Punche de Maíz Azul Poblano-Tlaxcalteca

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Metate, molino, or high-powered blender for grinding the soaked corn
• •Cernidor or fine-mesh sieve for removing coarse bagazo
• •Heavy clay cazuela, copper cazo, or stainless pot
• •Wooden spoon or molinillo
• •9-inch square pan
• •Puebla talavera platter for serving

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the corn

   Place the blue corn kernels in a deep bowl and cover with water by three inches. Let them soak 12 hours, or overnight. If your kitchen is hot, put the bowl in the refrigerator. The grain needs time to soften before grinding. No me vengas con atajos.

2. 2

   Grind and sieve

   Drain the soaked corn. Grind it on a metate or take it to a molino if you have that blessing nearby. In a modern kitchen, blend it in small batches with 2 cups of the measured water, just enough to make the blades move. Pass the blue corn slurry through a cernidor or fine-mesh sieve, pressing hard with a spoon. Reblend the coarse bagazo once and sieve again. The mixture should look like thick blue atole, not gritty cement.

   The sieving is not decoration. Coarse hulls make the punche sandy. The women who perfected this dish used the cernidor for a reason.
3. 3

   Make the infusion

   In a heavy cazuela, copper cazo, or stainless pot, combine the remaining 3 cups water with the canela, cloves, anise seed, orange blossoms or orange leaves, and salt. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook 10 minutes, until the water smells like ofrenda season in Puebla. Strain out the solids and return the liquid to the pot.

4. 4

   Add the corn

   Set the pot over medium heat. Stir the blue corn slurry once more, because the starch settles fast, then pour it into the hot infusion in a thin stream while stirring with a wooden spoon or molinillo. Keep the spoon moving across the bottom and corners. Corn starch grabs the pot when you get lazy.

5. 5

   Cook the masa

   Lower the heat to medium-low and cook 20 to 25 minutes, stirring almost constantly, until the raw corn smell disappears and the color deepens to a muted blue-purple. The mixture will thicken like a serious atole. If it tightens before the corn tastes cooked, add hot water two tablespoons at a time. You are cooking the corn, not just warming it.

6. 6

   Add milk and sugar

   Stir in the milk and sugar. Keep cooking 15 to 20 minutes more, scraping the bottom with discipline, until the spoon opens a path and you can see the bottom of the olla for a breath before the punche closes over it again. Add the agua de azahar during the last two minutes. Taste for sugar now. It should be sweet enough for a holiday table, not so sweet that the blue corn disappears.

   If the milk scorches, the whole pot carries that flavor. Medium-low heat and a wooden spoon. Así se hace y punto.
7. 7

   Mold the punche

   Lightly oil a 9-inch square pan. Lay the softened corn husk squares across the bottom, smooth side up, overlapping slightly. Pour in the hot punche to about one inch deep and smooth the top with the back of the spoon. Let it cool at room temperature 45 minutes, then refrigerate at least 2 hours, until firm enough to cut cleanly.

8. 8

   Cut and serve

   Cut the firm punche into squares and lift each portion with its corn husk base. Arrange the pieces on a Puebla talavera platter. Dust with a little ground canela if you want it. Serve cool or at room temperature the same day. No chile powder, no berries, no pastry tricks. The blue corn is the color and the azahar is the perfume.

Chef Tips

• •Buy real Mexican blue corn if you can, especially from Puebla, Tlaxcala, Hidalgo, or Estado de México. Blue cornmeal for American cornbread is usually too coarse and often tastes stale. A substitution is a compromise, not an upgrade.
• •If you cannot grind whole corn, use 1 1/2 cups blue corn masa harina whisked with 3 cups cold water in place of the soaked-grain slurry. It will set, but it will taste more like tortilla than the old punche. Now you know what you are giving up.
• •Agua de azahar matters. Look for it in a Mexican, Middle Eastern, or baking supply market. Orange extract is not the same thing and can make the pot taste like cheap candy.
• •There are no chiles in punche. Do not sprinkle chile powder on it for color. The blue corn is the color. Not all Mexican food needs heat to prove where it comes from.
• •For an ofrenda, place a small symbolic portion on the altar and keep the rest refrigerated. This has milk in it. Tradition is not an excuse for bad food safety.

Advance Preparation

• •Soak the blue corn the night before. The soaked corn can rest refrigerated up to 24 hours before grinding.
• •Punche can be cooked and molded one day ahead. Cover once cool and refrigerate. Cut it the day you serve it so the edges stay clean.
• •If the punche firms too much in the refrigerator, let it stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving. It should be firm, not cold and stiff.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 210g)