BonVivant

One of my favourite vegetables. These are small and Turkish. And one of my favourite pasta dishes. (Graviera, Cretan cheese is hard) German Pinot Noir Meal #2: Already wolfed down 3 kilos of asparagus in the first 10 days of the season! Asparagus "essence" in cup

Got 2 kilos of asparagus yesterday and have already finished half. A big glug of Schnapps went into the salt cure Asparagus softened in milk then pureed with leftover boiled potatoes. Riesling from Pfalz (Rhineland-)Palatinate. I prefer mineral rich Mosel Riesling (Sekt/Chamgpagne style) but it's a very hard wine to find where I am, let alone from Mosel. Meal number 2: prawns and eggs with green sauce Half kilo of prawns and the shells (to make a broth to drink) Beer for afters

Obsessive much? Mine and where I acquired each one from. I even bring one (Austrian) on some holidays! I usually just make button dumplings (Knöpfle/Knöpfli/Spätzli). I do add some potato starch to the batter. Best to mix it with cheese or scrambled eggs (the finished dishes, not in the batter).

It's the "second Sunday" (feels like it, everyone has a "free" day" today). The wait is finally OVER! My plate The grated yellow bits come from this... salt-cured yolks. Boiled eggs steeped in beetroot water. Green sauce (radish leaves, avocado, lime juice, kefir). (I'm partial to) Tirolean Speck and hams No Riesling in the house but I have "biere brut". It does have a taste of asparagus in it. Long oysters A different kind of eggs, with a mustard sauce. Mine is not yellow because it's not the creamy type. These eggs are most commonly served with boiled potatoes but I have bread. Limequat marmalade and poppy seed "crosses" Went biking in the countryside and walking in the woods for hours yesterday. Asparagus farm near my house, always buy from them. Supreme quality (and with prices to match). The covers can be seen from a great distance. They glisten in the sun. Asparagus Spider lifts and holds the cover up so the workers can do the harvesting. One of the reasons asparagus is so expensive is because it's back breaking manual labour. Every single spear is cut by hand with care. Corn field from last season. Thank you, farmers! Widlife have priority.

Liquorice "eggs" Simple pastry with chocolate and poppy seeds Gold bunnies be like "can we eat yet?" Meal number 2: Herring

Look up "Pithecellobium dulce (Benth). A native of Mexico. Has an interesting taste. The red fleshed variety is sweeter. In Shain's photo it's ripe ad ready to eat raw. Nice trip, Shain. I went there twice, in 2000 and 2001, before having digital cameras and not knowing much about the amazing food there.

Didn't make any but I loved eating it in Lyon. Some inspiration for anyone who wants to give it a go. What about things like brawn and "headcheese"? I can't get enough of it in Germany. With Bratkartoffeln... hmm... German "Bauernleberwurst"/farmer's pate are equally delicious.

Not really Scottish and contains no woodcock. Seedy pumpkin sourdough from the countryside bakery. My coarse "gentleman's relish". It has mashed anchovy filets, some olive oil and lots of fresh garlic (and chipotle 'cuz I like it). You spread it (sparingly!) on the bread/toast and then the eggs go on top. Nice cheeses. From Austria (Vorarlberg Ländle Weinkäse) on left and the other one is from French Pyrenees (Mont Cayol). Squash dumplings I made last winter. This form of dumplings is called "Schupfnudeln". "Gravy" (also contains chipotle) and Sauerkraut in the background. Beef ribs Sicilian merlot

Prawns tossed in a chipotle sauce I made. Eaten "birria" style (dip the taco in the prawn shell broth and drink it, too). Pandalus borealis. Prawns caught in deep and cold waters of (north) Atlantic, Arctic, Iceland, Norway etc. The rest. Green sauce, Mexican chilli sauce, tomatoes and pomegranate seeds. Real tortillas (brought back from Mexico!), and rich prawn shell broth in cup. Kumquat IPA from Montreal. I have visited Dieu du Ciel brew pub in Montreal and went to see them again at International beer festival in Lyon, France. Another meal: beetroot flatbread. White sauce is just farmer's quark. Full fat and very rich. Some Turkish pickles

