Object: Candle

Object: Candle

Different types of candle:

- Scented 

- Tealight

- Decorative

- Outdoor

- Gel

- Pillar

- Layered

- Birthday

- Religious

- Taper/dinner

Visual Representations:

Mexican designs- visual connotaitions

Authentic posters:

The main aspect of all of these designs, to me, is the colour.  The use of bright colours forces happy emotions, with strong a predominant of yellow.  

There are large differences in styles, very few of which incorporate real photographs.  Most are painted/illustrated.

To me all of the images give of a powerful vibe, reflecting the Mexican culture, as a people they are stereotypically known as extroverted, perhaps sometimes boystrous? 

By far my favourite few in this book were the designs that incorporated 'Luche Libre'.  They have a contemporary look about them that makes them look as if they could have been designed today.  They use interesting layout techniques that could transfer well into graphic design.  And that, to me, is why they are 'Good'.

Mexican cuisine: Restaurants/primary

After visiting multiple restaurants that specifically cater to southern american food I have a good insight into what's out there, what's original, and more importantly, I now know what I like (visual and taste wise). 

Unfortunately, my research is hindered by not being able to actually visit Mexico, or any restaurants within Mexico.  Not brilliant.  Perhaps there will be a lack of authenticity throughout?  We shall see.

First of all I took a trip to 'BARBURRITO'- they have a solid concept, which has aided in a solid visual designs throughout the chain.  They use well known mexican connotations/stereotypes such as donkeys to relate to their consumers, who, like me, have probably never been to Mexico.




I also visited 'Bodega' in Brimingham.  First and foremost the food was amazing.  Again, the branding, menu designs, cocktails list, posters etc were all so well designed- using playful colours and visuals yet keeping its' rep by kitting out the place so stylishly.  Unfortunately my camera died just as I tucked into my frijoles, so, here are some images from the site:

'Sandanista' is a small bar come club come restaurant that has tasty tasty food, with a Mexican Monday offer that's quite frankly BANGIN'.
The sites design is pretty poor, though I can see where they're coming from with the colour scheme and typeface, though the place itself is legitimate.

Mexican cuisine- components/main ingredients

Before I even think about cooking myself I need to know what goes into an authentic mexican meal.  I need to understand the spices; why what goes with what; and what brings out the best in what.

Here's what my interpretation is at this moment in time:

-  Lively seasoning

-  Not always fiery

-  Textures
-  Lime

-  Cheese

 




































Annatto Seed: These richly colored "achiote" seeds impart a lovely yellow color and a distinctive, earthy flavor to grains, sauces, and other Mexican dishes. They're often used in meat pastes in the Yucatan. To make an achiote paste, cover seeds with water and simmer or 10 minutes. Then let soak overnight. Drain and grind with a mortar and pestle while still damp. Whole seeds can also be fried in oil, to make beautifully colored annatto oil for cooking.
Cayenne: An orange powder, cayenne is simply a variety of very hot, ground chili peppers. It's used throughout Mexican cuisine, including spice blends. Use it sparingly to add extra hotness to dishes. And place a shaker of cayenne on the table for those who like their Mexican dishes even hotter than you serve them.
Chilies: Chilies are perhaps Mexican cooking's most indispensable seasoning. Renowned for their spicy hotness, chilies are available in a great range of varieties, sizes, and levels of heat. While for some seasonings, cooks prefer fresh to dried, not so for the chili--dried and fresh alike hold their own in Mexican cuisine.
Chili Powder: In Mexico, chili powder is a powdered form of a red pepper, such as Ancha . Domestic chili powder contains extra seasonings--such as cumin, garlic, oregano, salt, coriander, allspice, and cloves. Mexican cooks make a paste by mixing one tablespoon of chili powder, one teaspoon of flour, and two tablespoons of cold water. Chili powder can also be added directly to soups, stews, and other dishes.
Allspice: Rich and aromatic, allspice is used to add flavor to Mexican pickled fish, vegetables, and meat dishes. You'll also find it in recipes for Mexican desserts and beverages.
Cinnamon: Cinnamon was first introduced to Mexican cooks by the Spanish, and it's often used in Mexican beverages (like chocolate drinks). You'll also find cinnamon in rice pudding and chorizo sausages. Mexican cooks use both the sticks and ground cinnamon. (Remove the sticks before serving.)
Coriander: Ground coriander is used extensively in Mexican cooking. Its fresh lemony taste is delicious in breads, cakes and other desserts, but also in savory dishes like soups and stews (especially chili), and with meat and game. The whole seeds are also used; dry roast them to enhance their flavor.
Cilantro: Though it comes from the coriander plant, cilantro (the leaves) and coriander (the seeds) have very different tastes and uses. You'll find cilantro in Mexican salsas, main dishes, stews, sweets, and sauces. Cilantro is also known as Chinese parsley or fresh coriander. Its flavor is reminiscent of lemon peel and sage.
Cumin Seed: Known as comino seed, this spice is a predominant flavor in many chili powder blends. Cumin is used extensively in Mexican cooking; its flavor balances the hotness of other spices.
Nutmeg: The warm, sweet, spicy flavor of nutmeg is most often used in Mexican beverages and desserts. You can grate your own, or keep a fresh supply of ground on hand for baking or sprinkling on Mexican hot chocolate, ice cream and puddings.
Oregano: A mainstay in Mexican cuisine, oregano is found in sauces, dressings, salads, stews, and meat dishes--often along with other spices, like thyme, chilies, and cumin. Oregano is also an important ingredient in escabeche , a popular marinated fish dish.
Sage: Used whole, rubbed, or ground, sage has a strong, aromatic, slightly bitter taste. It's often used in Mexican soups and stews.
Thyme: Thyme has a dry, fresh, pungent flavor that complements the heat in many Mexican dishes. You'll find it in Mexican soups and sauces, salads and dressings.
Cloves: Mexican spice blends like pepians and moles often contain cloves, which bring a rich, deep flavor to meats and poultry.
Mint: Mint is used sparingly in some Mexican recipes, including meatballs, soups, and beans. 

