As mole simmered on the stove, Cristina Flores would receive lessons. But it didn’t feel like school – it just felt like spending time with her grandma in a place that felt like a second home.

When she visited her paternal grandparents after school and during the summer break, Flores’ grandmother would use that time to teach her, her sister and their cousins Spanish, as well as traditional Mexican dishes.

While both of her grandparents’ households were Spanish-speaking and her parents are bilingual, Flores’ generation spoke mostly English because the language was not passed down when they were younger. So, her grandma took it on herself to educate them.

“She would show us the ingredients, tell us in Spanish and ask what they were in English,” said Flores, senior communications associate in the Department of Neurosurgery at Baylor College of Medicine. “I have memories of watching the Food Network, and she would sit down and watch it with me. She would ask ‘What’s that?’ and would learn the words for the ingredients on TV. Her cooking lessons were built-in Spanish lessons.”

On her father’s side, Flores has seven cousins. Some have moved to different cities, so the family feels smaller and more spread out. Since her grandmothers have died, the holidays also feel smaller. The family members who live in Houston make a point to get together in December, and every year, they pull names for a familial Secret Santa gift exchange.

“We include everyone no matter where they are,” she said.

For the third annual BCM Family Holiday Cookbook, she submitted two recipes – Mexican mole from Grandma and caldo de res from her maternal grandmother, affectionally called Pita Pita by the grandchildren. Pita Pita lived in Beeville, Texas, where Flores was born. She moved to Houston when she was 2 years old.

It was a three-hour drive to Beeville, but by the time they walked through the door, her grandmother’s caldo was boiling, ready to be served from a white-speckled blue enamel pot on the stove.

At the end of one weekend visit, Flores’ Pita Pita gave her daughter the pot to take home to Houston. “That was the pot my mom made caldo in,” she said. “It got old and used; my mom now uses it as a flower pot.”

Another family tradition on both sides of her family is making tamales from scratch during Christmas, she said. Last year, it was Flores’ immediate family’s turn to host the tamalada, buy the corn husks and spread the masa.

“I love spreading the masa, and we were impressed with how well we did in the first batch,” she said. “I love bean and cheese with jalapeno, so I made a point to make those. I felt like I was being generous with the portions – way too much filling.”

Cooking with her extended family is how Flores stays connected to her grandmothers. But she thinks of them in her day-to-day life, knowing they still have lessons to teach.

“If I randomly see a butterfly, I think of Pita Pita, and I often catch myself repeating some of my Grandma’s favorite sayings, like, ‘Si Dios quiere’ (God willing). They were both such big parts of my life,” Flores said. “Holidays are time when you reminisce about the times growing up with the big family.”

On Nov. 24, find recipes for Mexican mole and caldo de res in the 2025 BCM Family Holiday Cookbook. Have a family recipe to share? Email Julie Garcia at julie.garcia@bcm.edu with a step-by-step ingredient list, recipe instructions and a photo of the finished dish (if one is available).

By Julie Garcia, senior communications associate in the Office of Communications and Community Outreach