Martha Nunez, the grand-prize winner of Mercado’s Mole Cook-Off in November, will lead three mole cooking classes this month, two of which have already sold out. The mole sessions with Martha are part of a new Mercado Cocina Series, which runs through May at the Catalyst Kitchen inside St. John's Lutheran Church, Rock Island.
“It’s amazing to have that kind of interest in the community,” said Melissa Freidhof-Rodgers, director of Mercado on Fifth and manager of the Catalyst Kitchen.
Other classes in the series include Pozole with Virginia on Feb. 27 and 29; Tamales with Maria on March 19 and 21; Enchiladas with Paty on April 16 and 18; and Tacos with Carlos and Martha on May 14 and 16.
“We really tried to pick what we thought were the five most popular dishes, and ones that are really used in traditional Mexican celebrations,” Freidhof-Rodgers said.