Hola! (jalapeno-mezcal margarita)

. . . beach beds, fish tacos, and cervezas . . . 

I remember when I travel that part of the excitement of being away is coming home.  I see my life with fresh eyes once I’ve stepped outside of it.  The newness of travel is wonderful in itself, and also because it gives me perspective, and a longing for home.

I’m back at Wiley Cottage now and it's snowing (about which more in the next post) but this month we’ve been in Tulum, Mexico where we escaped the winter for a while.  Sure, Tulum has become somewhat resort-ified but there’s no denying the natural beauty and you don’t have to go far from the Zona Hoteleria to find the Yucatan.  Pibil and Modelo Especial anyone?  I have almost no photographs of the trip because I forgot my phone charger and decided the universe was telling me to unplug.  It wasn't easy--I kept thinking I was missing things and then saying to myself that if I was seeing them, I wasn't missing them.  Technology does weird things to us.

As we wandered around the Yucatan, I had my eyes open for plants or foods that might translate well into the Wiley Cottage kitchen and garden.  I didn’t have much luck with plants but here are a few dishes that I’m bringing back with me for the coming summer:

·      Mushroom ceviche from the vegan restaurant Restaure in Tulum (totally vegan restaurant, which ordinarily would put me off but we heard about the ceviche and it was inspired)

·      Sopa de Lima from Hosteria del Marques in Valladolid (beautiful colonial courtyard setting in which to have a rich chicken soup with tons of lime juice brightening it--a specialty of the region and so delicious)

·      A peppered honey glaze for pork ribs on the grill from Hartwood in Tulum (the NYT said it would change my life--not so much--the ribs were good though, as was the wood grilled octopus.  But what's with the sewage smell?)

·      And seafood ceviche from, well, everywhere in the Yucatan--we must eat more ceviche in Truro this summer (and tacos--why in the name of Fortuna don't we eat more tacos here!  Have I mentioned tacos al pastore from El Carboncito on the main street in the village!)

sunrise

I’m adding several types of peppers and radishes to my spring seed order since these are a crucial ingredient to Yucatecan ceviches.  As for drinks, we carted back a few bottles of Mezcal, the smoky cousin of tequila, for sipping and to use as a base for a smoky jalapeno margarita.  We got the recipe from very friendly bartender at the pop up version of the New York bar Mulberry Project:

1 oz Mezcal

1 oz fresh-squeezed lime juice

2 oz Jalapeno syrup (1c honey, 1c water, 2 large jalapenos, coarsely chopped.  Steep  unheated for 15m and taste.  Continue to taste every 15m until spicy and vegetal)

shake vigorously with ice and serve garnished with cilantro sprigs

We also had a tasty "Very English" Tom Collins with cucumber and cilantro at Simple.  That’s next on my list for replication and I hope to serve it at our first summer party.

But right now, there's snow that needs shoveling so hasta la vista.