There are more people living in the one Miami subdivision where my parents live than in the whole of my little town outside of Nashville, Tennessee.

And except for the nice family who owns the local Mexican restaurant, and the woman from Spain, and maybe one other Cuban I have heard of, but haven’t met, there aren’t too many of what the government calls “Hispanics” in my tiny corner of the Boonies.

So, when the Census Bureau forms came out, it was important to me to be counted as Hispanic. And to count my daughter, who like me is half gringita. (Though, technically that makes her officially less than half Cuban.) But, when it comes to identification as a Latin, there are no rules, only self-identification matters.

I tell you this because this past week I found a national story and a university study about racial and ethnic identification among Hispanic-Americans and Latinos that struck me. Both of the stories said many of us, as a population, are not identifying as Hispanic on the census, or at all.

For one reason, we see ourselves made up of more than one race (more than one little box). How do you pick one race when your bloodstream potentially has everything from Spanish to African to Indian to Chinese?

And secondly, the deeper our roots are — second, third-plus generations — the less likely we are to self-identify as Hispanic/Latino. We become just “white” or “black” or “other.”

The case could be made that my little daughter and I could, or should, just check “non-Latino white.” But for me, that wouldn’t be right spiritually and emotionally. I am not sure how my daughter will check her own box when she’s an adult.

Ethnic Attrition

But, here is what the University of Southern California study I found said about the second, third-generations (like my daughter and me) not checking the box:

“As a result of some Latinos’ propensity to not check the Hispanic race box on the census, a correct analysis of Hispanic achievement and mobility in America is undermined.”

According to the USC survey, approximately 44.1 million U.S. residents declared Hispanic or Latin-American roots, but 2.5 million did not check the “Hispanic” box on the 2010 Census.

The New York Times yesterday published a great story titled “For Many Latinos, Racial Identity is More Culture than Color.” It quoted a 2011 survey of Mexican-Americans that found that the parents of “more than a quarter of third-generation children with Mexican ancestry do not identify their children as Latino on census forms.”

Much of the “ethnic attrition” happens when Mexican-Americans marry non-Mexican or non-Hispanic whites, the story said. Additionally, the story said, it fails to show the economic and social progress of Mexican-Americans in America.

From the USC study, assistant sociology professor Jody Agius Vallejo:

“Scholars and politicians question whether and to what extent Latinos are assimilating. Some Latinos are not identifying as Latino and disappearing into the population.

People with Latin American ancestry who do not identify as Hispanic may be a harbinger of future patterns of assimilation, but because these people are left out, we might be underestimating the extent to which Latinos are assimilating into America’s core social structures.”

The Census will forever reflect that in 2010, in my little town with a less than 1% Hispanic population, there was at least one successful, proud Cuban-American and her Hispanic daughter. And as long as I can check the box for both of us, that’s what it will say.

Y tu?

It’s tricky, right? This question of race and identity. Only further proves, to me, that holding on to la cultura is a task and a challenge, that the rewards of immigration come at a cost and, it could be argued, a loss.

So, how do you identify when someone says: What are You? What does the 2010 Census say about you?

How would you change the question on the Census?

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Un poquito mas:

1. Today Show spends week highlighting Hispanics
2. Latinos: Everywhere.
3. News about Latinos, Young and Old

Rob! is about a gringo husband in a tight-knit Mexican family.

In the first five minutes of CBS’ new ¡Rob!, we had  jokes on siestas, Catholics and their birth control — or lack — guacamole and Julio Iglesias.

Then there was the gardener with the leaf blower joke. And of course, the illegal immigrant Mexican uncle.

I haven’t felt this regretful about watching something on TV since The Real Housewives of Miami stole hours I never can recover.

Did you watch it?

Maybe it is worth watching just to learn what some TV executives really think about Latinos in America.

I would suggest every single person involved in the show sit down and watch some Que Pasa, USA? Thirty-plus years later and it still is the champ at portraying the funny and crazy of culture clashes with truth and passable stereotype.

I’ll leave the rest of the reviews to the professionals.

And, I’ll watch again…and hope…and likely, regret.

But lastly, why Cheech Marin, why? Why Lupe Ontiveros, why?

Reviews on ¡Rob!

