Foodways of the Río Grande Las Comidas del Río Grande Lesson Plan

Introduction

Breads provide the largest single source of food in many parts of the world. Bread in its many forms is one of humankind's oldest foods. It is estimated that the ancient Egyptians knew how to grow grains and prepare breads as long as 7,000 years ago. The oldest pieces of bread are 10,000 years old and have been found in Europe and the Middle East. They consist of wild barley, wheat, acorns and nuts ground into flour, mixed with water and baked on hot stones.

Although wheat is the world's most widely cultivated plant, both wheat and corn have been the two important grains of the Río Grande region of New Mexico for many centuries. The Hispanic people have made tortillas, a simple flat bread, from both of these grains. In this lesson, students will learn how to produce flour from corn and wheat and make tortillas from both.

Photo by Laura Temple Sullivan Teacher removing food from horno, or outdoor oven. Una profesora sacando la comida de un horno de adobe.

Objectives 1. Students will learn which foods of the Río Grande were used before the Spanish and which foods were introduced by the Spanish (historical and cultural understanding). 2. Students will be able to identify the staple foods of the Río Grande and learn how they combine into a meal (perceiving, analyzing and responding). 3. Students will be able to demonstrate the sequence of making tortillas using traditional staple food sources (creating and performing).

Vocabulario / Vocabulary las calabacitas - squash el cedazo - sieve el chile - chili or chilli el delantar - apron los frijoles - beans germinar - germinate el maiz - corn el maiz azul - blue corn la mano - pestle el metate - mortar or grinding stone la semilla - seeds el trigo - wheat

Photo by Laura Temple Sullivan School teacher Jim Klukkert mixing ingredients for tortillas. Profesores mezclando los ingredientes para hacer tortillas.

Materials mano and metate, or pestle and mortar wheat grains blue corn grains (to contrast with wheat grains) sieve for sifting flour bowl for mixing water and salt Motivation Begin by asking students the following questions: What did you eat for breakfast or dinner last night? Where does bread come from? Can seeds serve as food? If so, then what are some examples of seeds that serve as food? What happens if you crush or grind seeds? Are they turned into something else? What is this something else called? What happens if you add water to meal? yeast? heat?

Discuss with students the history of food preparation in your region or in the region of the Río Grande. Compare what foods were available before European contact and what foods were introduced by European settlers. How did they affect the lifestyles of the native people? Of the Europeans who settled in America?

A plate of beans and red chile with egg torts. Un plato de frijoles con chile colorado y torta de huevo.

Procedure 1. Take a pound of wheat grains and soak in a container full of water overnight. 2. Drain water on the following day and put moist seeds in a cloth sack. Tie at end to keep contents in. 3. Place sack near a source of continuous heat (window sill that faces the sun, near a pilot light or heater). Wheat grains will sprout in three or four days. The germination process will make the flour sweet. 4. Remove from sack, place on flat tray and expose to sun or other source of heat for drying. 5. Once berries are dry they can be ground in a metate using a mano to grind.

6. Place flour in sieve and agitate back and forth allowing the fine powder to sift through and the germ to remain. Keep separated.

7. Add water and a little salt to the fine flour. Mix thoroughly, place between palms of hands and shape into a tortilla.

8. Place in oven, hot horno or in line of the sun for hardening and baking.

9. Eat and enjoy.

10. Repeat all processes with blue corn except for the germination.

Evaluation

Assemble the finished corn and flour tortillas and the tools and materials that it took to create the flour and ask the following questions:

• Can you explain now where some foods come from?
• Which foods were used by the early Hispanic settlers as staples?
  • Are these foods still eaten today?
  • How were they prepared long ago?
  • How are they prepared today?
• Did we succeed in making two kinds of tortillas?
• Can you describe the process of making the tortillas?
• How do they taste?