Eryn is so amazing and her food is awesome.
You know that feeling when you meet a person and you can just feel their warm energy and you immediately feel comfortable?
In her own words, Eryn Stutts prefers ugly food. It’s not that the things that she cooks aren’t amazingly flavorful (because they are) or that her food literally looks unappealing (because it doesn’t), but she’s much more the type of person who would rather put love, care, and attention into the food she makes for others instead of fussing over plating and miniscule details. We like Eryn’s philosophy. It’s one that Kitchensurfing holds close.
For her menu, Eryn decided to run with Cinco de Mayo theme. We should note that planning theme parties and menus is one of her favorite things (think delicious eyeball-decorated chocolate cordials for a Halloween party — she’s made ‘em). We enjoyed what Eryn called “Mouth Piñatas” (or “Pregnant Quesadillas,” if you’re feeling a bit more festive) composed of slow-cooked chipotle shredded pork with roasted peppers, radishes and red onions stuffed seasoned with ghost pepper salt, topped with cotija and oaxaca cheeses, stuffed in a pocket made of homemade flour tortilla dough and topped with a homemade spicy salsa. Oh yeah, they were real good. The homemade flour tortillas really made the dish with their wonderfully chewy and substantial texture.
We also dined upon what Kitchensurfing is calling “El Seis:” tres harinas cake (made with coconut, whole wheat pastry ,and all-purpose flours) sweetened with agave nectar and topped with tres leches Ice Cream (lower in fat due to no heavy cream!).
When someone goes through the effort to plan a theme that really unifies a meal, you can feel the thoughtfulness and effort that they put into it. We were glad to finally have Eryn to cook for us and to be uplifted by her warm personality. And her food. The food felt good, too.