El Minuto’s Cheese Crisps
In Tucson, Ariz., a late night out is often punctuated by a stop at a local Mexican restaurant for cheese crisp. Linda Ronstadt grew up eating the version at El Minuto, which was across the street from the building where her brother worked as the chief of police. She included the recipe in her hybrid memoir-cookbook “Feels Like Home: A Song for the Sonoran Borderlands” (Heyday, 2022). The ingredients are ridiculously simple but it is essential to search out an approximation of the large, nearly translucent flour tortillas that are a mainstay of Sonoran cooking. The trick is to let the tortillas cool and harden before topping them with cheese and sending them under the broiler. Chopped green chiles are a nice way to add some character to the snack, but a good hot sauce will do. Kim Severson
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