Los Angeles Times: “Rob’s culture shock turns into schlock.”

No doubt there is a grain of truth in the absurd tensions that fuel “Rob” — the overwhelming and sometimes invasive tendencies of a large family, the real cultural differences “mixed” couples encounter, the revelations of early marriage — but Schneider clearly does not think his audience is sophisticated enough to deal with anything more nuanced than Frito-Bandito slapstick.

USA Today: “What’s bad about Rob? The whole enchilada.”

There can be no question that Latinos, the nation’s largest ethnic minority group, are underserved by and under-represented on network TV. So yes, what a shame that the comedy Rob (* out of 4, CBS, Thursday, 8:30 ET/PT), starring Rob Schneider as a man who marries into a Mexican-American family, plays less like a gift meant to appease these neglected viewers then as a weapon meant to silence them. It’s as if CBS were saying, “Keep complaining, and we’ll give you more shows like this.

Time: CBS’s ¡Rob!, Why It ¡Stinks!, and How Not to Do Race on a Sitcom.

When a show like ¡Rob! makes gardener jokes or 2 Broke Girls makes its Asian manager a nerd who mangles English, on the other hand, they’re not drawing on any real experience of life as it exists today. In fact, they’re going out of their way not to: the whole point of this kind of easy, hack-y joke is that you write them so that a viewer can get the jokes without knowing anything about another culture beyond decades-old clichés, based on other TV shows. You don’t have to know anything about what’s changed in America since All in the Family; you don’t have to have any awareness of Latinos since Chico and the Man.

from Twitter during the show

 Que Pasa, USA? videos

To cleanse the palate.

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No related posts.

Cosmopolitan magazine to launch Cosmopolitan Latina magazine in 2012.

Cosmo: Latinas are Hot

The word is out that spicy Cosmopolitan magazine next year will launch a new magazine, Cosmopolitan Latina, for Spanglish-speaking, bi-cultural American Latinas.

(Kind of like the Tiki Tiki, but with more advertising and way more dirty words…)

Anyway, as reported in the New York Times, Cosmopolitan Latina will launch issues in the Spring of 2012 and Fall 2012. The magazines, 545,000 copies, will be circulated in states with large Latino populations, such as California, Florida, Texas and New York. There also will be Latina-flavored content by Latina bloggers on the Cosmo website and via smart phones.

Given all that, I have come up with suggested stories for Cosmopolitan Latina. I am, after all, a self-professed expert in the Hispanic-American demographic — even if I am a little mas vieja then their young hot cha cha readers.

Tell me what you think.

Suggested Stories for Cosmopolitan Latina

• 7 Signs He Loves His Mami More Than You!
• Aguantate la Lengua: 10 Things Never to Say at Work, to Mami, or to Your Macho
• 3 Muy Caliente Moves That will Have Him Screaming in Spanglish!
• “Lo Que Tu Quieres,” “Claro Que Si, Amor” and other Spanish Musts to Teach Your Gringo Boyfriend
• No Seas Chismosa: How to Avoid el Tiki Tiki
• Quiz: Are You an Annoying Mandona?
• Descarada! Sometimes, Mi’ja, You Just Have to Be De Madre
• Mambo and Merengue: Dance Your Way into His Pantalones Tonight!
• Chanclas Ain’t Sexy: Learn to Taconear!
• Not Latina Enough? 7 Ways To Unleash Your Inner Mamacita.

Y Tu?

Can you come up with some suggested titles for Cosmopolitan Latina magazine? (Have fun, and keep them clean-ish, por fa.)

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Un poquito mas:

1. Defining: “Latina”
2. Revealed: Dora, Latina Grad Rates and Latina Makeup Tips
3. Smart Latina vs. Sexy Latina

¡Rob!

¡Rob!, a new show starring Rob Schneider, is about a non-Latino and his new Mexican in-laws. The wife is played by Nadine Velazquez, who is Puerto Rican. Also starring in the CBS comedy is Cheech Martin. ¡Rob! airs on CBS January 12.

