Tijuana, Rosarito Beach host festivals

With walnuts and pomegranates in season in Mexico, August is a good time to sample the dish known as chile en nogada. On Sunday, more than 4,000 people are expected at the Tijuana Cultural Center for a festival celebrating this traditional Mexican fare.

Chile en nogada dates to the early 19th century, when it was said to have been served in the central Mexican city of Puebla by Augustinian nuns to Agustín Iturbide, a general during the Mexican War of Independence.

“It’s a very Mexican dish, it takes us back to our roots,” said José Sparza, the festival’s organizer and chef at the Tijuana restaurant Cien Años.

Chile en nogada consists of poblano chile stuffed with ground meat, bathed in a walnut sauce and sprinkled with pomegranate — its red, green and white colors evoking the Mexican flag. While the basic recipe includes 25 ingredients, some call for as many as 40, Sparza said.

The Tijuana festival is the only such celebration of the dish outside Mexico City and Puebla. The event is scheduled from noon to 9 p.m., and will include a cooking competition. There is no admission charge; servings of chile en nogada cost 130 pesos — about $7.

Rosarito sand sculpture festival this weekend

Now in its seventh year, this weekend’s Baja Sand festival features sand sculptures, a surfing competition, a live mural painting, and musical performances.

The 23 sculptures on display will include depictions of Aztec deities, the Baja California bighorn sheep, Tijuana’s Cultural Center and San Francisco de Asis Catholic Church. There’s even one with paired images of presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

Baja Sand was conceived in 2009 as an event aimed at giving residents of Rosarito Beach a sense of community, but it has grown into a tourist attraction as well, said organizer Victor Loza. Last year’s event drew some 15,000 people. The festival takes place behind the Rosarito Beach Hotel, from 10 a.m. until midnight on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.

sandra.dibble@sduniontribune.com