Mexican Fiesta

I invited my youngest sister over to celebrate her birthday the mexican way. It was a small get together, but I wanted to make it special and serve one of her favourite cuisines - Mexican! I didn't do much for decoration, but added a piñatas birthday banner with small mexican hats and an inflatable cactus on top of the table. 

For welcome drinks, I decided on the popular Mexican drink called Paloma - which is a tequila and grapefruit based drink. I used grapefruit tonic as a mix and it was a total hit - a bit of a deviation from the traditional way, but a definite go-to cocktail. I decorated the glasses with slices of lime and grapefruit as well as green cactus cocktail spoon. To make the evening a bit more Mexican, I also bought Mexican beer to celebrate the occasion.

I served four different starters, and what a difficult decision to choose only a few. In the end, I decided on jalapeño poppers with a sour cream dipping sauce, which a always a must at Mexican-themed evenings. As chargrilled corn is well known in Mexican cuisine, I decided to serve grilled baby corn with a sour cream and parmesan dip. Another delicious snack was black beans tostadas, which is grilled cheese on top of mini wraps with black bean puree, topped with mashed avo, tomatoes and coriander. And finally, my favourite, cheesy nachos, with melted cream cheese, baked to perfection, topped with guacamole, sour cream, tomatoes and jalapeños. I just couldn't stop myself from eating all the nachos.

For mains, I decided on only three dishes, which was a very good decision because the starters made us quite full. I made a creamy, smooth corn soup, topped with crispy charred corn and fresh coriander, served with nacho chips for the much needed crunch. What a delight this soup was. I also served cheesy chicken quesadillas with a medley of sweet grilled peppers and lots of cheese. And last, but not least, build-your-own soft shell tacos with smoky pulled pork, cheese, black beans, guacamole and all the delicious toppings that go with tacos. Although this menu was quite filling, it was still delicious to eat - something I'll do again and again.

For dessert, I went with traditional Mexican flan, with burnt caramel, served with a thin slice of chili and a chili flavoured chocolate piece. Although I took the burnt caramel a tad bit too far, the bitterness did cut through the sweet custard. It was even better the next day when heated up a little.

This was by far one of the most fun themed evenings I've done. Most probably because it's also one of my favourite cuisines to eat and play around with.