January 4, 2021

Our friend Petra not only makes great face masks, but she is also a tamale master, and makes a most exquisite pozole (pronounced po-SO-leh), Mexican soup made with hominy. Both dishes date back to indigenous Mesoamerica and are extra special during Christmas. So unadulterated, so outrageously delicious! And this season, we have been grateful beneficiaries of Petra’s comfort dishes – so welcome during Covid times.

Yesterday, Petra made a gigantic pot of pozole, a special request for her son’s birthday. Louie joined Petra’s adult children who, at separate social distancing times (no big family gathering this year), arrived with empty soup pots in hand to be filled with Mom’s pozole to take to their own homes. (When Louie picked up Christmas tamales the week before, he had left our soup pot to be first in line for “pozole day.” But before Louie left home, I reminded him that the soup will slosh around in the car. “So, be sure the lid is tightly secured…”

We should have known that Petra had this covered. When Louie called to say he was on his way back with the soup, he said, “You should see how Petra made the pot spill-proof! She even used a bungee cord. No soup will spill with what she did!”

When Louie arrived home, I immediately took a photo of the “armored” pot. Before Petra put the lid on, she lined the top of the pot with a tight layer of foil. On went the lid that closed tightly onto the foil and held shut with a bungee cord. Genius! Petra didn’t skip a beat – she made sure to include a bag of cabbage, limes, and chile sauce -- garnishments for the pozole.

By dinner time, we were biting at the bit to slurp the piping hot soup that also had small chunks of tender pork. Shredded cabbage offered a crunchy texture and a squeeze of lime added zing.

Petra, you are golden-hearted and a saint. How could we ever get through Covid without you?

Thank you!

This is your country, and it’s up to you to save it.” – English translation of a saying in Taiwan

Washing Hands + Wearing a Mask + Social Distancing = Saving Lives

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