Last of quash dumplings from freezer. The Madeira I don't drink is good in sauces. Made a warm sauce with ginger root, garlic, and Madeira for spinach. Udon noodles with different toppings. Mince with lemongrass and turmeric Salted turnips and chipotle I was taking photo of a beer on the grass and this comma butterfly landed on my grape hyacinths right in front of me. Great tit collects coconut fibre from my planter liners to build a nest in garden bird box. (S)he makes many, many trips non stop. I left out some moss nearby but they seem to prefer coconut fibre.

Overnight oats. I eat this every day. The only things that change are the fruits and times. Avocados and milk In Oaxaca they "whisk" the chocolate until frothy. The tool is called "molinillo". (Rub vigorously between hands, pour into cups as soon as froth forms). Candied blood orange slices

Almost like in Morocco! Chocolate and fruit pastes, honey, pistachios, runny cheese (French). To eat you use your hands. Tear a small piece and dip in the jam and honey etc. These breads are very filling. Took us 2 (happy) meals. Another meal. Liver: Octopus salad with mung bean noodles. Fish sauce-lime juice-sugar-raw garlic sauce. I keep the chillies separate as one of us can't eat too spicy. Yet, another meal. Beans (in savoury beef & Mexican chilli broth) on toast. Hard cheese, _Graviera_, from Crete. (Phone screen version)

Jet lag has thrown my circadian clock out of whack. These days I eat early and have a beer or glass of wine in the evening. This meal and leftovers were both dinner and lunch. Stopped drinking S. African wines for many years. It's one of the countries I shun. Chinese-style soup with tomatoes, salted turnips, and eggs. Dumplings filled with red kuri squash. Home-made crispy chillies in oil. Soy sauce braised leg of goat with taukwa tofu. Also added some Mexican chillies to the braised. Oysters and a nice beer from Serbia. Forgot the limequat photos last week. I made marmalade. And of Chocolate, (again). I put all the chillies in zip-lock bags after realising the smell in my rucksack was so overwhelming that I might get chilli burn if I had to wear my clothes!

Scrambled eggs with leftover tofu and mince, in leftover tortillas. Leftover chickpeas to make it more substantial. Love my leftovers. A green "sauce" (macadamia nuts, olive oil, some spinach and chard). Mexico should copy-right "tortillas". The cardboard rubbish we have here is also called "tortillas". Real Mexican flour tortillas have lard in them, the texture is different. It's simply 2 different things and 1 should not be called "tortillas". There are tortillas for tacos, and then there are tortillas for quesadillas etc. Flour tortillas cost twice as much as corn tortillas. The latter must be stored in the fridge and only for a limited time. I ate them fresh and warm. In Baja you are almost always asked which type you want when ordering some food, but most Mexicans go for corn tortillas. Corn is what really runs through the veins of every Mexican. Thanks for your many culinary gifts to the world, Mexico! Chile pasilla Oaxaqueño comes in 3 sizes. I got all 3. Still have chipotle from last trip but I got some more anyway because I wanted to support the seller. The last 2 years have been a real struggle for many Mexicans so I'm glad his shop is still around. (I bought some chipotle morita and chipotle meco from him last time.) 3+ kilos of pasilla Oaxaqueño I used to like ceviche until I ate aguachile. Re whales and boat. A panga is pretty small, probably the size of a mini van. Some whales are curious and will approach your panga. Some go from boat to boat, but not everyone has their permission to give tactile affection. On a tour a few days ago there was this loud, obnoxious clown from hell next to me, who leaned way into my space trying to reach the whale. But, the whale didn't want him to touch it so it jerked away every time he tried. When a whale "chooses" you it will make a beeline. Like this (a fellow whale watcher took this photo of me kissing a whale). In this position the whale can only be reached by me, so everyone else just have to wait until it moves to their side (if they are lucky). Check out this short video clips from my previous trip. There are photos of boats and approaching whales.

