母の出身はニューメキシコです。

ニューメキシコはアメリカの中にです。

でも文化はアメリカとメキシコの混交です。

母のクリスマス料理はニューメキシコから生じる。

小さいビスケット(biscochitos)とにくまんじゅう(empanaditas)が好きです。

この写真は empanaditas です。

What I'm Trying to Say

My mother is from New Mexico. New Mexico is part of the United States. However, the culture is a mix of American and Mexican. My mother's Christmas foods come from (originate in) New Mexico. I like biscochitos and empanaditas. Here is a photo of the empanaditas I baked last night.

質問とコメント

1. In doing a little research on biscochito (also spelled bizcochito), I discovered that in 1989 it was made thhe official cookie of the state of New Mexico. Here is some additional history.

Wow. I didn't know the biscochito was such an important part of my heritage until I tried to explain it to you.

2. In the last few years, empanadas (half-moon pies with a filling, usually a savory meat or vegetable) have become very popular in Austin. You can go to specialty empanada restaurants. Our family recipe is like a Mexican version of mince meat: a combination of beef, pork, applesauce, currants, and spices.

3. Both of these desserts have Spanish names. The "itos" or "itas" means "little". So biscochito means "little biscuit" (in the British sense of cookie). I'm not sure what empanada means, but I'd guess it means "inside the bread" (pan).

4. People from New Mexico (at least of my mother's generation) spend a lot of time explaining that New Mexico is a state, and not part of Mexico. New Mexico became the 47th state on January 6, 1912 (when my grandmother was 3 years old).