Cinco de Mayo

In Mexico Cinco de Mayo is celebrated with food, music,and dancing. Young men serving in the military pledge allegiance to their flag. All along the border, Cinco de Mayo is celebrated with customs unique to Mexico.

Here in the United States Cinco de Mayo is celebrated on a much larger scale than it is in Mexico. The date is perhaps best recognized in the United States as a date to celebrate the culture and experiences of Americans of Mexican ancestry, much as St. Patrick's Day, Oktoberfest, and the Chinese New Year are used to celebrate those of Irish, German, and Chinese ancestry respectively. Similar to those holidays, Cinco de Mayo is observed by many Americans regardless of ethnic origin.

Vancouver holds a skydiving event, there's an air guitar competition in the Caymans, and in the Mediterranean, people are encouraged to drink Mexican beer. I think here, we're going to focus on some festivities :)

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- 1 cups ripe seeded tomatoes, coarsely chopped
- 1 cups mango, diced
- 1/2 cup finely diced cilantro
- 1/2 cup red onion, finely diced
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt (use more if needed)
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 serrano chili, seeded and veins removed, finely diced

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients and refrigerate overnight to enhance flavors. Serve with tortilla chips or on top of carnitas.

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- 4 avocado
- 1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
- 1/4 cup onion, peeled and diced
- 1 serrano chile, seeded and diced (you can reduce this or eliminate it to adjust the heat level)
- 1/4 cup cream (or sour cream)

- 1/8 cup cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoons lime juice
- salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Mash 2 of the avocado with the back of a fork or other mashing utensil. Add in the serrano, onion and cilantro. Fold in cream and lime juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Dice the remaining avocado into 1/4 - 1/2 inch cubes. Fold the diced avocado and tomato into the mashed avocado mixture. Serve immediately.

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- 8 ounces chicken strips
- 4 1/4-inch-thick slices red onion
- 8 6-inch-diameter flour tortillas
- 1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
- 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 jalapeño chili, sliced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Vegetable oil
- Sour cream

Preparation:

Combine 1/4 cup water, cilantro, sliced jalapeño, lime juice and olive oil in blender. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Place chicken tenders in shallow baking dish. Pour marinade over, coating completely. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours.

Preheat Grill. Remove chicken from marinade and grill until cooked through, about 6 minutes. Brush onion with oil, sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and grill for about 4 minutes, turning occasionally. Wrap tortillas in foil and place on the top rack of the grill, while you cook the other ingredients.

Remove everything from the grill. Mix cheeses together in a bowl. Place about 1/4 cup of cheese on half the tortillas. Top with chicken one slice of onion. Top with another tortilla to make something like a sandwich. Place on grill and cook over low heat until cheese is melted and the tortillas are a nice golden brown. Cut Grilled Chicken Quesadillas into quarters and serve with sour cream.

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-2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breast meat - cut into chunks
-1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of chicken soup
-1 1/4 c sour cream
-1/4 tspn chili powder
-1 tbsp butter
-1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies, drained
-1 (1.25 oz) package mild taco seasoning mix
-1 bunch green onions, chopped, divided
-1 c water
-1 tspn lime juice
-1/2 tspn onion powder
-1/2 tspn garlic powder
-5 (12") flour tortillas
-3 c. Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
-1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce
-1 (6 oz) can sliced black olives

Preparation:

Place the chicken in a large pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the chicken pieces are no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Shred chicken by placing two forks back to back and pulling meat apart. Set the shredded chicken aside.Combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.

Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, chopped green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the bunch of chopped green onion, and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, onion powder, and garlic powder; simmer for an additional 10 minutes.

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F. Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle Cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam-side down in the prepared pan.

Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of Cheddar cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions and the sliced olives on top of the cheese. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbles, about 25 minutes.