New Mexican cuisine has its own place in culinary traditions. Traditional New Mexican dishes are a unique fusion of various Native American, Mexican, Spanish, European, and even North American cowboy chuckwagon foods and cooking techniques. It is not Mexican or Tex-Mex food. The more than 100 authentic New Mexican dishes in Historic Cookery take you back to the old ways of preparing food, slow-cooked with flavor and just the right finishing touch. The chile sauces, and meat, poultry, fish, cheese, egg, salad, soup, bread, sandwich, dessert, pastry, beverage, and other recipes will have you cooking just like your abuela.

Fabiola Cabeza de Baca Gilbert (May 16, 1894–October 14, 1991) was an American educator, nutritionist, activist and writer. She was also the first known published author of a cookbook describing New Mexican cuisine, and changed the way the world enjoyed Mexican food by inventing the u-shaped fried taco shell. She was fluent in Spanish, English, Tewa and Tiwa. She later wrote The Good Life: New Mexico Traditions and Foods and We Fed Them Cactus.