Whether it’s a bag of fragrant, brick-red Hatch Valley chile powder or a jar of sweet and spicy Chocolate Raspberry Diablo Sauce, gifts with the flavor of New Mexico give attendees a tasty reminder of their visit.
Made in New Mexico, a Taos-based retailer and online company, is one source for these flavorful goodies from local farms and purveyors.
Seasonings and Salsas
For cooking up dishes with a New Mexico flavor, pure red chile powders from the Hatch Valley, where high altitude and long, hot days have made it known as the “Chile Capital of the World,” is a necessary ingredient. Eight-ounce bags, which come with a recipe for Chile Colorado, are available in mild, medium, hot, and, for the intrepid, extra hot.
Jars of roasted New Mexico green chile capture the slightly smoky, fire-roasted flavor of traditional green chile salsa, a condiment that gives a kick to everything from burritos to hamburgers to scrambled eggs. Prepared with lime juice and a touch of garlic salt, the jars come in 16-ounce sizes. Other available salsas include cactus salsa, a blend of nopatillo cactus, green chile, green tomatoes, onion, cider vinegar, and spices,
Pear and pinon chutney, a sweet and savory chutney made from pears, pinon (pine) nuts, ginger and other spices, is a versatile accompaniment for poultry, fish, grilled meats, and curry dishes.
Soup to Nuts
Based on a popular dish that originated in a deli at Albuquerque International Airport, green chile chicken soup is a mix that can be prepared with either chicken or pork. Each 4.5-ounce sack makes up to six servings.
Beef jerky marinated in fresh New Mexico-grown chiles gives Jerky by Art a unique kick. Developed by an ironworker to enjoy as a snack at building sites, the one-ounce bags of jerky come in green chile, red chile, chipotle chile, and habanero flavors.
New Mexico pistachios, roasted nuts from the Eagle Ranch outside Alamogordo, N.M., come in eight-ounce burlap sacks in traditional, green chile, garlic, and red chile flavors.
Sweet Sensations
A specialty of Maria Rosa’s, a boutique baker in Albuquerque, traditional biscochitos are a version of the shortbread-like cookies flavored with anise seed and sugar that have been designated the Official State Cookie of New Mexico. Prepared with all-natural ingredients, the cookies come in five-ounce bags.
Chile peanut brittle is a spicy version of traditional peanut brittle that has been made by Senor Murphy, a candymaker in Santa Fe, for two generations. Slow-roasted peanuts are encased in traditional brittle candy mildly laced with ground New Mexico chiles.
Rich chocolate is combined with raspberries, brandy and a touch of chile seasoning to create Chocolate Raspberry Diablo Sauce, which can be used as a glaze or as a topping for ice cream and crepes. It comes in five-ounce jars.
Cornmeal from traditional New Mexico blue corn is the main ingredient in Blue Mesa Blueberry Corn Muffin Mix, produced by Anne’s Country Cupboard, a boutique manufacturer of specialty Southwest food mixes in Placitas, N.M. Packaged in 11-ounce fabric designs with a Southwestern design, each bag is enough to make a dozen muffins.
Gift Baskets
Aside from the tasty products that can be ordered through Made in New Mexico, gift baskets brimming with New Mexico food specialties are available from the Santa Fe School of Cooking. The Taste of Santa Fe basket offers a wide assortment of everything from raspberry chipotle sauce to jalapeno cornbread mix, while the Snappy Snack Sack is a burlap sack filled with pine nut brittle, locally made cookies and other goodies.
For More Info
Made in New Mexico 888.537.5795 www.madeinnewmexico.com
Santa Fe School of Cooking 505.983.4511 www.santafeschoolofcooking.com