Life in Mexico
I always smile when visitors ask if Mexico has organic food. The truth is, most food is pesticide and antibiotic-free for the simple reason that farmers here can’t afford them.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be concerned, though. We went to Jorge’s restaurant in Salagua a few years ago. It’s a classic dirt-floor cantina where Mama cooks over charcoal in the kitchen.
I ordered quesadillas. “The chicken tastes terrific!” I said. “How do you get it so flavorful?”
Jorge pointed to hens pecking away under a nearby banana tree. “They eat the scorpions.”
Recipe: Chicken Quesadillas
This is a delicious recipe that’s easy to make using left-over chicken. We serve it as an appetizer with lots of sour cream and quacamole!
Ingredients
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ cup chopped red onion
1 tablespoon finely minced jalapeño pepper, optional
1 cup chopped cooked chicken (a rotisserie chicken works great for this)
2 Tsp taco chili seasoning
3 Tsp water
2 Tsp softened butter (or oil spray).
4 burrito-size flour tortillas
3/4 cup shredded cheese
Fresh lime wedges, guacamole, sour cream, for serving
Instructions
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the red bell pepper, garlic, red onion, and jalapeño (if using). Sauté until just tender and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Add in the cooked chicken, taco seasoning, and water. Bring to a simmer, and cook until just thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove the chicken mixture from the skillet and set aside.
Heat oven to 425 F.
Take a large flour tortilla and fill one half side with chicken filling. Add a layer of cheese. Fold and coat outside with butter or oil spray. Place on a baking tray. Bake the quesadillas for 7 minutes on one side, then flip and bake for another 7 minutes.
Remove from the oven and immediately cut into wedges using a pizza cutter or sharp knife.
Serve with fresh lime wedges, guacamole, sour cream.
Easter Gift!
Download here Free!
“In Paris, when you walk out the door . . . the day springs to life as a full-blown performance, and if you are not part of the audience, you are part of the cast.”
With a wonderful turn of phrase and a wicked sense of humour, Cope provides an intimate account of everyday life in a magical city, most often as “part of the cast.”
Cope and Linda find the Paris of their dreams on the Right Bank of the Seine in Le Marais, a neighbourhood rich in controversy, conspiracy, culture, and madness – in short, their kind of place.
Cope is struck by the immediateness of his surroundings and the subtle rhythms and pulses of the neighbourhood. His observations on life in Le Marais – its delightful residents, fascinating history, and sublime culinary experiences – are crystal clear and create an appealing intimacy.
Some days you might find yourself wandering the narrow lanes of Le Marais as he introduces you to the denizens of the area. On other days, you might find yourself at Cope’s side, delving into the colourful history of Le Marais.
And on in-between days, you will find your mouth watering at Cope’s delectable descriptions of their frequent forays into fine dining.
Book Review
Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead
By Sara Gran
The novel is narrated by Claire DeWitt, the world’s greatest private investigator. She is fearless, insightful and pulls no punches.
In City of the Dead, the first in a series of three books, Claire finds herself in New Orleans, searching for Victor Willing, a popular district attorney who disappeared during the flooding in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. According to his nephew Leon, Vic’s body was never recovered, and the family would like closure over his fate.
A devotee of the great French detective Jacques Sillette, Claire searches for an answer by identifying the clues that cling to every mystery – if only we can see them. Her investigation soon takes her to the grimy remnants of flooded neighbourhoods where drug dealers, the homeless and the dispossessed cling to life.
This is a compassionate story; Claire works to help redeem the souls who are still haunted by the tragedy of the flood. But it is also a dark comedy, as the detective heartily nourishes her own demons along the way. Although every character in the book insists that there are no happy endings in New Orleans, the author resolves the mystery in satisfying fashion and leaves the reader hungry for the next installment in the trilogy.
I highly recommend Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead!
Movie Review
American Beauty
Streaming on Netflix
Here’s a movie that has stood the test of time. When it was released in 2000, it was nominated for 8 Oscars and won 5, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Kevin Spacey) and Best Actress (Annette Bening).
The story revolves around Lester Burnham (Spacey), a frustrated suburbanite suffering a mid-life crisis. His wife Carol (Annette Bening), is an aspiring real estate agent who views her husband as a loser. Their teenage daughter Jane is a wanna-be Goth who hates them both.
Unbridled passions intrude. Lester develops an infatuation for Jane’s best friend Angela, played Lolita-style by Mena Suvari. Jane, in turn, falls for Ricky, the enigmatic son of the Burnham’s new neighbours. Carol has an affair with Buddy Kane, the King of Real Estate.
Lives go topsy-turvy. Lester loses his job, trades in his Camry for a Pontiac Firebird, and starts scoring weed from Ricky. Carol buys a gun. Jane and Ricky plot their escape from suburbia.
Calamity ensues. Lester is brutally murdered, but who did it? Was it Ricky’s closeted dad Colonel Fitts (played by a delightfully psychopathic Chris Cooper), broody Ricky or adulterous Carol?
While ostensibly a domestic tragedy, American Beauty straddles many genres, including mystery, black comedy and paranormal. While the personal lives of the cast have taken many turns over the years, the acting, directing, writing and cinematography have made this a classic movie that is still a delight to watch.