Articles of Mastication

The First Tamales in Croatia?

I was given fresh corn, cornmeal, ground veal, onion, tomato, some Emmenthaler cheese and 45 minutes. No cumin, cilantro or limes. I’d prepared some Louisiana-style hot sauce from feferoni the previous day, so the heat was in place. In lieu of fresh salsa or a rich mole (no time), I gave each meaty corn roll a dollop of homemade ajvar. It was a splendid substitute. Croatian Tamales. Balkan-Mexican-American fusion at its best.