From the CBS website:

Rob is a comedy starring Rob Schneider as a lifelong bachelor who just married into a tight-knit Mexican-American family. Rob is a successful landscape architect who, after a whirlwind romance, marries Maggie, a beautiful, smart fashion boutique owner, who is way out of his league. After eloping in Las Vegas, Maggie and Rob must break the news to her overprotective, judgmental parents, Rosa and Fernando, that they are married. “

Vamos a ver…(My own gringo husband should have written the pilot…)

Latinos Mucho Like Health and Beauty Products

A new report, the Latino Health and Beauty Care Market” by Packaged Facts says:

“Latinas are more likely than women on average to use eye liner and mascara and less likely to use foundation makeup. Latino men are much more likely than men on average to use skin care products such as moisturizers and facial cleansing products.
Both Latino men and Latinas are more likely to choose scented products in the deodorant category, and Latino men are more likely to choose scented shaving cream. Frequent tooth brushing and flossing, additionally, is a characteristic of both Latino men and Latinas.”

The percentage of beauty products used by Latinos is up 41% between 2000 and 2009, while the non-Latino population’s use is up 15%.

Yes, we love looking and smelling muy bueno!

You can read more at Marketwire.

Tony Montana Returns

Scarface is getting remade and the writer selected to redo the script is Training Day writer David Ayer.

Ay, cucu crazy Cuban Tony Montana, wonder who will play you in the remake?

Diabetes and Hispanics

An International Diabetes Federation report says that one in 10 adults worldwide – about 522 million people – could have diabetes by 2030. The report also says three new diabetes cases occur every 10 seconds around the world and that the greatest number of people with diabetes are between 40 and 59 years old. In addition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diabetes disproportionately affects Hispanics in the United States.

Almost 12 percent of all Hispanics in the United States has diabetes, compared with 8 percent of the total U.S. population, according to the CDC.

Preventing Type 2 diabetes includes maintaining a healthy weight and at least 30 minutes of exercise daily, according to the IDF.

Gabriel Iglesias Stand-Up Revolution

Gabriel Iglesias, a popular comedian, ith a Comedy Central show, and appearances on the Tonight Show, the Late Late Show, and Jimmy Kimmel Live, has released a new comedy DVD, The Stand-Up Revolution. His last DVD was titled I’m not Fat, I’m Fluffy. The DVD is available at Amazon.

(Watch the promo video with care..NSFW)

Good Reads

A school called Freedom University for undocumented students has opened in Georgia by four university professors. Via Univision News.

Raising Charitable and Philanthropic Kids by Mommy Maestra.

Poor Jennifer Lopez got on the Riculist for Fiat commercial/Bronx/not Bronx mess and CNN wonders: “Is Jennifer Lopez Still at Home on the Block?”

Need fashion inspiration? Meet Bren Herrera of B So Chic and the Heart of Haiti cuffs she just got. (Heart of Haiti is a great charity).

Coconut Cranberry Cake by Chocorrol, a cool Mexican food blog.

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Un poquito mas:

1. Bien Hecho: Good Causes and Good TV
2. Musica, Sofia, Spanish Buzz and Giveaways
3. Ponte Las Pilas y Mucho Buzz

A Mexican immigrant has released a video urging Latino parents to give up a little novela and soccer action to spend more time with their kids and in their new communities.

Eli Reyna was profiled in the Orange County Register this week:

“Many parents are more likely to know the names of every player on their favorite soccer team than they are the name of their kids’ teacher, Reyna says. They’ll dedicate an hour a night to their favorite telenovela, but they won’t ask if their child has done their homework.”

Watch the video here for his step-by-step plan and plea.

Busca to chispa, he says.

His site: Ponte Las Pilas Now.

Shakira on Education

Shakira (full name Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ) joins a White House advisory panel called the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

From the White House release:

The Commission is tasked with expanding academic excellence and improving educational opportunities for Hispanics by providing advice to President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan. Hispanics are already the largest minority group in the public education system with more than 1 in 5 students in the nation’s elementary, middle and high schools, but have the lowest education attainment level overall, according to a report by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

You can read the full, kind of shocking report, here.

We really should not have the lowest educational attainment.

(And by the way, if you haven’t learned about the Kmart Latina Smart scholarships currently seeking recipients, head over to the Facebook community and share the word. I know each of us knows at least one young woman who is eligible.) And, disclosure, I will be helping to judge the entrees.

