Tough meats like oxtails and lamb shanks turn into incredibly tender when cooked slowly using moist heat cooking strategies like a long braise. While cooking is a traditionally acceptable method for ladies to occupy themselves, it may also be used as a possibility for subversion. Tita’s magical cooking allows her to share the entire emotions she is expected to repress, impacting others with extreme penalties. By letting her tears for Pedro fall into the marriage cake batter, Tita spreads her unhappiness to all of the friends. The marriage ceremony ends with everyone crying over lost love and vomiting all around the floor. Though Tita doesn’t wreck Rosaura’s wedding ceremony deliberately, her unhappiness effectively “poisons” the bride, groom, and everyone else complicit in Tita’s struggling – giving Tita an unintended vengeance.

Cook once and eat twice with these household crowd-pleasers, all good for the busy weeks of back-to-school season. Kids’ cooking …