April 16, 2018
Bertha was born and raised in Duran, New Mexico. She was one of 15 children.
If her family lived in Duran now they would constitute 50% of the population of 33 people (35 according to some reports).
With a few dozen residents, Duran doesn’t qualify as an actual ghost town but many of its buildings are abandoned.
Duran popped up in the very early 1900’s thanks to the railroad, a common occurrence in New Mexico. Twenty years later the railroad moved it operations (repair shops, etc.) south to Carrizozo, dealing Duran, population 300 at its peak, a blow.
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In the 1930’s US 54 came right through Duran. The highway traffic revived the town a bit. In the early 1960’s however, I-25 opened about 60 miles away. Traffic on US 54 dropped precipitously and Duran entered a downward spiral.
Bertha has been our housekeeper in Alamogordo for the last five years. As you may know, my husband is the Medical Director for Behavioral Health at the Gerald Champion Regional Medical Center in Alamogordo.
He’s in Alamogordo during the week and back home in Santa Fe on the weekends.
The fastest way from Santa Fe to Alamogordo involves US 54, so Frank and I know Duran well. It’s almost the halfway point of the trip.
Bertha loves to cook. She periodically leaves goodies in the fridge in Alamogordo. This salsa appears frequently. It’s an interesting recipe using canned tomatoes and garlic powder. The canned tomatoes mean that it’s a year-round treat which does not require the red-ripe tomatoes of late summer.
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I’m not sure why the garlic powder instead of fresh garlic but there are several dishes that I make that turn out better with garlic powder than with fresh garlic (like my mother’s roast turkey and chicken). So, I didn’t play with Bertha’s recipe.
Just whizz everything in the food processor and refrigerate for several hours for the flavors to blend and you’ve got an amazing salsa with almost no work.
Frank is leaving Alamogordo at the end of June. We’re going to miss Bertha, her husband Miguel, and the surprise treats that occasionally appear in our refrigerator!
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Passive Time | 2 hours |
| Servings |
cups
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- 1 x 28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes in tomato juice
- 5-6 jalapeno peppers
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro or to taste
- 2 teaspoons salt plus more to taste
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
- Lemon or lime juice if needed based on tartness of tomatoes
Ingredients
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- Cut the tops off the jalapenos.
- Put the jalapenos in a food processor and chop finely.
- Add the tomatoes and pulse until chunky.
- Remove from the food processor and add cilantro, salt, and garlic powder. Mix well.
- Add a bit of lemon or lime juice to perk up the flavor. The amount will depend on the tomatoes.
- Adjust salt and garlic powder.
- Refrigerate several hours to allow the flavors to blend.
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