I'M BACK IN MADISON!!

Alright, I'm back in Madison.  Mexico City was a great adventure, but I am VERY happy to be back.  I missed everyone greatly and am pretty much broke.  Now that I am back in Madison, I have started working at the same restaurant I was working at before I left (thankfully, they took me back!) and am helping my dad tie up some odds-and-ends with condo maintenance and such.  I am looking for a "real" job, building up that bank account, and getting back in touch with everyone state-side. :) 

I think I will still write in this blog, why not?  Maybe I'll write about food and drinks, cool happenings, and of course, the amazing people that I am fortunate to have in my life. 

Ah, good times, good times.... IT'S GOOD TO BE BACK!!  Keep warm out there... crazy blizzard weather going down!

xo

Elote and Esquites

Elote and esquites are different preparations of corn.  Elote is Mexico’s version of corn-on-the-cob and esquites are seasoned, cooked corn kernels.  Both might sound simple and uninteresting, but they are prepared in ways unique to Mexico that make them quite tasty.

The corn they use for both is actually a white corn.  It is not a sweet corn that we are accustomed to in the US.  The kernels are larger, and the taste alone is blander than sweeter varieties. 

Elote is served one of two ways: 

1.  Boiled in a large pot, shoved on a stick, and slathered in a whole bunch of stuff (elote cocido/hervido).  The ears of corn are in clear viewing area for customers.  Customers are allowed to view into the pot and choose the ear of corn they would like.  Then the person manning the pot takes your ear of corn out of the water, puts it on a stick, and asks what you what you would like on it. 

The topping options are: lime, salt, mayonnaise, fresh grated cheese, and a spicy chili powder.

The elote vendor prepares the corn to your liking and then hands it over for your enjoyment!

Elote prepared with all the available fixings looks something like this:

2.  Elote is also served grilled (elote asado).  This is a straight forward as it sounds.  The corn is grilled over a charcoal fire while it is still wrapped in a thin layer of cornhusk.  The customer chooses which ear he/she would like and the vendor then prepares the corn to that individual’s liking.  The vendor removes the remaining cornhusk and places into a fresh, green and uncooked husk.  The topping options are, from what I’ve seen, limited to lime juice, salt, and that spicy chili powder.

Here is what elotes asados look like:

mmm… grilled corn!

On to esquites!

Esquites is also prepared in one of two ways:

1.  Boiled (esquites cocidos/hervidos).  The boiled esquites are cooked in a large pot of water and accompanied with things like butter, salt, chilies, and epazote.  For all those who don’t know (I know I didn’t), epazote is an herb native to Southern Mexico and Central and South America.  It is used in many traditional Mexican dishes.

This is what epazote looks like:

It looks kind of dangerous… but hey, Penzey’s sells it, so it can’t be that bad!

The esquites cocidos are sold in a Styrofoam cup and topped off with your toppings of choice.  The optional toppings are the same as boiled elote: mayonnaise, lime, salt, grated cheese, and hot chili pepper.

2.  Sautéed (esquites asados).  The sautéed/grilled esquites are cooked on a metal cook top.  They are sautéed with butter, epazote, lime juice, onion, salt, white pepper, and a type of red chili called chiles de árbol.  They are also served in a Styrofoam cup.  Customers may top grilled esquites off with salt, lime juice, and hot chili powder.  (MY FAVORITE!!)

Here are a bunch of pictures of esquites:

Esquites Asados

Esquites Cocidos/Hervidos

Esquites asados recipe!!!  I combined a couple of recipes to get what I thought sounded most like I’ve had:

Esquites

4 cups fresh (or frozen) kernels of corn

4 tablespoons of butter

1 sprig (about 6 large leaves) of epazote, minced

1 or 2 chopped, dried chiles de árbol

½ onion, chopped

Juice of approx. 2 Mexican limes (AKA key limes)

Salt

Ground white pepper

In a large sauté pan, over a low flame, cook the corn in the butter, epazote, chiles de árbol, and onion until almost done, about five minutes (longer for fresh corn). Add some water if too dry. Add desired amount of lime juice (to taste).  Stir in salt and pepper to taste and finish cooking. Serve warm.

If you try it out, let me know how it is!!

xo

yum, Yum, YUM!

Street food.  I eat it, and love it. 

Throughout Mexico City, there are countless street vendors that sell pretty much anything you can imagine… fresh vegetables and fruits, cheese made that morning, bras, underwear, kids clothing, adult clothing, roasted nuts, dried fruits, false documents, things that they found along the street or in someone’s garbage that they think they can sell, old cell phone chargers, candy, shampoo, toothbrushes, other various hygiene products, old video games, pirated videos and CDs, fresh squeezed juices, bread, pizza, ice cream, roasted corn, tacos, a variety of local dishes… you get the picture. ;)

There are some foods that are sold by small mobile vendors or local miniature restaurants that I have grown quite fond of. 

