Cracked Cauldron Spillings

I know it's not a big Mexican holiday. That date is actually September 19th.

Still, any reason for a party.

Cinco de Mayo gives us an excuse to eat Tex-Mex and Mex-style food, to down margaritas, and listen to mariachi music, with pinatas and castanets and general silliness while wearing sombreros and ponchos and speaking in execrable Mexican accents making Speedy Gonzalez jokes. It has more to do with the archetypal Mexican than anything real - like St. Patrick's Day having nothing to do with St. Patrick or real Irish, and lots to do with green, shamrocks, leprechauns, kisses, and beer. Parades and dressing up and letting go are the real reasons behind pre-empted holidays like Cinco de Mayo and St. Patrick's Day.

They're fun and colorful and loud.

We're more than willing to bake cookies, cakes, and other yummy things to make the celebration even more festive.

The Tres Leches cake was successful with the lime, not so good with tequila, except as an accompaniment. And the fruity tamales are very good. Strawberries are good for Cinco de Mayo because that's when the berries are widely available and cheap, but the fruity tamales also do well with raspberries, blackberries, raisins, peaches, plums, and apples. I'm not too wild about pears because of the graininess of most pears, but I suppose someone will like them that way.

Passionfruits aren't ripe yet, but I'll have to give that a try when they are.

In the meantime, a new bakery opened about fifty miles south of us, so we'll check them out this weekend.