Ep 13. Tamale Party Time

In season 6 episode 13 of Valerie's Home Cooking, titled "Tamale Party Time," Valerie Bertinelli is throwing a Mexican-themed dinner party for her friends and family. She's putting her own spin on classic tamale flavors with her recipes for pork tamales with spicy peanut sauce, shrimp tamales with tomatillo salsa, and sweet corn tamales with cream cheese frosting.

To start things off, Valerie makes a refreshing margarita with fresh lime juice, agave syrup, and her secret touch - cucumber! She also makes a quick and easy tomato salsa to snack on while the tamales are cooking.

Valerie's pork tamales feature a tender pork shoulder that's been slow-cooked with onion, garlic, and spices. Once it's cooked through, she shreds the meat and mixes it with a homemade masa dough to create the tamale filling. To balance out the heat of the spicy peanut sauce, she adds a dollop of sour cream on top.

For the shrimp tamales, Valerie uses plump, juicy shrimp that have been cooked with garlic and lime juice. She mixes the shrimp with the masa dough and wraps everything up in a corn husk. The tomatillo salsa is the perfect accompaniment to these tamales, giving them a tangy, fresh flavor.

Finally, Valerie gets creative with her sweet corn tamales by adding cream cheese frosting on top. She blends fresh corn kernels with a sweet masa dough and steams the tamales until they're tender. Then, she whips up a cream cheese frosting with vanilla extract, powdered sugar, and butter. The combination of sweet and savory flavors in this dish is sure to be a hit.

As the tamales finish cooking, Valerie sets the table with colorful decorations and serves up her food to her guests. They enjoy the delicious tamales and raise a glass to Valerie's successful Mexican-themed dinner party.