At first Mando and Gloria didn’t understand what Gabi found so funny, but soon enough they did, and they couldn’t help but smile and even chuckle a little bit themselves. Yes, it was really quite funny when you thought about it, funnier than hell, actually.
“What do you think he’d say to this?” Gabi asked her brother, once she’d recovered from her fit of hilarity.
“He wouldn’t like it,” Mando replied, shaking his head.
“You’re being far too hard on him,” Lola said. “He may have been gruff at times, but he had a very tender side. It’s really not so surprising that there might be a little confusion…”
“Oh come on Ma,” Gloria said. “You know as well as I do that Pops wouldn’t like being mistaken for an old lady by anybody, especially his own grandson.”
And after Gloria said what everyone had been thinking, they all howled with laughter. It had been years since they’d laughed together like this, and even Terrence, who’d never known Abuelo Ramiro couldn’t resist getting swept along in this cleansing rush of merriment more healing than a flood of tears. And when the laughter subsided, they were breathless and giddy as they looked upon one another through new eyes. And what they saw was beautiful to behold.
A little while later Jennifer and Cindy had the opportunity to study the picture as well, and Jennifer told her cousin how a few days ago she had asked for a sign to let her know that her little brother was well, and that he wasn’t alone. She had no doubt that this was the sign she had asked for.
Cindy gazed at her cousin wide eyed. “Who exactly did you ask?”
Jennifer hadn’t really thought about it, although she instantly knew the answer. “God,” she replied with a shrug. “Who else?”
Cindy accepted her answer without question, and then asked, “And do you really think that Abuelo Ramiro and Sebastian are together in heaven?”
“I know they are,” Jennifer replied, surprisingly comfortable with this new mystical philosophy she’d adopted. “And even though I’m not sure how all this life after death stuff works, I can tell you that Sebastian and Abuelo Ramiro are here with us right now.”
“How do you know?” Cindy asked, glancing nervously at the encroaching shadows all around them.
“I can feel it,” Jennifer said placing her hand over her heart as Sebastian had always done.
Cindy put her hand over her heart as well. “Yes, I feel it too,” she whispered.
And when the sun fell over Bungalow Haven, the candles were lit and the little cabrito was taken down from the spit, and lovingly carved. As the family ate and drank, they watched the embers glow, and Lola leaned back in her chair and ran her fingers through her purple hair. The peace and wellness she felt was beyond her understanding, but she allowed it to settle into her soul and fill her completely. She asked for the picture back so she could put it away, and then without anyone noticing, she slipped it into the fire. In an instant, it was consumed by flames and the smoke curled up beyond the trees in tendrils of delectable vapors towards the heavens.
And in the soft veil of light that wove its way through the tree branches above, she saw Sebastian running like the wind, his little arms and legs pumping with joyous abandon across the field until he reached the very end of it. And then he leapt up into his grandfather’s waiting arms and they disappeared into the brilliance of the moon, and the stars and all of the endless possibilities that light up the sky.
Abuela Lola’s Recipes
“A meal prepared with love not only feeds the body, it nurtures the soul”
Traditional Sofrito
“The food must’ve been something,” Terrence said.
“You better believe it. They roasted a whole pork right in the window until it was golden brown and delicious. The pork skin was divine, so chewy and crispy, nobody could make it better. The secret was in the sofrito they rubbed all over the pig, and in the slow even cooking.”
“Sofrito?” Sebastian asked.
“A blend of onions, garlic, cilantro and peppers, cooked in olive oil. Let’s just say that if you don’t start with a good sofrito, no self respecting Boricua will bother eating it…
Basic ingredients:
1 cup Onions, finely chopped
2 tbsp Garlic, chopped or minced
1 Green or red bell pepper
½ cup Olive oil
Heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. Add onions and bell pepper. Sauté until fragrant. Add garlic and sauté until soft and onions are golden in color. At this point the vegetables may be removed and reserved or additional ingredients may be added to complete the planned recipe.
Optional ingredients:
Cubanelle peppers (traditional peppers used on the island, but difficult to find)
¼ cup Spanish olives, pitted and chopped
1 tbsp capers
1 tbsp crushed oregano
1 tbsp fresh cilantro
Black Bean Soup/ Frijoles Negros
“I’ve been soaking the beans all morning,” Lola said. “This way, after we add the seasoning they’ll only take a couple of hours to cook.”
Sebastian had almost finished chopping the onions and garlic, and was planning to start on the peppers next.
“Some people throw the vegetables straight into the pot while the beans are cooking, but I like to sauté them in olive oil first, and add the dry seasonings to release the flavors. It’s a simple thing, but it makes all the difference.”
The cauldron she was using looked like it could hold enough beans for fifty people, but she had no trouble draining the beans and adding fresh water to the pot.
“Don’t you think we’re making a little too much?” he asked.
“I was worried that maybe we weren’t making enough,” Lola returned, adding a fistful of salt to the water and turning up the heat. “You see, whenever I make my beans, people tend to crawl out of the pavement like cockroaches.”…
1 lb. black beans
4 to 5 cups of water
½ lb. bell peppers, finely chopped
¼ lb. chilies (Anaheim or California) finely chopped
¾ lb. yellow onion, finely chopped
1 14 ounce can of chopped red pimentos
¾ cup olive oil
1/8 cup white vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Pinch of sugar
Few drops of Chinese hot sauce.
