Pick over dried beans carefully and remove any pebbles or debris.

Place in a large strainer or colander and rinse thoroughly under cold tap water.

Put the beans in a large pot, and add fresh tap water to cover by 2 inches.

Add the bay leaf and oregano.

Bring to a boil, uncovered, over medium high heat, then turn heat to low, cover and simmer 1½ to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and the broth begins to thicken.

(Add additional hot water during cooking, if the liquid thickens before the beans are tender.

Do not let beans boil dry.

)

Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp, about 3 minutes.

Add the bacon to the beans.

Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat, and cook the onion and cumin in the remaining bacon fat, stirring, about 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Cook, uncovered, about 3 minutes.

Add the tomato mixture to the beans and cook, stirring frequently, over low heat until the broth is thick, about 10 minutes.

Add salt, if needed.

(The amount of salt in the bacon will determine if extra salt is needed.

)

Pick over dried beans carefully and remove any pebbles or debris.

Place in a large strainer or colander and rinse thoroughly under cold tap water.

Put the beans, half of the onions, the garlic, and the oregano in a large pot.

Add water to about 2 inches above the level of the beans.

Bring to a boil, uncovered.

Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook the beans until tender, about 1½ to 2 hours.

Add more water during cooking if the liquid thickens before the beans are tender.

When the beans are tender, add the salt and continue to cook until the liquid thickens and the beans are soft.

Turn off the heat and let the beans stand in the pot.

Heat the lard or oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat and cook the remaining onion, stirring, until golden brown and caramelized.

Reduce the heat if the onion browns too fast.

Take care not to burn it.

Add 2 cups of the beans and mash with a bean masher or wooden spoon until thick and smooth.

Add the remaining beans and cook, stirring, until the mixture is thick and creamy.

Most of the beans should remain whole.

Stir in the pepper, then adjust seasoning.

Transfer the beans to a deep platter or large shallow bowl.

Sprinkle with cheese and serve.

Pick over dried beans carefully and remove any pebbles or debris.

Place in a large strainer or colander and rinse thoroughly under cold tap water.

Place the beans in a large pan with water to cover by about 2 inches.

Bring to a boil over medium high heat, then turn heat to medium-low, add bay leaf and oregano.

Cook, covered, stirring occasionally, about 1 to 1½ hours, or until beans are tender and the liquid thickens.

Check the water level during cooking.

There should always be about ½ inch water above the surface of the beans.

Add hot water, when needed, about ¼ cup at a time.

When the beans are tender, add salt, remove the bay leaf, and serve hot with the bean broth.

In a small bowl mix 1 teaspoon of the oil with the bread crumbs.

Set aside.

Heat the remaining oil in a large wide saucepan over medium heat.

Add the onions and cook, stirring about 1 minute.

Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook slowly, stirring frequently, until limp, but not brown, about 10 minutes.

Add the zucchini.

Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Remove the pan from the heat and reserve.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Grease an ovenproof baking dish.

Put 2 cups water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.

Add the rice and boil, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Drain, but don’t rinse.

Stir the rice into the onion mixture.

Add the cheese, milk, chipotle sauce, and salt and mix well.

Transfer rice mixture to the baking dish.

Bake, covered, 20 minutes.

Remove the cover and continue to bake another 20 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed, the onions are very tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife, and the top is lightly browned.

In a large saucepan of boiling salted water cook the zucchini, cauliflower, and corn until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.

Drain and transfer to a platter.

Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat and cook the onion until limp, about 4 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients, except the cilantro.

Cook, stirring, until the tomato is hot and bubbling, about 2 minutes.

Spoon over the vegetables.

Sprinkle with cilantro.

Prepare an outdoor grill or stovetop grill pan.

Cut about 2 inches of the green ends off the onions, and trim the shaggy root ends, leaving a tiny bit to hold the onion together.

Brush the onions all over with vegetable oil and place them on the hot grill.

(If the green part starts to burn, put a piece of foil under them.

) Cook the onions until tender, turning once or twice, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Sprinkle with lime juice and season with salt.

Makes 4 servings

4 medium cactus paddles, 4 to 6 inches long

2 teaspoons vegetable oil or olive oil

¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, or to taste

Prepare an outdoor grill, if using.

If the cactus paddles still have thorns, with gloves on, remove all the thorns from the cactus by scraping them off with a sharp knife (but don’t remove the skin); then trim off about ¼ inch all around the edge of the paddle.

Rinse and dry with paper towels.

Brush both sides of the cactus with oil.

Season with salt and pepper.

Preheat a stovetop grill pan if using.

Grill the cactus paddles until they are tender and marked by the grill, about 3 to 5 minutes per side, depending on the size.

Serve 1 grilled paddle to each person, or cut into strips and serve from a plate as a side dish.

Put the plantain pieces in a medium pan and add hot water to cover.

Bring to a boil and cook, partially covered, until tender, about 10 minutes.

Drain and cool.

When cool, purée in a food processor.

Add the beaten egg, flour, and salt.

Pulse 3 to 4 times to blend.

If the mixture is sticky, add a little more flour.

Form the mixture into 12 balls.

With a thumb, poke a hole and fill each ball with about 2 teaspoons refried beans.

Mold the batter to enclose the beans into fat cigar shaped patties.

Heat oil to a depth of about 1-inch over medium heat in a medium nonstick skillet until it shimmers.

Fry the patties, turning once, until golden brown on both sides.

Prepare the refried beans.

Heat 1 cup in a saucepan, cover, and keep warm.

The beans should be thick and quite dry.

In a skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of oil over medium heat and cook the onion, stirring, until it softens, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add the tomato, chile, and oregano.

Cook until the tomato juices reduce and the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes.

Season with salt.

Transfer to a bowl and reserve.

Remove the stems from the mushrooms.

With a melon-baller, scoop out the black gills.

Wipe the mushrooms with a damp paper towel.

Rub the mushrooms all over with olive oil.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and place the mushrooms, cavity side down, in the pan.

Add the broth, cover and cook for 5 minutes, then turn and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender when pierced with a small sharp knife.

Drain the juices from the mushrooms and save for another use, if desired.

Preheat the oven to 375°.

Place the mushrooms, cavity side up, on a baking sheet.

Sprinkle with salt.

Stuff each mushroom cavity with about ¼ of the refried beans.

Top each with ¼ of the tomato mixture and ¼ of the cheese.

Bake until heated through and cheese is melted, 6 to 8 minutes.

Sprinkle with cilantro.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil or lard over medium heat and fry the onion and oregano.

Cook, stirring until the onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and cook, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender and starting to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients.

Raise the heat and cook until completely heated through, 3 to 4 minutes.