Touring Puerto Rico and Cuba

USA Today has a travel piece on the rums of Puerto Rico — where to taste rums such as Bacardi, Barrilito and more. Plus, where to stay and where to dine on la isla.

The Detroit Free Press had a multi-part, multi-media series on the new travel rules for Cuba. The writer went under the new provision that allows people to people cultural exchange. You can read about her travel group’s experience  and learn about Benito, tagged by the group as the”Handsomest Farmer in Cuba.” (You can see his photo in the gallery, photos 10 to 12).

It should surprise none of us that there’s a hot farmer in Cuba!

Telemundo goes Hulu

By the end of the year, Hulu Plus subscribers can watch telenovelas and other Spanish-language TV shows via the internet TV provider, Hulu, who has signed a deal with Univision.

And, if you want to know what sort of Hispanic Heritage Month programming your cable TV provider has On Demand, you can see the listings at This is Cable.

Do you like Luis Fonsi?

Ask him questions en vivo over on Mun2 during the next 18 & Over Live. The show is Saturday at 12 p.m. Eastern. There already are a few questions posted in the comments section over at Mun2.

Happy Weekend.

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Un poquito mas:

1. Con Pilas: Daisy and Dora
2. Musica, Sofia, Spanish Buzz and Giveaways
3. Group Buzz, or Que Pasa with You?

Pa’ reir a little in a naughty-ish way. A company called Ta-Ta-Toos has released a Spanish line of temporary tattoos for the chi chis. A portion of the online sales for October will be donated to breast cancer awareness. The designs in espanish: “mi amor” and “todas tuyas.”

Ay, mi madre.

Which will you wear?

Celebrate the Dulce

The National Honey Board has created dulcecitos with Latin Flavor and they’re sharing the quick and easy recipes. Check out the videos here, some recipes below, or download a PDF (National Honey Board Latin Candies for Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos) with nine delicious and easy sweet treat recipes. All photos and recipes courtesy of the National Honey Board, fyi.

Merenguitos video

Dulcecitos Cubanos — chocolate, honey, and butterscotch and potato chips!

Latin Merenguitos
16 pieces

Ingredients
1 ½ cup honey
2 cups egg whites
2 drops lemon juice
3 cups sugar

Preparation
1. Place the egg whites and lemon juice in a stand or hand mixer with whisk attachment and whisk at high speed for 1 minute. Turn the speed down to medium and sprinkle in all of the sugar while machine is running. Add the honey to the egg whites, increase the speed to high and whisk for 3 minutes or until stiff peaks form.

2. Place the meringue into a bowl. At this point, you can add food coloring if desired by simply adding a couple of drops to mix until you have reached the desired color. Mix food coloring into the meringue.

3. Place the meringue in a pastry bag with a star tip and pipe 16 assorted shapes onto a 12″ x 17″ baking sheet with parchment paper.

4. Bake at 200 – 225° Fahrenheit for about 2 hours or until completely crunchy.

5. Store in an airtight container.

Turron de Avellana y Almendra
24 pieces

Ingredients
1 cup honey
1 ½ cups almonds (toasted and cooled)
1 ½ cups hazelnut (toasted and cooled)
5 egg whites
1 ½ cups sugar

Preparation
1. Blend the almonds and hazelnuts in a food processor until a paste forms. Set aside.
2. Place egg whites in a stand or hand mixer with the whisk attachment and whisk until medium peaks form. Mix the whipped egg whites with the nut paste until well blended.
3. Place the honey and sugar in a medium-sized sauce pot and bring to a boil.
Add the nut-egg white paste and cook over low-medium heat for about 12 minutes, constantly stirring until the mixture thickens and begins to brown just a bit.
4. Pour the mix onto a lightly greased 12″ x 17″ pan sheet and chill. Once chilled, cut into 24 pieces. Roll the pieces in hand to create cylindrical shape, then wrap in cellophane or simply store as is.

Cuban Lunch Candy Bar
20 pieces

Ingredients
½ cup honey
2 cups bittersweet chocolate
2 cups butterscotch chips
1 ½ cups peanut butter
1 ½ cups peanuts (toasted and medium ground)
1 cup potato chips (lightly salted, crushed)

Preparation
1. Place the dark chocolate, honey, butterscotch chips and peanut butter in a medium-sized bowl and melt slowly over a double boiler. It takes around 20 minutes.

