Originally Posted by Lezleighd

The professor took another bite of her tamales and dipped it in the salsa...o yes cilantro was her favorite, "Yes, these are tamales and you have all brought up very important information about the tamales...thank you.... " she flicked her wand at the little glasses of the bubbling liquid landed in front of each of the students, "Just for the fun of it, I ordered in a special drink from Mexico. These are known as Jarritos Soda. They come in a variety of flavors, including Fruit Punch, Grapefruit, Guava, Hibiscus or jamaican, lime, Mandarin, Pineapple, Strawberry, Tamarind, Watermelon, Lemon-Lime, Mango and Cola. I've divided them up so that the flavors are spread all over the room. Feel free to take a chug of your glass and see what you think..."



She smiled and then continued with the explanation of tamales, "Tamales are a traditional Latin American dish made of masa which is a starchy dough that's usually corn-based, which is steamed or boiled in a leaf wrapper. like Kurumi mentioned. The wrapping is discarded before eating. Tamales can be filled with meats, cheese, fruits, vegetables, chilies or any preparation according to taste, and both the filling and the cooking liquid may be seasoned. These tamales are made of just meat and cheese. What's interesting is that tamales have been traced back to the Ancient Mayans, who prepared them for feasts as early as the Preclassic period. So these little things have been around for centuries...Thank you Mayans for thinking these up..." she said with a little giggle before downing her little soda drink....Her's was Mango...her favorite.

She flicked her wand and the sixth and seventh squares highlighted. "Off we go on our next taste adventure...still staying in North and South America, let's try one more dish and then the last four are forms of desserts..." she flicked her wand and map of the world appeared with the USA highlighted. "Let's try a couple from America, my home..." she said as she looked down at her plate.





"Now the USA is a huge place with lots of different cultures spread around. It is known as the melting pot country because so many different nationalities and cultures have led the economy and the development of various aspects, including food. " she paused as she took in the smell of her mini dishes in the two squares. "Please try each of these and let me know what you think each is and what part of the USA these originated or can be found in?" she said picking up her fork to cut her fried dish.