Sourced: http://www.frontiercoop.com/learn/cuisine_mexican.html# 



The most frequently used herbs and spices in Mexican cuisine are chiles, oregano, cilantro, epazote, cinnamon, and cocoa. Chipotle, a smoke-dried jalapeño chilli, is also common in Mexican cuisine. Many Mexican dishes also contain garlic and onions.
Sourced: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_cuisine

Sourced: 'http://www.foodrenegade.com/homemade-taco-seasoning/'

Concept: Mexican cuisine/origin

In the pre-Colombian period, the diet of Mexican ancestors was purely native, with nutrition based on the great product of Mexican agriculture, corn. When thrashed and boiled into a "pozole", the corn could be made into flavorful tortillas and tamales, or rendered into flour for other variations.

Source: 'The best of Mexico- A cookbook'; Evie Righter

 

 

 The diet of corn was supplemented with vegetables and meat. A great variety of spices, known as "chile," could be combined with sweet potato, beans, squash, "chayote", and "jicama". Early mexicans also relied on herbs such as "los quelites", "quintoniles", "huazontles", and a wide range of mushrooms. Indigenous wildlife such as deer, rabbits, armadillos, raccoons, "tepezcuintles", and birds such as turkeys, pigeons, and quails could also be served. Even turtles, snakes, and frogs could be made to complement the native American plate.

After the Conquest and during the colonial period, the country's cuisine changed dramatically with the culinary influences brought along by the Spanish. With the conquistadores and their descendents came a taste for "cebada" , for rice, olives, wines, spices from India, beef, and different kinds of fruit. Today's Mexican cuisine is a blend of the original Indian fare with the Spanish.

Sourced: http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/2817-mexican-cuisine-and-its-origin 

Aztec influence:

 

 The pre-conquest Aztecs were a society that had four main methods of agriculture. The earliest, most basic form of agriculture implemented by the Aztecs is known as “rainfall cultivation.” The Aztecs also implemented terrace agriculture in hilly areas, or areas that could not be used for level ground farming. In the valleys irrigation farming was used. Dams diverted water from natural springs to the fields. This allowed for harvests on a regular basis. The Aztecs built canal systems that were longer and much more elaborate than previous irrigation systems. They managed to divert a large portion of the Cuauhtitlan River to provide irrigation to large areas of fields. The network of canals was a very complex and intricate system.