Since I already look pretty out of place here, I haven’t taken any pictures of said establishments/food.  That would require me, the pale-skinned, light-haired, tall girl who often gets looked at like a foreign species to carry a camera… probably not the brightest idea to be flashing around something expensive when my pale features attract a heightened level of attention.

I mean, back home people joked around about me being pale enough to be albino.  Here, I’m pretty sure some people truly think I am albino… especially children.  They stare at me, it’s awkward, but by now, I’m used to it!

Anyways, I will be adding in random photos I find to go with the food I am describing.  Hopefully this compromise will suffice until I man up and snap some pics.

I will have a series of blog entries describing some of the food items I have greatly enjoyed since arriving in Mexico City.  Hope you like it!

What am I Doing Here?

Good question.  Probably one that should have been answered when I first got here... oops! 

Well, the short answer is, I am helping with The Photographer Mexico.  The Photographer is a Mexico City based company that delivers photographic equipment and services to customers with a variety of photographic needs.  It is something that Fernando started, and I am working at the best I can with my very limited Spanish.

Here’s a bit more about The Photographer Mexico:

There are six different divisions that meet the needs of a diversified client base.

They are as follows:

1.  Workshops

2.  Model and Talent Books

3.  Professional Retouching

4.  Studio Rental

5.  Equipment Rental and Photographic Direction

6.  Photographic Equipment Sales

I am rather restricted on what I can help with until I further develop my Spanish speaking skills.  However, there are still many things I can do.  For starters, I help out during studio and equipment rentals.  This consists of everything from studio and/or equipment prep to lighting set up to clean up.  My hair styling skills also come in handy during model and talent books and workshops.  There is a makeup artist we work with, but he prefers not to do hair…so I get to do it!  On the office side of things, I create various documents used for in-house purposes and documents to be translated into Spanish.  From time to time I also get to put my creativity to the test when planning for new potential projects or business improvements.  It’s a pretty good time!

When I’m not working on all that, there are a quite a few other things that I occupy my time with… I’ll get to those later. :)

It's Been Awhile....

Sorry I haven't kept up on this!!  I will be posting something at least mildly interesting soon... promise :)

xo

Touchdown: Mexico City

Around 10:00 at night on Monday, August 23^rd, I landed in Mexico City.  My friend, Fernando was there to pick me up, and drive us back to what is his and now my Mexico City abode. 

The place is in an area SW of downtown Mexico City called Cuajimalpa de Morelos (people just say Cuajimalpa).  It is a very busy area with a lot of residential housing and small locally owned stores of all kinds.  As is common in Mexico City, there are street vendors that sell local foods around lunch and dinner. 

The place where I am staying is more like what we would consider a townhouse.  When you drive up to the place, you are greeted by a tall, thick metal surround (this is common to all places in Mexico City).  Then, you push the garage door and part of the white-painted metal wall springs to life, opening to reveal a space large enough to snuggly park two cars.  From there, you enter the house on the second floor of the space.  You first walk into a hall-like entryway with hardwood floors.  The hardwood floors continue throughout as you walk past a TV room and bathroom on your left and continue forward until you begin heading down the stairs to the main floor.  The main floor is a simple layout with a living area, kitchen, bedroom, and second bathroom.  There is a small stoned patio area off the main floor with a grill and hammock.  The floor plan is very open as the second floor is more loft-like with nothing but a rather industrial-looking steel railing separating it from the view below.  It is a super cute and SAFE place. :)

When I first arrived, I hauled in my luggage and was shown around the place that I just described.  Then, I headed for the kitchen.

This leads me to what I first ate when I got to Mexico City: CHEETOS.  That may seem like a strange choice, but man are Cheetos good here.  They are like American Cheetos on crack.  Due to their addictive nature, I usually try to keep myself away from their cheesy, fried goodness, but from time to time, I devour those things.  There are a couple differences between American Cheetos and Mexican Cheetos.  One difference is the level of cheesiness.  Cheetos in Mexico are crazy cheesy to a point where the cheese is rich in flavor and has a melt-in-your-mouth creaminess.  Another is the level of heat.  Cheetos in Mexico have a chili powder-mixture on them that just keeps your taste buds begging for more.  If you are ever in Mexico and enjoy a little bit of heat in your food, get some.

After the Cheetos binge, I unpacked and settled in to the new place.  Exhausted, I headed to bed with dreams of Mexico City adventures yet to come…

Let the Journey Begin!

On August 18th, 2010 I started my journey South.  First stop—Florida!! I visited AJ and Leslie F. in Milton, FL (close to Pensacola). I didn’t get in until late on Wednesday, so we chilled at their place, ate HOMEMADE sushi, and played with their black lab, Ender.  Yes that’s right, homemade sushi.  AJ rocked out a spicy crab roll, tuna roll, California roll, inside-out California roll, and tempura shrimp roll.  YUM!!  All in all, a very successful first night!

