Special occasions call for ceremony, the ritual of special dishes, meals shaped by human hands. A birthday party, a harvest feast, a Thanksgiving potluck, a Christmas dinner, an anniversary—all these are acts that root memory, cultural celebrations whose raison d’être becomes, over time, the practice of gathering itself. And as fall spills into winter, drawing us inside, closer together, the season calls for nice things, for climbing up on the footstool to pull out the boxes of good china, the fancy pie pans, the holiday dinner set handed down from mother to daughter.
With this, the hundredth issue of edible New Mexico, we celebrate the plates and bowls from which we eat, the glasses and mugs from which we drink, the cookware we rely on, the ollas and cisterns of our gardens. In one feature, a photo essay tracing plates and cups from restaurants and bars and cafés to the hands of the potters who make them, Ungelbah Dávila stills us with the beauty of clay. In another, we follow bottles emptied of soda and booze as they return, not to earth, but—thanks to the vision and hands of artists—to be filled again at local tables and bars. And through her investigation of bebidas fronterizas, a story that is both memoir and inventory of borderland drinks, Denise Chávez celebrates the grandmother of pots and pans: the olla.
At its most elemental, an olla holds water—whose value, as we of New Mexico know, is greater than gold. Local grower and agricultural historian Willy Carleton reports on using water-filled ollas, rather than drip tape, to feed the plants in a desert garden. We also visit with a Santa Fe land steward who builds rain gardens—water catchment systems that bring office parks and community spaces back to life.
These stories make an argument, too, for the everyday use of handmade cups, special pots and pans; for using those china plates, as at one Albuquerque restaurant, to make a weeknight meal special. From rum cake baked in a great-grandmother’s Bundt pan to squash focaccia in a trusty old muffin tin, the recipes in this issue honor vessels that are built to last. But fall is fleeting, and, being where we are, we can’t resist a nod to that most ephemeral (and delicious) of culinary vessels, the flour tortilla. You can get it, of course, on Old Route 66.
Special occasions call for ceremony, the ritual of special dishes, meals shaped by human hands. A birthday party, a harvest feast, a Thanksgiving potluck, a Christmas dinner, an anniversary—all these are acts that root memory, cultural celebrations whose raison d’être becomes, over time, the practice of gathering itself. And as fall spills into winter, drawing us inside, closer together, the season calls for nice things, for climbing up on the footstool to pull out the boxes of good china, the fancy pie pans, the holiday dinner set handed down from mother to daughter.
With this, the hundredth issue of edible New Mexico, we celebrate the plates and bowls from which we eat, the glasses and mugs from which we drink, the cookware we rely on, the ollas and cisterns of our gardens. In one feature, a photo essay tracing plates and cups from restaurants and bars and cafés to the hands of the potters who make them, Ungelbah Dávila stills us with the beauty of clay. In another, we follow bottles emptied of soda and booze as they return, not to earth, but—thanks to the vision and hands of artists—to be filled again at local tables and bars. And through her investigation of bebidas fronterizas, a story that is both memoir and inventory of borderland drinks, Denise Chávez celebrates the grandmother of pots and pans: the olla.
At its most elemental, an olla holds water—whose value, as we of New Mexico know, is greater than gold. Local grower and agricultural historian Willy Carleton reports on using water-filled ollas, rather than drip tape, to feed the plants in a desert garden. We also visit with a Santa Fe land steward who builds rain gardens—water catchment systems that bring office parks and community spaces back to life.
These stories make an argument, too, for the everyday use of handmade cups, special pots and pans; for using those china plates, as at one Albuquerque restaurant, to make a weeknight meal special. From rum cake baked in a great-grandmother’s Bundt pan to squash focaccia in a trusty old muffin tin, the recipes in this issue honor vessels that are built to last. But fall is fleeting, and, being where we are, we can’t resist a nod to that most ephemeral (and delicious) of culinary vessels, the flour tortilla. You can get it, of course, on Old Route 66.
Your Favorite Dish: The Growing Plateware Collection at Frenchish
A significant part of Frenchish’s charm is imparted by its rotating cast of mismatched antique plateware.
CLAY STORIES
In this photo essay tracing plates and cups from restaurants and bars and cafés to the hands of the potters who make them, Ungelbah Dávila stills us with the beauty of clay.
CHAMPURRADO
This version of the traditional Mexican hot beverage champurrado features piloncillo, cinnamon, Mexican chocolate, and masa harina.
