Thursday, July 24, 2014

Colombian Food Finally Celebrated

I saw something today that made me entirely too happy among the many things that have happened to Colombia lately. If you watched the world cup you must have seen how much Colombians love futbol (AKA soccer) and how overjoyed we all were at how well the team performed as well as what a great spirit of good sportsmanship they displayed. The joy we feel about this and many other things in life does not just come out of nowhere. We Colombians have it ingrained in our DNA to enjoy everything in the world and that includes food. Our country is known for being one of the most fertile and varied in the type of flora and fauna it possesses. This in turn has given us a wide range of vegetables and fruits, some of which do not exist anywhere else in the world. As you may be able to tell I am incredibly proud of the country where I was born and even more so with this wonderful article published by the Huffington Post celebrating 23 reason why Colombians know what is good. I have to admit I had a napkin in hand because the images just made me drool and long for the days I spent there last year with my munchkin. Anywhoo, I hope you enjoy the link and the wonderful images of the food they put up. I am still drooling and now I am off to get some food albeit not Colombian today but maybe this weekend. I leave you with some pictures I took of a wonderful meal my family and I enjoyed in Cartagena at a place called Mila Pasteleria located in the historic walled city.

 Sinfonia de Coco - Coconut Symphony
(music to my taste buds)
 Case full of many sweets I wanted to consume.
 Bariloche - Shrimp in a cream curry sauce over coconut rice
Posta Cartagenera - Beef medallions in a plum sauce over coconut rice

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Boqueria - A Little Bit of Spain in NYC

OK OK I have not gotten around to doing the ginger beer yet. I am going to get going on that between tonight and tomorrow night. What I have for you today is a little tapas food porn. As the title of this post notes this is about what has become one of my favorite places to eat in NYC which is saying a lot because there are a lot of incredible eateries and restaurants in this darn city.

 I am not sure if it is my recent trip to Barcelona or just a bit of my heritage calling back to me, but lately I just cannot get enough of this type of stuff. I love the jamon and the cheeses but overall I just like the little portions that tapas are all about. I stopped at Boqueria over the weekend and had myself a nice little treat. Some nice Vermouth (Dark Perucci, because that is my favorite one now) and The Croquetas Cremosas which come in a group of 6. Three of them are mushroom with a nice hint of truffle in them and the other three have Jamon in them. Lets just say that this is an experience much like that of Baohaus which just means I am going to start an indecent sort of affair with this place and its delicious tapas as well. With two locations in lower Manhattan this little chain has it all going on right for them. If you are in NYC and craving tapas I definitely recommend you go to be transported to Spain via taste buds.

Anywhoo, enough of my yapping here are some images of the restaurant and of my decadent treats.





Friday, July 11, 2014

DIY Challenge: Make Your Own Ginger Beer

I got really excited today for a few reasons. One was that I finally moved into my new place and everything on that front is finally starting to come together nicely. I also had a really good week at work and that is always a good thing, but the best reason of all has been a post by Food Republic on how to make your own ginger beer.

I happen to love ginger beer because it is a spicy sweet blend that titillates my taste buds and makes me do the cha cha. It also happens to be the main ingredient for some of my favorite cocktails. So far I have been at the mercy of the supermarket chains in my area which carry it erratically and expensively so you will have to forgive me if my excitement seems a bit overrated. To me this one little thing is ripe with possibilities.

Anywhoo here is the link to their recipe, which I am going to be getting going on....as soon as I move the heavy stuff tomorrow. Just in case you need a little inspiration to make this, think that it is not only good for Dark and Stormy concoctions. My favorite is to make it sparkly with seltzer and add St. Germain to it. It is sweet and tangy and all sorts of wonderful.  If any one out there is trying this I would love to hear how it turned out for you. I will certainly post my results when I am done with it.




Ferment a batch of your own homemade ginger beer and OWN that Dark 'n Stormy.

*Photo credit Food Republic Website