Sunday, November 23, 2008

Oysters, Tabasco and Limes

I lived in the mountains away from the sea for way to many years.
I do not love cold weather but I do enjoy skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing; my biggest complaint was the lack of fresh seafood. On top of that the little seafood we get is extremely expensive.
Since I arrived to Brazil I can’t stop eating raw Oysters.
They are so fresh and sweet. I like the smaller ones, not because of difference in taste but I think Oysters should be a one-bite affair
Walking to a bar on the beach and enjoying beautiful sunsets with great company.
Good music…what else could I ask for?
Oh yes…A cold beer



































Friday, November 14, 2008

Top three reasons to go to Brazil.

Food, food, food.

A few days ago I was chatting with my cousin on line and he asked me: “What are you doing?”
“Not much” I answered, since I just woke up and I was enjoying my cup of super-strong coffee.
“Come over” he replied.
“Over to Brazil?”I asked, thinking maybe the coffee wasn’t as strong as I thought.
“Yes” he said.
“Ok” I answered.

I finished my coffee, grabbed my little red bag, threw in 2 bikinis, a pair of flip flops, a couple of sun dresses and my camera; and left.

Twenty six hours later I was arriving at the Florianopolis rodoviaria (bus station), hugging my cousin after almost 20 years of being apart.

The love for food is definitely a family thing. I’ve been feasting for 4 days nonstop. The fact that it rained for 3 days didn’t help at all; no sightseeing, no morning walks just eat, munch, munch, eat.


Today it was the first sunny day and to celebrate we went out for lunch. We had seafood, my favorite.

The food was so good and fresh that I almost forgot to take pictures. So I’m sharing pics of what was left. Better than nothing, I guess.

We had Oyster, fried fish, fried shrimp, mussels with vinagrette sauce, a side of rice and a second side of something like cream of wheat, that I need to ask the name again because I forgot.
Fantastic!












Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Me Me

I have been tagged...

By Ilva from Lucullian Delight to tell six random things about me:

· I am 42 years old and I still do not know what I would like to do when I grow up.
· When the sun touches my face I get an instant smile.
· My grandfather died when I was 5 years old, but in those few years he left me with enough happy memories for a life time
· I have seen the movie Under the Tuscan Sun over 100 times and I never get tired of it.
· I do not care much about sweets but I could eat a jar of Nutella a day.
· I really wish people would smile some more.
I'll just invite anybody who feels like it to consider himself tagged (or herself)

Monday, November 3, 2008

EATING MY WAY THROUGH ARGENTINA

Good friends, good food; can you think of a better combination?
We had a fun Paella night and a mouthwatering barbecue.

We traveled a little around the province.
Drove through “El Trapiche”, such I nice community, I definitely want to go back and spend some time there.
We stopped for lunch at El Hotel Potrero by a beautiful lake in “El Potrero de los Funes”great service and a very nice meal.
Then continued our drive to “La Carolina” , a very small gold mining town with population 250. The end of our day trip was at “La Gruta de Inti Huasi” .

I saw old friends and I made new friends.
My stay in San Luis was wonderful; I can’t wait to go back.







For dessert after the Paella we had a cake called Pirineo, made by one of the guest, un-be-li-va-ble!! The bottom was similar to a thick brownie with nuts, cover by dulce de leche repostero, a layer of heavy whipped cream and meringue on top.

My lunch at the hotel, Veal with a reduced Marsala sauce with peach and a side of veggie mashed potatoes. Big enough for 2.




One of my friend's meal was a typical Milanesa a la Napolitana.





Saturday, November 1, 2008

3 Delicious Spinach Recipes

Somehow the last three posts have been about spinach.
This is the end of the series.
This recipe is from my friend Patricia, who hates to cook, but has this signature dish that is fast simple and delicious.
Try it you can’t go wrong.
Just follow these easy steps.
Spinach Nests


Put some butter in an small oven proof bowl. (Individual portions)

Enmantecar unas cazuelas. (Porciones individuales)

Add some fresh spinach.

Agregar espinaca fresca.


A touch of salt.

Un poco de sal.




An egg in the middle.

Un huevo en el medio.





Heavy cream (that was really good heavy cream)
Crema





Parmesan Cheese. (a lot)
Queso rallado. (bastante)





And into the oven until the egg is cooked.
Y al horno hasta que se cocine el huevo.
Niditos de espinaca