Food ‘n Flix Round-Up: Frida

Well, it’s been quite the Fridafest around here with two Frida-inspired events (both hosted by Eliot’s Eats):

The Secret Book of Frida Kahlo by F. G. Haghenbeck for Cook the Books

AND

Frida for Food ‘n Flix

You can see the round up for The Secret Life at Cook the Books with delicious dishes:  moles, posoles, polvorones, enchiladas, tacos, beverages, Mexican brownies, salads and more.  Check it out here.

But, today is the publication of the round-up for Food ‘n Flix.

Here are the inspired-by dishes from Frida.

We had two members that did a combined post for both events and were inspired by the same sweet treat, orange shortbread cookies called Polvorones.

Wendy, from A Day in the Life on the Farm,  enjoyed the film more than the book.  She writes about how the film portrayed the volatile marriage of Frida and Diego Rivera:

The movie did have some surrealism but mostly it portrayed, very well, the eccentricities and the upheavels in the marriage between the two.  It also touched on several affairs in which each had been involved that correlated with the novel.  While the book left me feeling ambivelant towards Frida and Diego, the movie had me wishing I had known them.  It portrays humanness at it’s best and at it’s worst with love that endures throughout a lifetime of anger, jealousy, heartbreak and tragedy.

Wendy was inspired by a scene in the book, a scene of Frida’s childhood that included an orange shortbread, or Polvorones.

 

Also inspired by these cookies was Heather at All Roads Lead to the Kitchen.  Heather had seen Frida several times but this was the first viewing that she sat down to “watch it with an eye toward food.” She wanted a recipe that represented both the movie and the novel and writes:

In the beginning of the movie, when Frida and Alex were on the bus and it ran into the wall, there was a moment where a bunch of oranges went bouncing everywhere, in a sort of slow motion. In the book, orange shortbread is mentioned several times in the third chapter and is written to be Frida’s “favorite” in the handwritten recipes at the end of the chapter.

Here is her interpretation of Polvorones de Naranja.

I just love the serendipity that both Heather and Wendy did a combined CTB/FnF post AND also posted Polvorones recipes.

Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla writes that the “movie was a delight for the senses” and that she knew she wanted to do something with tequila.  (My, there as a lot tequila flowing in the film!)  Camilla features the Tina Modetti/tequila-swigging/tango scene.  With this on her mind, she made Tequila Steaks.

Camilla was further inspired by “all the rose petals around platters at the Trotsky dinner” and did a second recipe of Stuffed Squash with Rose Petals.

Well done, Camilla!

Amy of Amy’s Cooking Adventures states she went on a bit of a Frida-palooza.  (See her Squash Blossom Quesadillas, Homemade Corn Tortillas, and her Guacamole Skull, plus her CTB post.)   For her official FnF post, she whipped up Oaxaca Style Pork.

Amy loved how Frida’s art was incorporated into the film and then she brings up some excellent points: Why did both the book and the film need the explicit sex scenes especially “since Frida is interesting enough without it”?

Amy, you may win the prize for the the wildest Frida-phile-fest!  All of your recipes are amazing!

If Amy wins the Frida-phile award, then Katharina at A Pretty Cake Machine wins the prize for the most beautiful recipe (not to take anything away from other’s posts—all were fabulous).

Katharina is new to our little club and I would also like to welcome her.  I hope she becomes a regular.   She states:

Truthfully, I run the risk of getting really long-winded if I begin discussing why I love Kahlo’s work. Here’s the short version: her paintings are raw and evocative, to the point where looking at them for too long is emotionally draining for me. I have incredible admiration for the amount of feeling she’s able to evoke with her brush.

I am posting both her still life inspiration AND a photo of her dish, Fruit Tart for Frida (Almond Flan Tart with Cactus Pear Passionfruit Jelly and Mexican Fruits).

Here is her finished product:

Amazing, right?

