O-like form – dark, purple-y fruits, such as grapes, plums, and berries, spiced with cloves and cinnamon for an excellent, light-tasting dessert.  It wasn’t extremely filling (thank goodness, since we had eaten such a big entrée), but it was refreshing.

Clara and I chatted long after we had finished our dessert, and we both agreed that our experience at Aji Picante was a positive one, due to both the delicious food and the pleasant company.  Hopefully, we’ll have the opportunity to review more restaurants together in the near future!

In the meantime, I cannot wait to explore my “whole new world” within Pittsburgh – Murray Avenue.  I have a Groupon to use at Cuzamil, also located on that road, which is also not far from Mexico Lindo.  There are other restaurants and stores that I passed that intrigued me – some Hispanic/Latino, some not, but all worth a look (hard to do while driving, too, by the way).

The best part?  It’s only a 20-minute drive from my end of West Mifflin. 

Best local whole new world ever.

Aji Picante

1711 Murray Ave.

Pittsburgh, PA 15217

Website: http://www.ajipgh.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/?sk=lf#!/AjiPicante

Food Collage (Clara’s blog): http://www.foodcollage.com

Finally...My Bright Idea

Really cool Spanish teachers just don’t exist.

My goal in life is not to be “cool”.  I was never, ever in my life considered “cool”, and I’m ok with that.  Being cool has its downfalls – always having to look, act, and just BE perfect is not my style.  I have faults.  I have flaws.  I have quirks.

I’m just like any normal human being.  Normal people aren’t cool.

My Spanish teacher in high school, Mr. Walendziewicz (pronounced “wall-in-JEV-ich”) was not what I would consider to be “cool”.  He was, by far, my favorite teacher ever, and he is the reason that I became a Spanish teacher – but he wasn’t “cool”.  He worked hard, loved what he did, and did not put up with stupid crap.

If I had to describe him in one word at that time, I would have chosen “odd”.

Now, I would describe him as “passionate”. 

Have you ever heard the phrase, “if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life”?  It’s one of my favorite mantras.  Mr. Walendziewicz definitely was a perfect example of this.

I do love teaching Spanish.  Not teaching Spanish for a year unquestionably made me realize how much I love it.  I made the most of my time teaching ESL, so I didn’t think that I would miss it as much as I did.

Now that I will be teaching Spanish again, I am excited, as I usually am when a new school year approaches – but, I need something to keep the passion alive throughout the year.  Reading China Millman’s article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and visiting Smoke as a result of reading that article sparked a bright idea to help keep the fire burning, and I cannot wait to see how it takes off.

Here is the basic concept:

My goal is to allow my students to explore the different Hispanic/Latino restaurants that exist right here in the Pittsburgh area.  However, this will be difficult, given that the district’s budget is EXTREMELY tight this year.  Students and parents will have to pay more out-of-pocket expenses for supplies, equipment, etc., so spending money for school-sponsored field trips will most likely be low on the priority list.

As part of my Spanish 1 and 2 classes, my students will have the opportunity to earn extra credit.  This will be the ONLY way that they will be able to earn extra credit, as extra credit is defined as “going above and beyond the regular classroom expectations.”  Of course, my students are expected to learn the material as defined by the curriculum, to do their homework, to study, etc.

My students will be able to earn extra credit by visiting the “authentic” Hispanic/Latino restaurants, ordering an “authentic” food item, and bringing me proof.  “Authentic” meaning NOT Taco Bell, Qdoba, Chipotle, Don Pablo’s, etc.  and ordering a Chalupa, or ground beef taco, or chimichanga.  It means trying something new, something that may not be on a chain restaurant’s menu, like fried plantains, or mole, or chicken prepared Peruvian-style.

I have been working diligently this summer to contact restaurants about their authentic menu items.  Several have been very receptive to the idea, and I thank Ibiza Tapas Restaurant on the South Side, Las Velas in Market Square, and Chicken Latino in the Strip District for being so quick to respond to my letter or email, detailing my plan.  I hope to hear back from others in the coming weeks.  In the meantime, I have been compiling a list of restaurants and their locations for my students to refer to in the event that they chose to explore these establishments.

How will my students get to these places?   Some of my students drive, but most are not old enough to do so.  Hopefully, their parents, family, and friends will be supportive and offer to go with them (there will be incentive for this, too).  Also, public transportation is an option, or perhaps carpooling with friends who do drive.  This is the “above and beyond” part of the extra credit – it needs to be earned, not handed out like any other homework assignment. 

Essentially, I will be advertising for these restaurants like crazy this school year.  I am planning on visiting these restaurants myself, if I haven’t already (but I have no problem going back to them, either!)  I will write a review of my experience so that my students know what to expect.  Those reviews will be part of this blog, just like my review of Smoke in the last post.

In the spring, I want to expand this knowledge into the community and surrounding communities with a Latin American festival, of sorts, as a fundraiser for a trip to Spain that I am planning for my students who are interested in traveling.  I hope that these restaurants and other community groups will want to be a part of this celebration of Latin American culture.

So that’s my idea, in summary.  I will have more details for my students at the beginning of the school year, and in the meantime, I will post reviews of the restaurants that I have visited so far.

Follow me on Twitter: @senoritacibulka

See you August 29^th, kids.