At the Table with Evette Rios

Evette Rios is a busy woman. As Latina Media Ventures Director of Development, she helps build and shape the lifestyle content on The Latin Kitchen and Latina.com. A former field correspondent for ABC’s The Chew and design “buddy” on Rachael Ray, Evette now hosts CBS’ hit Saturday morning show Recipe Rehab. She is also a regular contributor to Univision’s Despierta América, Tu Desayuno Alegre and Al Despertar, and is a frequent guest on the Today Show, the Early Show, and the CW11 Morning Show.

In the March 2014 issue of Latina Magazine, we talked to the design guru and Latina lifestyle expert about the importance of family and food, some of our favorite Latin dishes, and using healthy ingredients to delicious effect. 

What is your favorite holiday food memory?

I have so many holiday memories! I suppose my favorite memory is my family making pastels. We make them every holiday. It was so fun when I was younger because we always created an assembly line and each of us had our stations. My dad would grate the platanos; my mom would make the pork filling; I would put the achiote (annato) oil on the paper; my brother would fold; and my other brother would tie them. We had the best time! We always had the agüinaldos (Puerto Rican holiday music) playing and sipped coquitos (Puerto Rican egg nog made with coconut) while we worked. Those are wonderful, warm memories!

What are your plans this Christmas?

I plan to head to Michigan to be with my husband’s family. It will be our son’s first Christmas. His family has many foodies and being from the midwest they aren’t scared of dairy. Most of their dishes have cheese cream and more cheese, but I am not complaining. My mother in law Debby makes the most delicious pie crust you have ever had in minutes. She shows me every year and every year it escapes me how she makes it look so simple. My father in law makes tons of things from scratch as well: pop overs, english muffins, and the most delicious strawberry shortcake you have ever had. He loves his sweets and so do I. Lets just say we will eat well.

Do you do potluck and buffet style holiday dining or is your meal a formal, sit-down dinner?

My family is a fan of the potluck because every one in my family has their specialty. My mom makes the family’s favorite flan. My tia makes arroz con gandules. My other tia makes the pernil. In my family, if something doesn’t turn out quite right, they tell you. I think that is a Latino thing. Brutal honesty, wrapped in lots of love.

What do you bring to the dinner?

Hmm, my thing is always the vegetables. Unfortunately in my family we were sort of raised to cook veggies until they were brownish and limp, so now that has become my specialty. Brussel sprouts with lemon zest, a little vinegar and roasted garlic. Yum! 

What’s the perfect holiday hostess gift?

There are so many! I love making spice blends and putting them in cool vintage containers. I save bottles all year round to give people a little bottle of homemade coquito with a fun label on it. I also think you can’t go wrong with a bottle of wine, maybe one red and one white. Most of my favorites are Chilean. And a soy scented candle in a holiday fragrance is always a big hit!

Click through to find out Rios’ secrets to making a dish pop…

Dish you crave from your abuela:  

There are so many things that she makes that I love and crave. She makes the best surullitos de maiz and the most delicious green papaya preserve. She makes it a couple of times a year and makes tons of it, and it is one of my favorite things ever!

Secret ingredient to make a dish pop: 

Mint and cilantro are [two] of my favorites. They add such freshness to so many dishes.

Favorite Latin restaurant in the U.S.:  

That is really tough. There are so many. But when I am in NYC, I love La Taza De Oro in Chelsea. It is one of those fantastic simple diner/restaurants that reminds me of the cafetínes in Puerto Rico. The prices are great, the food is delicious, everyone is from the island and the portions are huge!

Favorite Latin restaurant in the world:

There are so many. I have had amazing food in so many countries around the world. One of the most magical meals and locations I have ever been is the Lapostolle Residence, at the Lapostolle vineyard in Santa Cruz, Chile. Chef Rodrigo Acuña Bravo created one of the most amazing meals I have ever had. When in Chile, it’s a must try.

Favorite city to eat in: 

I’m a New Yorker through and through, so I would say New York. Some of my other favorites are DC and Chicago. Ethiopian is one of my favorite [cuisines] and there are tons of great ones in DC, and Chicago. What is not to love! Charlie Trotters, RIP, was one of my favorites, and who doesn’t love Chicago deep dish pizza?

Secret to a perfect dinner party:  

My secret to a great dinner party is the guest list, and getting organized about the cooking so I am not stressed at the last minute. The guest list is so important. It’s a great idea to mix and match people from different groups. Keep in mind what peoples interests and personalities are, and seat people next to each other according to those compatibilities. And if you plan the menu ahead of time, prepare things a day or two in advance that can just be popped into the oven so your stress level will be held at bay. The thing to remember is that your guests are there to spend time with you, so doing things in advance can free you up to spend quality time with them.

Next, Rios shares her biggest food indulgence and her favorite meals…

Biggest food indulgence: 

Anything chocolate! I was so glad to [learn] that dark chocolate is full of antioxidants. I needed the excuse to indulge. Some of my favorites are a rich chocolate souflee with raspberries, and my flourless chocolate cake – it’s gluten free and is dark, rich and amazing! I think I could use some right now.

Favorite vegetable:  

Hands down, eggplant. But isn’t that more of a fruit? Anyway, I can’t get enough of it! Roasted, fried, in a parmigiana, in a salad, just about anywhere. 

Best food memory:  

I have so many but one of my favorites is all the experimenting with food we would do as a family. The first time my dad and I made donuts from scratch comes to mind. The first batch came out dry, dense and flat, but we ate them anyway.  Soon we perfected them and they were beyond delicious. Then during the holidays making pasteles is such a wonderful memory. My dad would grind the platanos, my mom would make the filling, my brothers and I would put the achiote oil and the masa on the paper and my mom would wrap them. It was a family assembly line. Henry Ford would have been proud.

Ideal breakfast, lunch and dinner: 

My perfect breakfast would be a crab cake benedict with scrambled eggs instead of poached – I have a weird thing with runny egg whites – and a bellini with fresh peach juice. For lunch, a salmon nicoise salad, it is one of my absolute favorites, and for dinner arroz con habichuelas with anything!

Favorite Latin cocktail: 

Hands down, coquito, the coconut egg nog. I grew up drinking it during the holidays. I have an easy way to make it all year round because you don’t just need to drink it when the temperature drops. Here is my 10 minute coquito:

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add:

11/2 ounces Baileys Irish Cream

1 ounce Puerto Rican rum with coconut flavor

1/2 ounce of cream of coconut

1/2 ounce Puerto Rican rum Anejo

Powdered cinnamon

Mix it until the drink is nice and cold. Pour it in a glass with a cinnamon stick to garnish!

Favorite kitchen gadget:  

My Kitchen Aid 13 cup food processor. It is amazing and huge. I can make huge batches of hummus, dressings, and even nut butters in it. 

Perfect song to cook to: 

I LOVE Carlos Vives. Anything by him gets me moving in the kitchen.

Most adventurous food you eat:  

I will try everything once, although I eat pretty much vegetarian every day. The craziest things I have ever eaten have definitely been in Japan – nato (fermented soy beans), sea urchin, and raw squid served up just minutes after being taken out of the net.

Favorite fusion:  

Hmm, I have to say Korean and Mexican. Something about Kimchi makes a perfect addition to a taco.

Tip for at-home cooks:

If you are getting started in the kitchen follow recipes to the letter before you start to improvise. Doing things just as they suggest the first few times helps you realize what substitutions can be made and which ones shouldn’t. It’s sort of like how a good modern artist still knows the classics.