Now, I am totally embarrassed to post my Mexican Feast.  To qualify, it was delicious and the Enchiladas Tapatias may be the best and easiest enchiladas I have ever made.   That being said, my photos suck.   (I had family here, needed to get the post up, rushed through the photography process so I could get dinner on the table, blah, blah, blah.)   Here is my Mexican Feast to Celebrate Frida:  Enchiladas Tapatias, Green Rice, Seasoned Black Beans, Guacamole, and Jamaica Flower Water.

Evelyne from Culture Eatz was inspired by an excerpt in Frida’s Fiestas and created a seasonal treat.

Candied pumpkin is an authentic Mexican recipe prepared in the fall, particularly for the celebrations of the day of the dead. It is a day when family members gather and honor their dearly departed ones. Often picnics will be held day or night by the family grave in cemetaries. There is such a scene actually in the movie Frida. Day of the dead, squeletons, pumpkins, the recipe choice fit like a glove.

Here is her rendition of Calabaza En Tacha (Mexican Candied Pumpkin).

What a great post for Frida or for a Halloween treat!

Terri of Our Good Life found the film beautiful but uncomfortable finding herself “in a place between passion for her work or deeply sorrowful for the painful life she led.”   She found inspiration in one of the lavish meals in the film:

The film had a few food scenes, but the one that inspired me was the big sit down meal when Leon Trotsky (played by Geoffry Rush) comes to stay with them when things get heated between him and Stalin.  The lavish food scene is beautiful.

Here’s her Pollo con Jalapenos Acristalamiento y Pimientos Rojos, Verdes y Naranjas.

Terri named “this simple dish in Spanish to capture its beautiful artistry of multi color peppers and succulent chicken.”   Bravo!

Catherine of The Gluttonous Geek was a bit stumped by Frida but finally found some inspiration.

So throughout the film, I also noticed the repetitive use of tomatillos, cantaloupe, and other produce of bold and vibrant colors in reference to Kahlo’s still-life paintings. There’s also this scene where Frida prepares Diego a beautiful, technicolor lunch featuring this dish. What the heck is the gorgeous plate of food?! I wondered.

She found her answer on the Frida Kahlo Museum website:   “Chilies en Nogada – Poblano peppers stuffed with picadillo, battered in egg whites, fried, smothered with a creamy walnut sauce and topped with pomegranate seeds.”

Amping it up a bit, Catherine added cantaloupe to the picadillo and a bit of cocoa and ground cinnamon. She calls her unique dish Frida’s Chilies en Nogada.   Delicious!

Debbie from The Friday Friends came in under the wire with a lovely and colorful salad.   Debbie was inspired by the “intellectual” culture that Frida and Diego immersed themselves in.   She was also taken by the vibrancy of the Mexican setting:

The Food!

The Clothes!

The Flowers!

The Paintings!

Here is her vibrant Fruity Slaw with cantaloupe and strawberries.

Although Debbie is coming in at “the 11th hour,” it gave her time to check out the other posts.   She thinks “we have the perfect feast if we all got together with this one.  There are a few spicy dishes–which I love—but  just think how refreshing this fruity slaw would be to go with them!”   I agree!

Deb from Kahakai Kitchen also made the deadline!   We can all relate to those best laid plans…   Deb saw the movie when it first came out and remembers:

Because of this movie, I will forever picture artist Frida Kahlo as Salma Hayek and Alfred Molina as her husband artist Diego Rivera no matter how many pictures I see of the real people. I remembered all the color (I love the way the paintings ‘dissolve’ into the movie scenes) and the basic story.

She watched it again looking intently for food inspiration.   As with others this round, she found her spark in Frida’s Fiestas and made an entire meal.   Here are her Shrimp Tacos and Bean, Radish and Cheese Salad. She rounded out her meal with an original recipe for Jamaica (Red Hibiscus) Vanilla-Lime Agua Fresca.

Please check out even more Frida-inspired recipes at the August/September Cook the Books Round Up.

Whether you participated in posting inspired recipes from Frida or The Secret Life of Frida Kahlo (or both), I thank you profusely.   I adored revisiting my Frida obsession and I hope you did as well.

Please plan on joining in the fun in October when Deb at Kahakai Kitchen hosts Beetlejuice.  Should be interesting!