Tostadas Guatemaltecas

These tostadas are inspired by the street stalls and markets in Guatemala, where I spent some time last summer. I worked near Sumpango, a highland town, and my favorite lunch was a tostada with black beans, fresh salsa, and avocado from the vendors who set up shop on the corners for the lunch crowd. These aren't entirely authentic - my black beans don't match theirs, and the preferred salsa included shredded cabbage. I used fresh cucumber and tomatoes in the salsa, and added roasted garlic and carmelized onions to the black beans. You can make your own tostadas by frying corn tortillas in oil, but prepared tostadas are pretty easy to find at the stores here.

1 package corn tostadas

Cucumber Salsa
4 roma tomatoes, diced
1 medium cucumber, diced
1/3 cup finely chopped white onion
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
2 tbsp. lime juice
dash salt

1. Combine all ingredients. You might want to add some jalapeno or other pepper, but I left them out.

Simple Guacamole
1 ripe avocado, mashed
1 roma tomato
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1 tbsp. lime juice

Pretty Good Black Beans
1 14 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
5 cloves roasted garlic
1/2 cup white onion, diced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Heat 1 tbsp. canola oil, and fry onions over medium-low heat until very soft and translucent. Sprinkle with a dash of salt during frying.

2. Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender, or mash with a potato masher or spoon. I used a food processor, and whipped the beans to a fairly smooth, hummus-like texture.

Finally, since I'm thinking about last summer, here's little Maya, chilling along the river downtown. She's doing great, and slowed down long enough for me to snap a picture. Still very much a puppy at the one year plus mark.