A Tex-Mex Holiday with Johnny Hernandez

Working full time while completing his college courses gave Hernandez the skills he needed to navigate through the kitchens of exclusive world resorts. But in 1994, he headed back to San Antonio. Like his parents before him, he opened a catering company called True Flavors, a 16-year old business that is currently known as one of San Antonio’s best.

Following the success of True Flavors, Hernandez opened La Gloria, a restaurant at the Historic Pearl Brewery that bases its menu on Mexican street food.  His goal was to make La Gloria’s food as authentic as the food sold by street vendors in México. Traveling to Mexico he would spend his days researching the food, studying ingredients,  and returning home to create his La Gloria menu. The research paid off. La Gloria was named “Best New Restaurant” by the San Antonio Express-News.  

With no sign of slowing down in sight, Hernandez focuses on giving back to his community. As a volunteer, he helped raised $40,000 for culinary art scholarships with The Culinary Institute of America, and he also prepares seasonal plates every Saturday at Mes Alegre Chef’s Table at the beloved Pearl Brewery Farmers Market. He is currently working on opening another La Gloria location and Fruteria La Gloria which will focus on the traditional fruit stands in Mexico.  

A Texan myself, when the holiday countdown began, I started to ponder the question of what chefs served at their own family tables over the holidays. Who better to talk to?  Chef Johnny Hernandez. When I contacted him, I asked what dishes came to mind when he plans his own holidays.

I received his delicious answer the next day. “I have prepared a turkey mole de holla con veduras (a rich turkey soup), a pierna de cordero con herbas de olor y salsa de piloncillo con arandanos (leg of lamb with herbs and a panela blueberry sauce), pumpkin flan, tres leches con rompope (tres leches with egg nog), and dulce de calabaza, (sweet pumpkin candies).” The best part? The recipes were attached!

Recipes in hand, I headed to the kitchen to try two of the four recipes from Hernandez. The first was a classic Tres Leches cake. I lightly whipped the egg whites laced with sugar, and combined the wet and dry ingredients slowly so as not to deflate the whipped eggs. As the cake baked, the leches (milks) were heated together. Cake still warm, I poked holes in the surface, and drizzled the warm milk carefully over the top, allowing it to soak through the dessert.

Hernandez suggests serving the tres leches alongside his dulce de calabaza, or sweet pumpkin, recipe.  Personally, I did not think the tres leches needed anything to complement the sweet romope, or Mexican eggnog flavor, but I would never pass on a chef’s suggestion.  So, next I made the dulce de calabaza.

Dulce de calabaza is one of my favorite childhood candies. Pulling them warm from the oven, and inhaling their sweet caramel sauce really take this childhood favorite to another level. In this recipe, pumpkin is slowly roasted in a sauce that features piloncillo, or panela, anise and cinnamon. Be sure to pick a firm pumpkin when you’re preparing for this recipe, as the smaller slices will begin to dissolve under the caramel sauce. Serve warm with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or, even better, the next day over a stack of pancakes.       

Though I would’ve loved to cook the turkey mole de olla and the pumpkin flan, as well, I had to take a time out to prepare for my own holiday. However, today we feature all four of Chef Johnny Hernandez’s original holiday recipes here on The Latin Kitchen.