For Mexican immigrants, traditional foods remade for health

Mexican women in Georgia are learning how to change some of their recipes to be more healthy; leaving out the lard, cutting the salt and maybe not so much frying.   - - Donna Poisl

By ANDRE GALLANT

Pinewoods Estates North, a mobile home park across Highway 29 from Athens Christian School, has for many years served as a hub for Mexican immigrants living and working in Athens. Within those trailers live families from distinct regions within Mexico — Veracruz, Michoacan, Mexico City, etc. — each with its own unique approach to cooking. For many weeks now, a group of Pinewoods women have been meeting at the library there to talk about Mexican cuisine, the differences therein, and how to prepare it with health in mind. Of course, each cook has his or her preferred method for mole, and every week the debate over edible provincial superlatives is heated but polite.

“Just because we’re from Mexico doesn’t mean we cook the same,” said Gabriela Sanchez-Brambila, a food scientist who leads this nutrition and cooking class, as well as a cook who already guided this reporter through the intricacies of authentic from-scratch mole. 
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