On Albuquerque’s Tortilla Trail
Albuquerque is a flour tortilla lover’s delight, and a Route 66 travelder would do well to stop at any of these three restaurants for some prime example’s of New Mexico’s favorite chile accessory.
Ollas
Local grower and agricultural historian Willy Carleton reports on using water-filled ollas, rather than drip tape, to feed the plants in a desert garden.
Rum Cake
This Bundt cake recipe doesn’t use mixes and it leans heavily into rum, so be sure to use a good one.
Pear and Pecan Dutch Baby
This Pear and Pecan Dutch Baby, a dramatic, puffed pancaked derived from a German pastry, perfectly showcases cast iron’s magic.
Catching the Rain with Reese Baker
Victoriano Cárdenas visits with Reese Baker, a Santa Fe land steward who builds rain gardens that bring office parks and community spaces back to life.
Borderland Bebidas
Through her investigation of bebidas fronterizas, a story that is both memoir and inventory of borderland drinks, Denise Chávez celebrates the grandmother of pots and pans: the olla.
Sumac-Roasted Delicata Squash Focaccia
These Sumac-Roasted Delicata Squash Focaccia rolls use a trusty old muffin tin for a new take on popular sheet-pan focaccias, where the bread becomes a canvas for seasonal produce.
OLD GLASS, NEW COMPOSITIONS
Briana Olson visits with Shelby Kaye and Chris Bogle of Broken Arrow Glass Recycling, a homegrown facility that, each month, turns fifteen tons of discarded glass into art, landscaping material, decor, and drinking vessels.
Smoked Sweet Potato Soup
This hearty soup combines the gentle heat of paprika, the deep aroma of smoked salt, and the comfort of butter, cream, and sweet potatoes.
Honey Cake
Bright citrus and the warm, fragrant spice of cardamom complement this honey-forward cake.
2025 Shop Local Gift Guide
2025 Shop Local Gift Guide, a digital catalog stuffed to the brim with exceedingly wonderful presents at all price points—it’s the ultimate handbook for finding gifts you’ll actually want to buy.
Your Favorite Dish: The Growing Plateware Collection at Frenchish
A significant part of Frenchish’s charm is imparted by its rotating cast of mismatched antique plateware.
CLAY STORIES
In this photo essay tracing plates and cups from restaurants and bars and cafés to the hands of the potters who make them, Ungelbah Dávila stills us with the beauty of clay.
CHAMPURRADO
This version of the traditional Mexican hot beverage champurrado features piloncillo, cinnamon, Mexican chocolate, and masa harina.
On Albuquerque’s Tortilla Trail
Albuquerque is a flour tortilla lover’s delight, and a Route 66 travelder would do well to stop at any of these three restaurants for some prime example’s of New Mexico’s favorite chile accessory.
Ollas
Local grower and agricultural historian Willy Carleton reports on using water-filled ollas, rather than drip tape, to feed the plants in a desert garden.
Rum Cake
This Bundt cake recipe doesn’t use mixes and it leans heavily into rum, so be sure to use a good one.
Pear and Pecan Dutch Baby
This Pear and Pecan Dutch Baby, a dramatic, puffed pancaked derived from a German pastry, perfectly showcases cast iron’s magic.
Catching the Rain with Reese Baker
Victoriano Cárdenas visits with Reese Baker, a Santa Fe land steward who builds rain gardens that bring office parks and community spaces back to life.
Borderland Bebidas
Through her investigation of bebidas fronterizas, a story that is both memoir and inventory of borderland drinks, Denise Chávez celebrates the grandmother of pots and pans: the olla.
Sumac-Roasted Delicata Squash Focaccia
These Sumac-Roasted Delicata Squash Focaccia rolls use a trusty old muffin tin for a new take on popular sheet-pan focaccias, where the bread becomes a canvas for seasonal produce.
OLD GLASS, NEW COMPOSITIONS
Briana Olson visits with Shelby Kaye and Chris Bogle of Broken Arrow Glass Recycling, a homegrown facility that, each month, turns fifteen tons of discarded glass into art, landscaping material, decor, and drinking vessels.
Smoked Sweet Potato Soup
This hearty soup combines the gentle heat of paprika, the deep aroma of smoked salt, and the comfort of butter, cream, and sweet potatoes.
Honey Cake
Bright citrus and the warm, fragrant spice of cardamom complement this honey-forward cake.
2025 Shop Local Gift Guide
2025 Shop Local Gift Guide, a digital catalog stuffed to the brim with exceedingly wonderful presents at all price points—it’s the ultimate handbook for finding gifts you’ll actually want to buy.