On Thursday August 19th, Leslie and I went to an outlet mall in Destin (SE of Milton).  The drive there was GORGEOUS!  We drove along the coast, which was a beautiful landscape of beaches and sand dunes.  After our scenic tour, we arrived at the mall and struck out big time.  No clothes or shoes, BUT we did land ourselves some chocolate for the ride home!  Between the company, sweets, and scenery, definitely worth the drive.  On the way back to Les & AJ's, we stopped at a public beach, changed into our swimming suits and headed for the water!  We did a little swimming, did some seashell hunting, laid out, then when we had our fill, went to an ocean-side bar.  It was at this little open-air tiki bar overlooking the gulf that I had my first Bushwacker—a drink filled with creamy, chocolaty, coffee goodness.  Here are some recipes I found for the drink:

Pensacola Bushwacker: 1 Serving

4 oz cream of coconut

2 oz Kahlua® coffee liqueur

1 oz Bacardi® black rum

1 oz creme de cacao

4 oz half-and-half

vanilla ice cream

Pour all ingredients into a blender (ice cream optional) with two cups of ice, and blend until mixed. Serve in a hurricane glass.

http://www.drinksmixer.com/drink5814.html

*Other recipes for the Bushwacker at Drinkmixer.com

For a higher alcohol content:

151 Florida Bushwacker: 1 Serving

1/2 oz Malibu Rum

1/2 oz Light Rum (Bacardi)

1/2 oz Bacardi 151 Proof Rum

1 oz Dark Creme de Cacao

1 oz Cointreau

3 oz Milk

1 oz Coconut Liqueur

1 Cup Vanilla Ice-cream

Blending Instructions:

Combine all ingredients

Blend until smooth

Garnish with chocolate shavings if desired

Someone please make one and tell me how it was! 

Friday Aug 20^th was our day to go to the mall in Pensacola—I bought some cute new sandals and skinny jeans.  Les got some supa cute dresses.  That afternoon and evening, we went out in Pensacola.  After hitting up Bamboo Willie’s for some killer frozen drinks, we headed to Hooters for some good patio seating with some of Leslie and AJ’s Pensacola friends.  Being the Wisconsinites that we are, Leslie and I realized the tables on the patio were perfect height for Flip Cup.  With that thought in mind, we bought a pitcher, got a fair amount of plastic cups, and started up a phenomenal game of Flip Cup.  Some other patio-goers joined us and the pitchers kept coming. 

We eventually left our Flip Cup friends behind and headed to Seville Quarter.  Seville Quarter is a unique place that would be a blast to go back to again.  It is a building that is filled with seven different venues—a little bit for everyone.  There is a piano bar, dance club, regular bars, and restaurants.  We mainly chilled in a restaurant where we ordered AMAZING food and drank an insane amount of water.  We called it a night rather early as the next day we were headed to NEW ORLEANS! 

On Sat Aug 21^st Leslie, AJ, and I headed to New Orleans with a group of their friends.  We stayed at Bourbon Orleans hotel—On Orleans St., half a block off of Bourbon St.  We were right in the middle of it all.  We experienced local cuisine such as gumbo, crawfish étouffée, beignets, and red beans and rice.  During the day we walked along Bourbon Street and got a feel for the bars and the upcoming craziness that is Bourbon Street at night. 

After a swim in the hotel pool, and showers, we headed back out to Bourbon Street for dinner and some late-night drinking.

Even though it was nowhere near Mardi Gras, the street was crammed with people boozing it up and looking to give away beads to anyone willing to show their goodies.  The people watching was out-of-this-world as the street was jam-packed with all types of outrageousness.  Of course, I would totally go there and do it all over again—next time with more premixed drinks and gallons of water to avoid spending as much in bars.

Before we headed back to FL on Sunday, we took a walk around the French Quarter (loved it), and drove through Canal Street, and the Lower 9^th Ward.  Canal Street is very nice.  There were many things that I would love to go back and experience (shopping, entertainment, dining, etc.).  The Lower 9^th Ward was beyond sad.  That was the area of New Orleans that was completely devastated by Katrina.  Although there were some new homes, most of the area was still completely desolate and overgrown.  There were countless boarded up houses and empty lots.  Many of the new houses were built on stilts and had very interesting, contemporary, boxy architecture. 

After our tour through devastation, we headed home.  It was my last night at Leslie and AJ’s before heading to Mexico City, so I packed and did some laundry.  On Monday, August 23^rd, I said goodbye to AJ and Leslie and I heading towards Pensacola.  Before taking me to the airport, Leslie and I went to Joe Patti’s—an AMAZING seafood market, deli, sushi bar, and wine store combo in Pensacola.  Seriously, this place is great.  If you are ever in Pensacola, go to it.  If you ever want great seafood delivered to your house, use their online store located on their website: http://www.joepattis.com/.  Leslie bought a whole lot of tasty looking seafood and gourmet foods.  After the shopping we enjoyed some unbelievably fresh sushi before heading off to the airport! 

I am very grateful for Leslie and AJ’s hospitality and had a phenomenal time!  I would love to go back and experience more of the city and spend more time with both of them (and Ender Pup!!)  Miss you guys!