Zicil-P'ak (Spicy Pumpkin Seed Dip)

It's not much to look at but it's pretty darn tasty. Zicil-P'ak. A spicy pumpkin seed dip served with warm corn tortillas. It's one of our favorites from Andale. And after doing a little research on the web, I found some recipes that resembled this tasty dish. Actually if you click on the picture and see it more close up, it looks better.

And if you look closely in the background, you'll see some canned peaches. I'll be making my peach cobbler for my staff meeting this coming week. But unlike the last time, I'm not using fresh peaches. Yes, I know.....canned peaches? But the fresh peaches looked terrible and were as hard as rocks. So I decided to use canned.

Zicil-P'’ak
1 Cup pumpkin seeds
1 Serrano or jalapeno chile
2 tomatoes
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp. onion, finely chopped
3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped
Salt to taste

In a pan over low heat, toast the pumpkin seeds about 8-10 minutes, shaking pan occasionally until lightly browned and aromatic. Remove seeds and set aside.

Broil the tomatoes and chili until lightly charred. Remove from heat, cover, and set aside to cool. *Since I have a gas stove, I actually held each over the open flame with tongs until they well charred.

Using a food processor, grind the pumpkin seeds to a coarse powder. Peel and coarsely chop the tomatoes and add to the pumpkin seeds. Add the garlic and process until smooth. Taste and season with salt as needed.

Peel the chile, cut in half and remove the ribs and seeds. Chop coarsely and add it, along with the onion and cilantro to the food processor. Blend until mostly smooth. Serve with warm corn tortillas. Serves 4-6.