Chiles en Nogada - Lina Fernandez

Here is an absolutely wonderful recipe for chiles in nogada, one of Mexico's national dishes, from the kitchen of Lina Fernandez.  She was a fabulous cook, a real artist and poet, and when word went out that she was making this dish, people came in droves.  Unfortunately, her restaurant, El Laurel, had only a few tables and seating was very limited, so one had to be lucky to get a taste.  I remember sitting there eating with Toledo and Morales at the next table.

Lina told of the origins of the dish, how a nun, Soeur Angelica, I believe, had "invented" it, saying that the wind had miraculously blown the ingredients together.  Lina said it was more likely that the sister had been stationed in the Middle East and that where she discovered it.  While cooking, Lina just talked, telling jokes and stories, not talking about the recipe, so that's why the music is there.  This was the last time she cooked chiles en nogada in El Laurel.  The restaurant closed shortly thereafter.  I heard a rumor last week, that she had died recently.  I hope the rumor is untrue and that someone will write in and tell me she is still with us and cooking.  If she has passed, they are eating well in Heaven.