Food

Blue corn improves everything, from tortillas and pizza dough to muffins and pancakes. Yellow corn is fine and dandy but blue corn adds a welcome nuttiness to dishes. Take blue corn pancakes up a notch by topping them with New Mexican piñon nuts.

Alternatively, sip on piñon nut coffee, which gives your morning joe that little extra something. This pine nut comes from the piñon pine and its delicate flavor is beloved by New Mexicans.

In New Mexico, the first meal of the day often involves a breakfast burrito. Potato, egg, and cheese are the core ingredients, enhanced by add-ons like bacon, chorizo, or carne adovada. Sometimes the cheese is melted over the outside of the tortilla while other times it's sprinkled inside. The egg on top is optional, but some swear by it. Does this bundle of wonder with green or red sauce.

Carne adovada is what happens when pork is marinated in a puree of onion, red chile, and spices for 24 hours or more. The result is delicious.

Posole is hominy corn that has been boiled in a combination of water and lime. This causes the corn to puff up and gives it an entirely different texture and taste than regular corn. You'll probably encounter it as a side dish or sometimes as a soup.

There’s chile and then there’s chili. Frito pie is all about the latter. It’s topped with cheese and sometimes served in the bag.