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Mexican food in general for a non-native looks like a constant feast of taste, but Mexican holiday food possesses particular zest and gusto. Probably no other country has so many festivals, feasts and holidays as Mexico. Mexican calendar is so crowded with national, religious and saints' days holidays that almost every day is a reason for fiesta. Fiestas are not celebrated in a family, they are celebrated by the whole neighborhood, and a key element of these festivities is food.

Here is an outline of the most celebrated holidays and the traditional Mexican holiday food served for the occasion.

As Mexico is mostly a Catholic country, the most important holiday involving the tastiest Mexican holiday food is Christmas. Festivities start nine days before Christmas through the 6th of January. For Noche Buena the Mexicans serve up hot steaming apple-cider and chimayo cocktails. The main meal usually constitutes of chiles rellenos, pozole or menudo, chicken and beef tamales, Mexican rice and tamales de dulce (check on Mexican food cooking tips). Dessert is also included to the Mexican holiday food menu, but it is often skipped, as time for it comes when everybody has already opened their presents (so it is in the morning) and by that time children usually are already satisfied with sweets from the fir-tree and picatas (hollow brightly coloured Christmas figures staffed with candies).

As in all Catholic countries New Year comes just as an echo of Christmas. The celebration is casual, it is just another occasion to gather friends, have some papas fritas with favorite salsas and chiles. Mexican holiday food recipes for Aco Nuevo are simpler than that of Christmas. Usual dishes are bloody Marys, jicama pico de gallos, queso fundido con jamyn and beef tacos.

Another day having its own special Mexican holiday food is the Day of the Dead. In Mexico they honor the lives of the ancestors and the beloved ones on the 1st and 2nd of November. Pan de Muertos is a dish essentially cooked for this holiday. It is brought to the graveyards along with other offerings.   

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Mexican food peculiarities are well known even for those who has never tasted Mexican food. First of all Mexican cuisine is known for its varied and intense flavors, diversity of spices, colourful decoration and multiplicity of different recipes. But I would make an outline of three main Mexican food peculiarities: diversity, zest and adaptability.

The diversity comes from the rich history of Mexican cuisine. In the 15th century two very powerful food traditions collided: the Mayan-Aztec and the Spanish one. Fortunately neither of them devoured the other, and so Mexican cuisine was born. Mexican food peculiarities vary slightly with the region. Four main regions have their own interpretation of the Mexican traditional food. The region of Veracruz specializes on fish dishes and has experienced a certain influence, of the European cuisine (olives, capers). Puebla is the mother land of sweet, thick mole sauce and appetizing desserts. Yucatan is famous for very (in Mexican understanding) mild sauces, based chiefly on fruits. And Oaxaca is famous for its very particular blend and method of cooking coffee.

Zest of the Mexican food is achieved through the great number of chiles and salsas, which in Mexico are either added to or served with almost every dish. And they of course make up one of the most important Mexican food peculiarities. It is a wide-spread illusion that all the chiles are burning hot, but in Mexico they grow some 140 species of chile peppers, and those chiles have a huge scope of tastes from mild anaheim to raving hot habanero. Salsas (sauces) are usually made of tomatoes, onions, garlic and chiles. These little tasty Mexican food peculiarities add up gusto even to the dullest dishes. They can be of any kind: thick, thin, hot, mild, sweet, fresh, cooked or bottled.

And finally the adaptability of Mexican cuisine proves itself in numerous Mexican restaurants in all parts of the world. Due to the simplicity and sustenance of Mexican recipes they became widely used in fast-foods. A new cuisine has emerged lately, called Tex-Mex: a combination of Mexican and American food.

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Mexican wine is of course not that popular as French, Italian or Georgian, but still Mexico has very rich vineyards and develops wine-making. The great Goethe said "Wine brings joy to the heart, and joy is the mother of virtue". And really wine accompanies mankind since rise. Wine always brings joy, friendship, kind feelings and a hearty conversation. And although the most popular drink in Mexican cuisine is tequila wine still occupies an important place in traditional Mexican menu. 

Mexican wine has good future, as Mexico actually has very favorable region for breeding and cultivation of finest wine grapes. Valleys of Calafia and Guadalupe is the best wine-producing zone of the northern hemisphere. Monte Xanic is the best Mexican wine producer of the region. They explain their success by the unique climate conditions of this part of Baja California. Cold waters of the Pacific Ocean give the region Mediterranean climate, resembling the one of the French wine producing regions. 

Wine was brought to Baja California by missionaries. Father Juan de Ugarte, a Jesuit priest, was in charge of Loreto mission, and he was the first to plant grapevines in Mexico. For many years Mexican wine could not gain an appropriate reputation in the world, but now the situation is changing with the development of the quality equipment and drive in the valleys. Big enterprises among which Bodegas de Santo Tomes, Pedro Domecq and L.A. Cetto are producing great wines and are trying to maintain fine quality. A range of small wine boutiques appeared such as  Chateau Camou, Monte Xanic, Bodegas San Antonio and Cavas Valmar and started to make highly sophisticated wines in small volumes, reaching a never seen level of Mexican wine excellence. Some of wines produced in Mexico are exported to America, Europe and even France!

So next time you visit a Mexican restaurant don't forget to order a glass of finest Mexican wine.

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Mexican desserts are often left unnoticed and forgotten. As Mexican cuisine in general is known for its spicy sauces and seasonings, many people believe that Mexican desserts are not worth their attention, but they are absolutely wrong.

Mexican desserts or postres use a lot of fresh fruits. Fruits make an important and the most ancient part of the Mexican menu. Fruits, peanuts, chocolate and vanilla used to be traditional food for Mayans and Aztecs. Mango, avocado, coconut, papaya and pineapple are still either actively used in sauces and desserts or eaten fresh. Flan is one of the most popular and traditional Mexican desserts. It is a custard based tart and as always with very traditional dishes, it has huge amount of regional variations. Moreover its recipe has been strongly influenced by the Spanish cuisine.

Ates or fruit Mexican pastes are very popular in restaurants  the most famous one, for example, is the guava paste served with cream cheese and saltines. The key point in the ates is proportion. This dessert constitutes of the equal amount of sugar and fruit pulp. As for Mexican cakes they are usually nut based tarts filled with the abundance of chocolate, vanilla and fruit flavors and covered with appetizing icings.

 Different variants of desserts with rice are also very popular. Rice as well as corn has played an important role in the Mexican food history.Arroz con leche or rice with milk is a simple sweet pudding, that evokes memories of home and childhood and is a highly comfort food. Dulce de leche  is usually spread on bread and pastries, sometimes tortes and cakes are filled with it. Dulche de leche is a caramel made of milk, vanilla and sugar.

Sweet drinks can also be referred to the Mexican desserts. They are usually based on coffee, chocolate or mashed fresh fruits. Some drinks as rompopes and eggnogs are based on milk and eggs, that are more peculiar for European cuisine.

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