A product of tradition and cultural encounters, Mexican food has a history as rich as its pallet of flavors. Looking to celebrate this legacy during a time in which many more people are cooking at home, the University of Texas, San Antonio (UTSA) will reportedly be releasing a new collection of downloadable PDF cookbooks featuring recipes from its Mexican cookbook archive—the largest in the United States, with over 2,000 tomes in its possession.
The series, titled “Recetas: Cocinando en los Tiempos del Coronavirus” (Recipes: Cooking in the Time of Coronavirus) was compiled by UTSA’s archivists and librarians. The release hopes to inspire curiosity on Mexican recipes during the stay at home period caused by the spread of COVID-19 through greater access to historical recipes.
UTSA kicks off the three-course series with dessert. The series’ first volume includes recipes for sweets dating as far back as 1831. Listed recipes include arroz con leche, churros, citrus ice cream, Mexican Revolution-era cookies recorded by a woman in Durango named Petra and a quinceanera cake from the 1950s, among others.
The cookbooks include recipes in both Spanish and English and credit the original authors of each dish. Some include images from the original manuscript, adding a record of varying Spanish spellings and abbreviations of the time.
You can find Volume 1 of the series here. Other volumes focused on main courses, appetizers and drinks will be released soon.