One day prior to serving, carefully check the beans and remove any small pebbles or rocks that may be mixed in with the beans, then soak them in a large pot filled with 4 to 5 cups of water or until beans are covered by an inch of water. In a separate pan the following day cook the onions, peppers, and chilies until liquid evaporates. Add half of the pimentos and half of the olive oil and cook until the onions are golden. Add cooked vegetables to the beans and water. Season with salt, pepper, Chinese hot sauce and sugar.
Cook over very low heat for approximate three hours until the soup thickens. Then add the remainder of the olive oil, pimentos and vinegar.
These beans are traditionally eaten over white rice, but may also be served
Alone as a soup with a garnish such as sour cream and cilantro or finely chopped green onions.
Servings: 8-10
Braised Lamb Shank/ Carnero Guisado
“Well, what do you think?” she asked.
“It’s good,” he said, craving more.
She propped her hands on her hips. “That’s all you have say? Just good?”
“It’s very good,” Sebastian said, and he was prepared to take it further and tell her that it was the best sauce he’d ever tasted in his life, when he caught sight of something on the counter behind her. Piled high on a large platter were several thick prehistoric looking bones, something ancient people might’ve used to bang on their crude drums.
Noticing her grandson’s interest, she said, “Those are lamb shanks. I would’ve made cabrito, but it’s hard to find at supermarkets around here. I’l
l have to go downtown one day to see if they have it.”
“What is Cabrito?” he asked, unable to tear his eyes away from the strange looking meat.
“Goat,” she replied.
“You eat… goats? The animal that goes Bleeeaaaaat?” he asked, making the same sound he’d performed for Keith and his gang a few weeks ago.
“Of course I do. You come from a long line of goat lovers. Your great grandmother taught me how to make it. Actually, she didn’t really teach me. I watched her for so long that I learned how to make it the same way I learned how to walk and talk and climb trees.”…
4 medium lamb shanks (approx. 3-1/2 pounds)
2 onions minced
¼ cup vinegar
1 tbs ketchup
2 cups beef stock
1-1/2 to 2 cups of good quality red wine
2 tbsp. olive oil, and 2 tbsp. butter for browning
2 tsp. dry thyme leaves
1 large bay leaf
2 tsp. soy sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
In a large pot or dutch oven, heat the oil and butter on medium high, reserving 1 tbsp oil. When hot, but not smoking, add the shanks and brown on all sides. Remove from the pan onto plate and cover. Add 1 tbsp oil and sauté onions for 1-2 minutes. Add ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce and thyme, and cook over medium high heat for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add wine to deglaze pan, scraping bottom for the brown bits. Return shanks to pot, add bay leaf and enough stock to cover the meat. Cover, and bring to boil, then turn down heat and simmer for about 1 ½ hours until the meat is very tender. If the sauce is too soupy, remove the shanks and turn up heat so that the sauce boils gently and reduces. Add more wine or stock if the sauce is too dry. Add salt and pepper to taste, after the sauce has achieved the proper consistency.
Servings: 4
Picadillo/ Savory Ground Beef
“Today we’re making picadillo,” Lola said, looking curiously at her grandson who was chopping the onions, garlic and peppers as though in slow motion. “We often made this on the island when we were running low on cash. The ground meat is cheap and tasty and we could easily make it stretch as far as we needed it to.”
Sebastian continued to chop the vegetables and before too long he was sautéing them in olive oil with a pinch of salt as he had done many times before, but he was still lost in thought. A few minutes later a bitter odor filled the kitchen, and Lola went to check on what Sebastian was doing. She saw that he’d started cooking the garlic before anything else, something she’d told him never to do. And what’s more, he hadn’t bothered to add the other vegetables, the juice of which might have prevented the garlic from burning.
She turned to Sebastian who still had a dreamy faraway look on his face while he absentmindedly moved the charred pieces of garlic around in the pan with his spoon. Lola promptly snatched the spoon away from him, and turned down the flame that was also too high.
“Look what you’ve done, Sebastian,” she said.
Sebastian gazed down at the burnt mess in the pan. “I’m sorry Abuela,” he said. “I guess I wasn’t paying attention.” The truth is that he’d been thinking about Kelly Taylor, and how much fun it would be to teach her how to cook.
1 ¼ lb ground beef
¼ cup olive oil
1 garlic clove
1 cup raisins
1 tsp ground oregano
1 tsp salt
½ cup tomato sauce or ketchup
1 onion, finely chopped
1 cup chopped olives
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ to ½ cup red wine.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion, then garlic and bay leaf, and cook until fragrant, about 3-4 minutes. Add beef and sauté until browned, about 5-7 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients and simmer until the mixture thickens, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper, discard bay leaf and serve.
This dish is traditionally served with white rice.
Serves: 4
Arroz con Pollo/ Chicken with Rice
The sound of his mother’s voice caused him to jump, and nearly drop his plate. “We didn’t come here to discuss my marriage,” she cried.
