Tamales (Feb 10, 2010)

Today was a snow day in NYC... we had an idea it was coming, so I stocked up on the ingredients for TAMALES!

I made two kinds of fillings: chicken with chipotle & adobo sauce and mushroom & cheese.

The big question was what kind of fat to use in the masa (tamale dough). Lard is traditional, and shortening is the standard substitute. I didn't want to use shortening (transfat) and lard is so processed these days it's hydrogenated, too. We happened to have on hand some pork belly and uncured bacon, so I rendered the fat and used it with 2 parts butter. 

I beat the masa until it was light enough that pinch of it floats in water. Then made the tamales:

That's cheese (not masa dough) on top of the mushrooms.

Into the steamer they went...

And out they came on to our plates...

We had as sides some beans, homemade adobo sauce, and fresh Dominican farmer's cheese.

Yum!

The beans were great!  Especially when topped with cheese & pork belly.