2. Whisk the mixture until completely melted and fold in the peanuts and potato chips.

3. Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the mixture into your hand and gently form a ball. Make 20 balls and place them into small paper cups. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Celebrate Flan

Head over to Spanglish Baby to see a whole wide Latin world of Flan in its many flavors and incarnations: Cajeta flan, pumpkin flan, low-cal flan, Spanish, Peruvian and Argentinian flan. See why we love Spanglish Baby? They speak our language! Viva Flan Week.

Celebrate La Ciudad

The Tiki Tiki is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2011 via a collection of city guides, Latinland USA. We have teamed up with great writers across the country to share insider tips to their favorite places for dining, exploring, shopping and dancing — todo with saborcito.

So, heads up that the essays will be running now through mid-October. If you haven’t already subscribed via email, do it so you don’t miss it. And, of course, we’d love for you to share your own insider tips on your city and state.

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Un poquito mas:

1. Báte, Báte. Chocoláte.
2. A Match Made in Heaven = Flan + Cake
3. Sopa de Platano

I ran out of money during my last semester of college.

Despite loans and grants and working, casi ni un centavo.

And then a $500 scholarship came through: the Polly Robinson Memorial Scholarship.

I use the scholarship’s full name with honor and gratitude, because if it wasn’t for the people who offered it — in memory of a daughter who wanted to be a features reporter — that last semester would have been much different.

Sometimes, we all just need a little helping hand, a push, a reward for hard work — a gift whose benefit lasts a lifetime.

Apply for the Latina Smart Fund Scholarship

And that’s what is available right now through the Latina Smart Fund Scholarship offered by Kmart.

The Latina Smart Fund will deliver $25,000 in scholarships to Latinas who are graduating high school seniors and/or students currently enrolled in college, technical or trade schools.

Until Oct. 31, candidates can apply for the scholarship two ways:

• Submit a 750 to 1,000-word essay via the app on the Latina Smart Facebook community page..
• Upload a two-minute video answering a topical question on the Kmart Latina Smart Facebook community page.

You can find the application app on the Facebook community page. The link to the application is on the left side of the Facebook page and titled Latina Smart Scholarship. You also can read, share and vote on the submitted entrees.

The top 50 applicants will be rated by the Latina Smart Ambassadors (I am one of them) based on originality, style and enthusiasm. Then, the top 20 applicants will move to a final round that will be judged by a panel of experts in business and education.

There will be one $10,000 scholarship and three $5,000 awards.

Education is empowerment. Community is empowerment. Combining the two is a complete winning recipe.

Share the Opportunity

Please share this wonderful scholarship opportunity with your friends, loved ones, neighbors by clicking the Facebook “Like” or Google+ buttons at the bottom of this post, or on the Latina Smart Facebook page, via email, Twitter, or any social network to which you belong.

Help us spread the good word on this and contribute to the education of four lucky women.

Good luck to all the applicants.

Click the image to go to the Latina Smart Scholarship Fund App

Disclosure: I am working with Kmart’s Latina Smart program to promote the Latina Smart Scholarship Fund.

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Un poquito mas:

1. Being Latina Smart (Video)
2. Hablando Latina Smart
3. Smart Latina vs. Sexy Latina

The MTV Tr3s Coolturistas

Note: Click the headline link if you can’t see the video.

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month 2011

Hola gente, here’s a round-up of news, culture, music and good reading to help with the daily celebration of being Latino in the USA, something we celebrate daily here on the Tiki Tiki.

HBO Latino presents The Latino List, interviews with people like Pitbull, Gloria Estefan, and Eva Longoria. The premiere is Wednesday, Sept. 28. Check your local listings for times and for a synopsis look at the HBO site.

Over at MTV’s Tr3s, check out the “Coolturistas” – young Latino influencers in art, music, food and fashion. Pictured above, they include the Cuban-American illustrator LEBO, the Pavon sisters of fashion, and Marcela Valladolid of the Food Network’s Mexican Made Easy. Interviews, links and details are at Tr3s’s Hispanic Heritage Month page.

