The Mole Almendrado (the almond mole)
In the Southeastern part of Mexico city, there is a borough called Milpa Alpa. In this borough there is a small town called San Pedro Atocpan which is
also part of the Federal District of Mexico. Mole is taken very seriously there; it is the one and only place where is held the National Festival of Mole, where people of the borough present their special dishes and their unique flavors to the public, in order to honor the delicious
sauce from the chichimecas and the fact this it still is a modern success in the traditional Mexican cuisine.
National Festival of Mole: San Pedro Atocpan is where the fair of the mole takes place, held in October of each year since 1977. In the distant past there was a meso-american nation called the chichimecas that lived here and this Mole Almendrado is seen as having been created by them.
At the moment about 60 percent of the national industrial production of mole is produced in San Pedro Atocpan.
Recipe for the Mole Almendrado:
* 5 Chilis Mulatto
* 5 Chilis Ancho
* 5 Chilis Pasilla
* 5 Chilis Mora or Morita
* 100 Grams of Sesame
* 5 tortillas tostadas
* 4 tablespoons crumbled Hazelnut
* 1 Plantain
* 3 thick slices of french baguette bread
* 6 tablespoons crumbled Almonds
* 1 cup of Sugar
* 1/3 cup salt
* 2 Slats of (70% and up cocoa) Chocolate
* 2 teaspoons of Ground Pepper
* 1 teaspoon Cumin
* 1 teaspoon of coriander seed; or just coriander powder
* 1/2 cup of Pumpkin Seeds
* 2 medium-sized Onions
* 1 cup of crumbled vanilla flavor Cookies (Maria style)
* 1/2 cup pecan
* 1/2 cup peanuts
* 1/4 cup raisins
* 2 cups liquid Chicken Broth
* 2 Cloves garlic
* extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions:
1- In the oven with broil setting, keeping a watchful eye gril the sesame seeds with a teaspoon of oil, then do the same with the pumpkin seeds and, ultimately with the peanuts.
2- Wash and remove the veins from the mulatto chiles, ancho chiles, pasilla and morita chiles. Over the stove, brown them in a little bit of oil with the onion which will have been previously chopped, then toast slightly the slices of baguette bread.
3- Peel the nuts and the hazelnuts, do the same with the plantain. Add all the other ingredients except the chicken broth and the oil, also adding a little bit of sugar and salt. We will add the oil and the Chicken broth later.
4- Blend in one batch this mixture into a thick sauce. At this point allow the mole sauce to rest for at least one day in the refrigerator.
5- In a large pot over the stove, pour the chicken broth and then season it; cook to reduce it until it thickens, then all the oil, little by little to the broth and stir gently slowly while gradually thickening it.
6- Check the seasoning and adjust it however you want your sauce; perhaps adding more salt or sugar while you stir. Add this broth to the mole we had reserved earlier while making sure the mole remains thick enough, not too liquid. A Mole's consistence typically is slightly thick
7- Use the mole to cover your chunks of turkey, chicken or pork previously cooked of course, and serve accompanied by some nice mexican-style rice. Sprinkle a bit of grilled sesame seeds over your chicken in mole. Enjoy this delicious and exclusively Mexican recipe!
Buen provecho!
