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There will be a few surprises along the way, all good ones, we hope.
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Pie fights will be met with outrageous ridicule and insults. Trolls will be incinerated and served at the next group BBQ. As briquettes.
Cinco de Mayo (pronounced [ˈsiŋko ðe ˈmaio] in Mexico, Spanish for "Fifth of May") is an annual celebration held on May 5. The date is observed to commemorate the Mexican Army's victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla, on May 5, 1862, under the leadership of General Ignacio Zaragoza.[1][2] The victory of the smaller Mexican force against a larger French force was a boost to morale for the Mexicans. Zaragoza died months after the battle due to illness. A year after the battle, a larger French force defeated the Mexican army at the Second Battle of Puebla, and Mexico City soon fell to the invaders.
In the United States, Cinco de Mayo has taken on a significance beyond that in Mexico.[3][4][5][6] More popularly celebrated in the United States than Mexico,[7] the date has become associated with the celebration of Mexican-American culture. These celebrations began in California, where they have been observed annually since 1863. The day gained nationwide popularity in the 1980s thanks especially to advertising campaigns by beer and wine companies. Today, Cinco de Mayo generates beer sales on par with the Super Bowl.
In Mexico, the commemoration of the battle continues to be mostly ceremonial, such as through military parades or battle reenactments. The city of Puebla marks the event with an arts festival, a festival of local cuisine, and re-enactments of the battle.
Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day, a popular misconception. Instead, it commemorates a single battle. In 1861, Benito Juárez—a lawyer and member of the indigenous Zapotec tribe—was elected president of Mexico. At the time, the country was in financial ruin after years of internal strife, and the new president was forced to default on debt payments to European governments.
In response, France, Britain and Spain sent naval forces to Veracruz, Mexico, demanding repayment. Britain and Spain negotiated with Mexico and withdrew their forces.
France, however, ruled by Napoleon III, decided to use the opportunity to carve an empire out of Mexican territory. Late in 1861, a well-armed French fleet stormed Veracruz, landing a large force of troops and driving President Juárez and his government into retreat. ✂
The vastly outnumbered and poorly supplied Mexicans, led by Texas-born General Ignacio Zaragoza, fortified the town and prepared for the French assault. On May 5, 1862, Lorencez gathered his army—supported by heavy artillery—before the city of Puebla and led an assault.
In Junior high school I took two years of Spanish. (yes, it was still “Junior” then, before being changed to a Middle school the next academic year after my 9th grade class graduated.) I tried to follow that by a third course in high school, but part way into the semester I dropped it because that teacher was terrible, and he made the language confusing. My choice to take Spanish rather than, say, German or Italian was at least partly based on living about 100 miles from the U.S./Mexico border, in what was once part of Mexico. That choice may have also been influenced by the then relatively small, but growing, Latino population in my home town.
While Cinco de Mayo celebrations proudly took place in So CA back then, I don’t recall them being as big a deal as now, for good (better cultural acceptance) or bad (over commercialization, like Christmas, where the real reason for the holiday gets lost to profit motivation.)
Note to Rachael Ray and some other celebrity chefs — I may have forgotten most of the Spanish I learned as a teen, but one thing I haven’t forgotten is that the “pe” in “jalapeño” is not pronounced like “pee” (or the food version “pea”.)
Cinco Leches Cake
Cake
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1 orange
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1 lime
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½ cup evaporated milk
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½ cup heavy cream
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½ cup sweetened condensed milk
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½ cup unsweetened coconut milk
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¼ cup virgin coconut oil, plus more for pan
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½ cup whole milk
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1¼ cups all-purpose flour
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2 teaspoons baking powder
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1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, preferably Ceylon (Canela)
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3 large eggs, room temperature
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¾ teaspoon kosher salt
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¾ cup sugar
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1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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Using a vegetable peeler, remove zest from orange and lime in wide strips, leaving white pith behind. Transfer to a large measuring cup or medium bowl. Whisk in evaporated milk, cream, condensed milk, and coconut milk. Let sit until ready to use.
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Arrange a rack in center of oven; preheat to 350˚. Grease bottom of springform pan with oil. Heat whole milk and remaining ¼ cup oil in a small saucepan over medium, stirring, until oil is melted. Let cool.
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Whisk flour, baking powder, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Sift through a fine-mesh sieve onto a piece of parchment or waxed paper.
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Using an electric mixer on low speed, beat eggs in a large bowl, gradually increasing speed to medium-high, until broken up. Add salt and continue to beat until beginning to foam. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add sugar; increase speed to high and beat until very light and pale yellow, 3–4 minutes. Reduce mixer speed to low again and beat in cooled milk mixture and vanilla until combined. Gradually add dry ingredients, using parchment to help you pour in a steady stream without getting it all over the outside of the machine, and continue to beat on low speed until no lumps of flour remain. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl with a spatula, give batter a good stir, then scrape into prepared pan.
Bake cake until top is golden and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 15–25 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes.
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Using a wooden skewer or toothpick, poke holes into entire surface of cake, making sure skewer hits bottom of pan. Slowly pour some milk-zest mixture over cake, allowing milk to be absorbed by cake before pouring more. Cover with foil or plastic wrap and chill 8–12 hours.
Frosting and Assembly
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Fit a small saucepan with candy thermometer. Bring sugar and ¼ cup water to a boil, occasionally swirling syrup in pan, until thermometer registers 240˚.
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Meanwhile, using an electric mixer on high speed, beat egg whites in a medium bowl until medium peaks form. As soon as syrup reaches 240˚, with mixer on medium-low speed, pour syrup in a slow, steady stream over egg whites and beat until incorporated. Add cream of tartar and salt. Increase speed to high and beat meringue until very thick and glossy, stiff peaks form, about 4 minutes (bowl will be warm to the touch).
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Run an offset spatula around edges of pan to loosen cake. Using a fish spatula or 2 large spatulas, carefully transfer cake to a platter. Using offset spatula or the back of a spoon, spread meringue over top and sides of cake, swirling decoratively. Toast meringue with kitchen torch, if desired.
Bonus trac — the Kentucky Derby, usually the first Sat. of May, has (for now) been rescheduled to Sept. 5.