Latina food writers represent on iVillage with a collection of 11 delicious Latin recipes. You’ll notice Tiki Tiki contibutors such as Marta and Bonnie, and others we’ve linked to, and loved, in the past.

Hispanic Heritage Month Resources for the kiddos from Mommy Maestra. Teach them to love la cultura!

Kmart’s LatinaSmart Campaign (of which I am an ambassador) is celebrating Hispanic Heritage by awarding $25,000 in scholarships to Latinas enrolled, or planning to enroll, in college or post-secondary school. If you haven’t visited the LatinaSmart Facebook community, come on over. It is muy fun.

Read books about la cultura, no matter what your age or reading level by checking out the Hispanic heritage-themed books recommended by Just Read, Florida! by the Florida Department of Education. There are some awesome titles and they are divided by age: Pre-K-2; Elementary, grades 3 to 5; Middle School, grades 6 to 8; High School, 9 to 12; and Adult Reading.

Read the Official Presidential Proclamation for Hispanic Heritage Month 2011.

How it starts:

From those who trace their roots to America’s earliest days to those who recently came to the United States carrying nothing but hope for a better life, Hispanics have always been integral to our national story.  As an American family more than 300 million strong, we constitute one people, sharing sacrifice and prosperity because we know we rise and fall together.  America is a richer and more vibrant country because of the contributions of Hispanics, and during National Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate the immeasurable impact they have made on our Nation.

Do a craft: Make Mexican papel picado. Easy instructions over at Multicultural Familia.

Know the numbers: Latinos by the Numbers, a collection of stats from the Census, as showcased on HuffingtonPost.

Do it all while listening to free music on your computer via the Smithsonian’s Folkways site. Find Puerto Rican plena, mariachi, the sounds of Latin Chicago, and La Nueva Cancion, which is songs of change from Latin America. Super cool and educational. Also check out the Smithsonian’s RadioLatino.

Have a wonderful weekend…Live with tradition…y felicidad.

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Un poquito mas:

1. Cue the Mariachis: Hispanic Heritage Month Begins
2. Wepa! Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration Book Giveaway
3. Latinos: Everywhere.

Clásico Coffee Flan

At my house, there always is a jar of instant café in the freezer, which I use especially for making heavenly Coffee Flan.

It is easy. Just dissolve café granules into the flan’s liquid ingredients, making it a most glorious café con leche color, going darker or lighter depending on mood and just whom will be consuming it. Mine rarely is the same color twice.

Just for you, the folks at Nescafé have offered up a real easy and delicious Flan de Café recipe.

Note: After the recipes, read about a Nescafé Clásico coffee gift basket giveaway and the chance to win dinner and a private dance lesson with Javier “Poty” Castillo, director of choreography for the dance show, Mira Quien Baila. Poty, Spain’s most popular choreographer, is touring the U.S. with Nescafé’s  ”Celebra Nuestro Ritmo” campaign, inspiring dance, fun and good health.

First, the Flan de Café recipe!

Clásico Café (Coffee) Flan

Estimated Times:
Preparation Time: 15 mins
Cooking Time: 1 hr 5 mins
Cooling Time: 4 hrs refrigerating

Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 can (14 oz.) Nestlé La Lechera Sweetened Condensed Milk
• 5 large eggs
• 1 can (12 fl. oz.) Nestlé Carnation Evaporated Milk
• 1 to 2 tablespoons Nescafé  Clásico Instant Coffee Granules
• Whipped cream (optional)
• Fresh fruit (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 325° F.

Heat sugar in small, heavy-duty saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, for 5 to 7 minutes or until dissolved and caramel-colored. Quickly pour onto bottom of 9-inch deep pie dish; swirl around bottom and side to coat.

Place sweetened condensed milk, eggs, evaporated milk and coffee granules in blender; cover. Blend until smooth.

Pour into prepared dish; cover with foil. Place dish in large roasting pan; fill roasting pan with water to about 1-inch depth.

Bake for 55- to 65-minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Remove flan from water. Cool on wire rack.

Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

To serve, run small spatula around edge of pan. Invert serving plate over dish. Turn over; shake gently to release.

Serve topped with whipped cream and fruit.

