“Chileatole is a pre-Hispanic dish whose origin is a broth of chile thickened with nixtamalized corn (corn treated with sodium hydroxide also called lime to soften it so it can be ground into masa). Today, every region has its own style of chileatole—some are served as soups, some as beverages, some are sweet instead of savory, some are made with meat. My version is green from fresh green chiles and similar to one I had in Oaxaca that was served as a sauce over roasted vegetables. I use both fresh corn and instant masa to thicken and flavor the dish. To turn it into a soup, increase the amount of water and reserve half of the corn kernels to add to the blended soup at the end, then stir in the roasted vegetables before serving.” —Martínez

“When I started to write this headnote, my mouth began to water. West of Mexico City, in the city of Morelia, there is an area in el Centro, the historic district, near the cathedral where gaspacho (yes, it’s spelled with an s) stands line the streets. Young men were working below each gaspacho sign, meticulously and quickly cutting not tomatoes and red bell peppers to make the famously chilled Spanish gazpacho soup, but instead mango, jicama, and pineapple into tiny and perfect cubes to make gaspacho, a sweet and salty fruit snack. “By midday, the streets are filled with people carrying large plastic cups mounded with tiny cut fruit and topped with chile and queso Cotija. “Gaspacho showcases the incredibly sweet mangoes that grow in the state and Cotija, the salty-sharp cheese that is produced there as well. My version is more like a summery side dish than a grab-and-go midday snack. Since I really don’t want to spend a lot of time cubing fruit, I use larger slices. I love gaspacho so much that I pair it with everything from grilled meat to fish.” —Martínez

“One of my favorite pueblitos in México is Tepoztlán in the state of Morelos, south of Mexico City. The markets are known for pre-Hispanic food—food that existed before the arrival of Spanish colonialists. The Spanish brought pigs, cows, wheat, and methods for making cheese to México, but before their arrival, the indigenous people had a very plant-forward diet. They ate mostly vegetables like corn, beans, squash, amaranth, chia, chiles, nuts, and flowers as well as wild fowl and game, insects, fish, and shellfish. “Crispy-fried tlaltequeada fritters are beautiful and flavorful. I loved seeing the vendors at the market display all of the different kinds. Some were made with beets and were garnet red. Some, made with seasonal native wildflowers, were white, purple, and yellow. Others were made with quelites, different varieties of native leafy wild greens, and were emerald green. I even had one that was pink from red plums and served with a creamy nut-based sauce. “Tlaltequeadas can be sweet or savory and spicy or not, depending on what is in season and what flavors you like. The fritters are held together by chia and flaxmeal, both of which mimic the consistency of eggs when added to a liquid.” —Martínez