Christmas in Santa Fe – Photos and Recipes

December 26, 2013 by Dawn Wink 15 Comments

Chile wreath on our front door.

Joyous Holidays from our home to yours!

Christmas is an especially magical time here in Santa Fe, filled with farolitos, lights, and the scents of posole and biscochitos. Here a few photos of the plaza, just to share, and recipes for our traditional Christmas meal.

Christmas lights in plaza

Dad, Mom, Noé in plaza.

Farolitos, candles within sand in brown paper bags glowing in the dark, are a primary rhythm of the holiday season in Santa Fe. Farolitos line the roads, glow from atop buildings, and welcome visitors into homes. Farolitos are an integral thread to any Santa Fe festivity. We spent Christmas Eve lighting farolitos in front of First Presbyterian Church of Santa Fe.

Wyatt, Luke, Wynn light farolitos.

The kids were especially glad to be doing this when they discovered they’d been given small gas torches. It took them a couple of tries to learn to light the candle, without lighting the bag!

Luke lighting farolitos..Oops!

Electric strings of farolitos embroider the edges of buildings all over Santa Fe.

Farolitos alight.

Christmas Eve in Santa Fe means walking Canyon Road, now lined with farolitos and lights.

Canyon Road, Christmas Eve © Becky’s Blog

Farolitos along Canyon Road, Christmas Eve © santafe.com

In Santa Fe, it’s not turkey and apple pie for Christmas – it’s posole (po-SO-lay) and biscochitos (bee-sko-CHEE-tos)! Here are two fabulous recipes.

Posole

Posole

2 c. posole (hominy), picked over for dirt or stones
1/4 c. vegetable oil
2 c. chopped onion
2 T. minced garlic                                  

1 oz. New Mexico dried red chile pods, 4 or 5 pods, stems and seeds removed  

Pork roast                                                       

5 c. chicken broth                                                                                                             

1/2 c. coarsely chopped cilantro                                                                                      

2 t. salt, or to taste

Put the posole in a 6-quart pot and cover with cold water by 3 inches. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, adding water as needed, until the kernels have softened and begin to burst. Drain the posole and rinse well.

Heat the oil in a 6-quart pot and sauté the onions until golden. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the posole, dried chiles, pork roast cut into bite-size pieces, broth and 1/2 of the cilantro. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the salt and continue cooking for 30 minutes. Stir in the remaining cilantro. Taste and adjust seasonings. (Serves 8-10)

Biscochitos by Renee Villarreal

Biscochitos

• 6 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups lard
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 teaspoons anise seed
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup brandy
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl, and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the lard and 1 1/2 cups sugar until smooth. Mix in the anise seed, and beat until fluffy. Stir in the eggs one at a time. Add the sifted ingredients and brandy, and stir until well blended.
3. On a floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/2 or 1/4 inch thickness, and cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters, often scalloped circles. Place cookies onto baking sheets. Mix together the 1/4 cup of sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over the tops of the cookies.
4. Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the bottoms are lightly browned.

With honor of your and your family’s traditions during this time, we wish you a joyous holiday season!

Plaza lights and farolitos. Photo ©Wynn Wink-Moran