“Calm down, Nena,” Lola replied. “There’s no reason to get so upset.”
She called out to her son, “Sebastian get your stuff.”
He entered cautiously, and noticed that the platter of chicken and rice at the center of the table was almost empty.
“Listen,” Aunt Gabi said, sounding so calm and reasonable that for a moment it seemed that she and her older sister had traded places. “You should’ve told us that you and Dean were having trouble. You never tell us anything anymore.” She glanced at Mando. “At least you never tell me anything anymore.”
“Don’t look at me. She’s hardly spoken to me for the past ten years,” he replied while working a tooth pick around his back molars.
“There’s nothing to tell,” Gloria replied.
“Dean walks out on you after nearly twenty years of marriage and you say there’s nothing to tell?” Gabi returned. “We’re not that dumb.”
2 chickens, cut in quarters
¼ tsp ground oregano
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cans red pimentos, finely chopped
2 tsp salt
1 bay leaf
1 can beer (room temperature)
8 cups chicken broth
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup olive oil
1 can tomato sauce
1 can petit pois, drained and liquid reserved
½ tsp pepper
1 cup dry white wine
4 cups small grain rice
Pinch of saffron
Heat oil in a large pot and brown the chicken over medium high heat until golden. Add onion, garlic, oregano, tomato sauce, can of red pimentos with the liquid (save some pimentos for decoration), liquid of petit pois, salt, pepper, bay leaf, saffron, wine and broth. Stir and bring to a boil. Add beer and return to a boil. Add rice and turn the heat to low, stirring occasionally until rice is cooked. Garnish with petit pois and red pimentos.
Serves: 6 - 8
Tostones
“The kitchen is the heart of the home,” Lola had said to Sebastian on several occasions. “When the home has a warm and busy kitchen, the family who lives there will be healthy and strong.”
On this particular weekday afternoon, they were making Carne guisada with potatoes, tostones, and an avocado onion salad. The beef stew had been simmering for hours by the time Sebastian arrived, but Lola assigned the preparation of the tostones to her grandson because she said that he made them better than anyone she’d ever known. He greatly enjoyed the process, and they were always a big hit when he brought the platter piled high to the table…
2 green plantains (platanos Macho)
Enough vegetable oil for frying
Coarse salt
Peel green plantains and cut in pieces of approximately 1 inch. Plantains are easier to peel if peel is sliced lengthwise. In a large frying pan, heat the oil until hot (365 degrees) Add plantains and fry three or four pieces at a time until they start to turn golden. Remove and drain on paper towel. Using a mallet or a plate, flatten the plantains to make a shape resembling a pressed flower. Fry again in the same oil for approximately 3 more minutes until golden brown. Drain on paper towel and sprinkle with coarse salt.
This dish can be served as an appetizer or as a side dish.
Oven Roasted Suckling Pig/ Cochinillo Asado
Once Jennifer had served beverages all around, Gabi, who was reclining back on the sofa next to Terrence, put her feet up on the coffee table and said, “It’s been years since we’ve had cochinillo asado Ma, what’s the occasion?”
“The occasion is that this is the seventh Sunday in a row that I’ve made a meal for my family and friends, and I want to celebrate.” She raised her glass and everyone did the same, but Sebastian felt a heaviness com
e over him as he wondered if his father was eating a greasy cheeseburger for his dinner, or driving all around town in his jeep looking for something to do or someone to talk to. He glanced at his mother who looked pensive as she sipped her wine. She’d made it quite clear earlier in the week when Lola first spoke of her plans for the Sunday meal that she wouldn’t come if her husband was there. And if Susan was there, she threatened to never come again.
“Why can’t you put it behind you, Nena?” Lola asked. “That thing between you and Susan happened so long ago, I can hardly remember what it was.”
“I remember that thing very well,” Gloria returned. “And I don’t want to talk about it anymore.
“Sometimes forgetfulness can be a blessing,” Lola said.
The traditional method of cooking this dish is outdoors, but this may not be convenient, as it involves digging a pit in the ground large enough to accommodate the pig and filling it with hot coals. But this dish can also be cooked slowly in a conventional oven with delicious results. Cooking time will depend on the size of the cochinillo. Generally, it is best to allow 25- 30 minutes cooking time per pound of meat. The meat thermometer should read 160F in thickest portion and 170F in the shoulder.
1-15 pound suckling pig, innards removed, washed and dried (your butcher may also be able to split the carcass so that it lies flat on the pan, allowing it to cook more evenly)
Salt, Pepper, garlic, oregano and the juice of sour oranges (lemon or lime can be substituted).
Olive oil
Sazon Goya, if available
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Marinate the pork for 12 hours or overnight by rubbing it on all sides with generous amounts of salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, and the juice of sour oranges (lime or lemon can be used instead of sour oranges). Cook in a 350 degree oven turning the pork every hour to cook evenly. Brush frequently with the marinade during cooking. During the last 15 minutes, raise the heat to 500F to get the skin as crispy as possible. Cover only the ears and tail to prevent burning.
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