In the swampy regions along Lake Xochimilco, the Aztecs implemented yet another method of crop cultivation. They built what are called chinampas. Chinampas are areas of raised land, created from alternating layers of mud from the bottom of the lake, and plant matter/other vegetation. These “raised beds” were separated by narrow canals, which allowed farmers to move between them by canoe. The chinampas were extremely fertile pieces of land, and yielded, on average, seven crops annually. In order to plant on them, farmers first created “seedbeds,” or reed rafts, where they planted seeds and allowed them to germinate. Once they had, they were re-planted in the chinampas. This cut the growing time down considerably.

The Aztecs are credited with domestication of the subspecies of wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavo, which is native to this region.^[25]

While most of the farming occurred outside the densely populated areas, within the cities there was another method of (small scale) farming. Each family had their own garden plot where they grew maize, fruits, herbs, medicines and other important plants.

Of the various crops grown by the Aztecs, maize was the most important. Aztec diets centered on it. Maize was grown across the entire empire, in the highland terraces, valley farms and also on the chinampas. Women ground maize into a coarse meal by rubbing it with a grinding stone called a mano against a flat stone called a metate. The Aztecs made tortillas from the corn meal. Other crops that the Aztecs relied upon were avocados, beans, squashes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, chia, amaranthchilies. These crops were also grown everywhere. Crops that were specific to the lowland regions were cotton, fruits, cacao beans and rubber trees. 

Source: The Aztecs and Maya World'; Charles Phillips

 

Mexican cuisine continues to be based on and flavored by agricultural products contributed by the Mexicas/Aztecs and Mesoamerica, most of which retain some form of their original Nahuatl names. The cuisine has also become a popular part of the cuisine of the United States and other countries around the world, typically altered to suit various national tastes.Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec#Aztec_culture

The Aztec marketplace culture has heavily influenced todays Mexican food, key ingredients listed above are still heavily relied upon within Mexican cuisine.

Activity: Cocktail making.

Overview:

Initially, the main cocktails I knew of were:

- Margarita

- White Russian

- Cosmopolitan

- Long Island Iced tea

I knew I liked cocktails and was interested in the process, however I also knew there was a lot to learn.

So, 

After extensive research my list has grown massively:

There are so many it would be easier to put them into groups that have the main spirit as:

Rum:

- Cuba Libre

- Dark and stormy 

- Daquari

- Long Island Iced tea

- Mojito

- Pina Colada

- Mai Tai

- Zombie

Vodka:

- Appletini

- Black russian

- Bloody Mary

- Caipiroska

- Cosmopolitan

- Flirtini

- Harvey Wallbanger

- Long island iced tea

- Moscow mule

- Screwdriver

- Sea Breeze

- Vodka martini

- White russian

Tequila:

- Margarita

- Long island iced tea

- Tequila sunrise

Whisky/ Bourbon:

- Godfather

- Mint Julep

- Missouri Mule

- Rusty Nail

- Seven and Seven

- Three wise men

Obviously it would be uneconomical for me to buy, let alone make every single cocktail.  So therefore I will attempt a select few, and buy others in bars to try.

Before my cocktail training I thought i'd have a go at one of my favourite cocktails 'pre-research'.
'Margarita'.
There are three basic ingredients to this cocktail: Tequila gold; Cointreau and many many limes.  For this margarita I mixed 2 measure tequila to one measure cointreau and three quarters of a lime, mixed them together, then blended lots of ice.  To serve I wet the rim of the glass and rolled it in sugar- for me it was more for taste, however, it looks good too.

I realised I needed to get clued up because I knew very little.  So I got myself some books.
The first 'All shook up', focuses more on ingredients than methods.  After reading for some time, trying out different cocktails I came to the conclusion that there are many different ways of making the same cocktail- if you know what you're doing it's more about personal preference than following a recipe.  You can add/subtract ingredients to taste.

Serving- The images above and below are good examples of the interesting visuals of cocktails.  I think that the whole idea behind a cocktail is to be entertained - watching someone do fancy tricks pouring drinks and shaking- it is a very visual act.  Then the presentation of the cocktail itself- it's obviously supposed to taste good- but they have to look amazing to make an impact.  The two examples show gradient and bright colours- things you wouldn't normally see with a normal alcoholic drink.

Another of the books I bought is 'The complete cocktail maker', which, against 'All shook up', focuses more on method and ingredients.  For me it was much more helpful without having any lessons in cocktail making.

Cocktail training:

Long Island Iced Tea

Shooters