Mas Clásico Coffee Recipes

Clásico Cupcakes with Coffee Frosting.

Clásico and Dulce de Leche drink. (Rum optional)

Mexican Coffee Ice Cream with Abuelita Chocolate Sauce.

Dulce de Leche Shake

Cola de Mono: Traditional Chilean Holiday Drink (Recipe calls for Chilean aguardiente, white rum, brandy or vodka. Wepa!)

The Clásico Giveaway

Details: One Tiki Tiki reader will win a basket of Nescafé Clásico , four Celebra tu Ritmo coffee mugs and an autographed photo of Poty.

How to win:

• Tell us how you like your coffee?
• Or, tell us your favorite recipe that uses coffee in the ingredients. (Hellooooo, Coffee Flan!)
• Or, tell us how much you love the idea of drinking something called Cola de Mono!

But wait, there is more.

If you head over to the Nescafé  Latino Facebook Page, you can enter a Sweepstakes (***Not associated with this Giveaway) to enter for the chance to win tickets to show in New York, plus dinner and a dance lesson with Poty.

Nescafe Latino Facebook Fans will be able to see 24 Latin dance lessons offered by Poty. Sweepstakes ends Nov. 8.

Also, if you live in Houston, Dallas or Los Angeles you can attend ‘Celebra Nuestro Ritmo’ Café Day events, which feature live dance performances, music, gifts and Nescafé Clásico café. Events are also supported by the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture (NALAC).

Dates:
Houston, TX on September 30; Dallas, TX on October 1; Los Angeles, CA on October 8.

For campaign details read the official Nestle press release.

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Un poquito mas:

1. A Match Made in Heaven = Flan + Cake
2. Mango Paletas! Mexican Popsicles Recipe
3. Tres Leches Cake, an Easy Recipe

We watched the Oprah finale. It was pretty good. While she didn’t give the Tiki Tiki our own show on Own, we continue to be inspired by what she has done for others. A quote by Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor which Oprah shared stood out: “Please take responsibility for the energy you bring into this space.”

It reminded me of the Cuban equivalent: “No vengas a joder.”

You can read the transcript from the final show at Oprah’s site.

Did you watch?

I will miss her, but right now, I am loving Dr. Oz, whom I thank for this recipe: Decadent Chocolate Fix! Con aguacate!

But, you don’t look Puerto Rican!?

Add Scotty McCreery, the new American Idol, to the Latino mix.

Turns out Abuela is from Puerto Rico. If the country crooner moves to Nashville, I am going to invite him to salsa night at my house ’cause — wait, wait for the stereotype — you know he can dance!

He, of the thick North Carolina accent, told an interviewer he has the curly Puerto Rican hair to prove the genetics.

Welcome to la familia, Scotty!

Brazil in your Underpants

We love Brazil. The people who brought us The Brazilian Wax and and taught us to embrace our nalgas, now brings us this — sexual health warning labels and reminders in underwear, by law:

“Bras would carry tags encouraging self-examinations for early detection of breast cancer. Underwear would advise men over 40 to get screened for prostate cancer or women to use condoms to prevent cervical cancer.”

Thank you, Fox News Latino for that one.

Must See: Los Americans

The web series, Los Americans premieres. It’s about an acculturated Mexican-American family in Los Angeles dealing with “issues that many families face today including unemployment, cultural identity, and alcoholism,”  according to the promo video.

In one scene, a lead character, Lee, tells his mother not to speak Spanish. She answers, referencing his teen children:

“What, are you afraid they are going to find out they are Mexican?”

It stars the super-talented Esai Morales as the young patriarch and Lupe Ontiveros as his drunk Mami.

Check out the conversation about the show on Latina-ish.

And watch the first episode here:

Must Reads

• Celebrating Memorial Day with Your Kids, ideas from Mommy Maestra.
• Yvonne Condes takes her kids to an education rally in California.
• Mango Paletas were featured this week on the Tiki Tiki. Did you catch the recipe?
• Check out the Latina Smart Facebook Community I am working on. It is sponsored by Kmart and is part of a nationwide campaign that includes Sofia Vergara and Cristina Saralegui and Selena Gomez. So, come hang out.

Have a safe and beautiful Memorial Day Weekend, gente.

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