Back in H’s Hometown🌄

Family, Fruit, and Late-Night Bagels

July 25, 2025

This past week we visited my husband’s hometown, high up in the mountains, for the first time in over a year. It always takes a couple of days to adjust to the altitude, but every visit is filled with quality time, family get-togethers, delicious home-cooked meals, and lots of catching up. I feel so much love when I’m there. 💛

I also get a break from cooking every meal (like I do at home), but I can never stay away from the kitchen for long—especially with all the incredible produce. I’m always talking about how much better the fruit is in Tijuana... and then you try the fruit and veggies in Toluca and it’s on another level. The mangos, guavas, figs, mameys—it’s a dream. I eat fruit non-stop when I’m there, and love using it in salsas and fruit-forward desserts. There’s just something so special about cooking with what’s grown nearby.

It’s also become a little tradition to cook together with my mother-in-law’s side of the family. After we eat and catch up, you’ll usually find us in the kitchen testing out a new recipe. This time, we made bagels from Mesa Sana. My mother-in-law has been one of ValeCooks’ biggest supporters—so without telling me, she started recording while we cooked. We ended up with a full video of the whole thing! We stayed up until 9:30 p.m. cooking, laughing, and hanging out. I even made H a late-night dinner (his favorite salmon recipe), and his aunts were literally licking their spoons afterward.

Here’s the video of us cooking together. 🥯💛

Can’t wait for the next visit—more family, more cooking, and more nonstop mangos and guavas. 🥭

Recipes Made So Far This Year:

Goal: To try seven new recipes each week 🗓️, aiming for 365 this year!

Number of Recipes Made This Week: 9 (Week 28) & 9 (Week 29)

Number of New Recipes Tested as of 7/20: 403

Weeks Achieving Seven or More New Recipes: 29 out of 29 ✅

This Week’s Recipe Test Summary

Impress Someone🌟

Nothing this week.

Would Make Again 👍

Salsa verde de chiles tatemados – ¡Vámonos a la estufa! con Jauja Cocina Mexicana by Janeth KZ🌿🌶️
I made two salsas from the cookbook, and this one was by far the best. I might be biased because I prefer green over red—but my father-in-law, mother-in-law, and brother-in-law all agreed. This one was the winner.

Gelatina de Yoghurt y Guayaba (Guava and Yogurt Jello)– Anabel Soto 🍮
A healthier take on Jell-O—it uses just one tablespoon of sugar per cup. My mother-in-law thought it needed more sweetness, and I was tempted to add a splash of condensed milk... but that would defeat the purpose. As-is, it’s a great low-sugar dessert. The texture is spot-on, and I enjoyed the guava flavor.

Three Ingredient Peach Sorbet – Kenna’s Cooks 🍑
Just three ingredients (including my leftover frozen peaches) and a blender—that’s it. My cousin B ate it all. Enough said.

Sweet & Sour Grapes – veggieworldrecipes 🍇🍬
They sell a version of these at Sprouts, but why not make them at home? I loved this. I’ve been a fan of frozen grapes since I was a kid, and this sweet & sour combo makes them extra fun. I can’t eat Sour Patch anymore, so this is a win for me.

Would Not Make Again 👎

These didn’t hit the mark for me, but recipe testing is super subjective. Some were just okay, some were good but not memorable, and a few I didn’t enjoy at all. Rather than breaking each one down, I’m just listing them here.

I’d love to hear your thoughts, suggestions, or any recipe requests you might have. Just respond directly to this email.

See you next week. Keep cooking! 👋 

Vale from ValeCooks

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