Back in (food) hell. 3 flights and 30 hours straight without sleep later. Have made this several times now and always a success. Sicilian-style pizza. It's bready and light. in Sicily, the sauce and topping are both minimal and bready because it's more filling. I made a "border" on purpose to prevent the filling from spreading. Used Sicilian cheese primosale (that's what I had) and there's more than enough anchovies in the sauce. Anchovies are an absolute must. There's a recipe in each of my books but in one of them they forgot a few things (?!). I compared a few recipes from Italian sites and just winged it, really. Btw, people who want to make this pizza should search for the name "sfincione" and not "Sicilian pizza"! The latter only gives you American recipes. Also, use very fine flour. Another one. The border is quite big. Craft beer from St. Petersburg, Russia.

"Huevos al gusto"/eggs to your liking is what you see most often on a breakfast menu. I have tried them all but "a la Mexicana" is still best, cuz tomatoes. Mexican cuisine is heavy on the onion so get use to it if you are not the one doing the cooking. A fantastic (bilingual) book I read every day in Oaxaca. Hotel staff told me it's not for sale anywhere (I couldn't find any ISBN number so I had to ask about the book). It is from Oaxacan tourism department and was given to hotels. The sole purpose of its existence is to promote Oaxacan gastronomy. No recipes but it covers everything else in delicious details. One of the many happy reunion. (The under side of the mouth has no barnacles.) Thank you, darling, for your trust. A fossilised white shark's tooth I found (made it home with me, the X-ray did not see it!). Baja was under water in prehistoric times. I broke off the soil and sediments on one side with a rock. Everybody gasped when they saw the tooth. It's quite big, some I've seen are not so big. Last sunrise at Laguna Ojo de Liebre. (Tha's my tent)

It's been 1 and a half days since I got back, feeling like a zombie but can't seem to break the jet lag cycle yet. For other people it takes a couple of days, for me it's around 10. First lunch in Bahia Magdalena. Ceviche of chocolata clams (my favourite clams). Chicken fajitas Freshly made corn tortillas Unfortunately, the other tortilla lady is no long there. I was looking forward to eating her tortillas. Hers are bigger and thinner. She uses a big rectangular blue press. The new lady uses a standard round silver one. Had many emotional reunion with the whales. I missed them so much. The hassle of getting to these out of the way whale watching places was worth it (not to mention the high costs). 2 whales pressed their heads together (first time for me). Another one. Blue is the side of my panga (small fishing boat), green is the water, and next are barnacle covered creatures. Tender and patient wild animals weighing between 30-40 tonnes.

GDL/Guadalajara airport whilst waiting for a connecting flight to La Paz, Baja Sur. Travelling companion's breakfast. Scrambled eggs with onions and tomatoes. It was a very long day and I did not get an opportunity to eat anything. (Got up at 5am to catch 2 internal flights, 3,5hr bus journey, 1 hour taxi ride to reach Bahia Magdalena. Everyone is saying "you sure love Mexico"). How you know you are in Baja Sur. (Also refer to this map for my whale watching locations ) Big cactuses all along the bus route from La Paz to the border of south-north Baja peninsular. Last chocolate in Oaxaca Whoa. Baja (Sur) feels like a different country having arrived from Oaxaca where cheese or chocolate is in almost everything. In Baja Sur, seafood anything is king and everyone is chill. Meanwhile Oaxaca is frenetic, colourful and too much of a sensory overload. I love both places.

Where I ate, inside a market that has mostly food "stalls". Everyone yells at you and shoves menus in your face. Competition is fierce. Do research before going to Oaxaca so you know what the dishes are when you see their names on menus. People eat at any time of day so don't think the empty benches mean this or that stall serves bad food. At busy meal times it's very crowded and in times like these it's better to come before or after. One of Oaxacan classics. A giant (as in much bigger than a dinner plate) crispy corn tortilla that's brushed with lard, then a thin layer of bean paste, then cheese (my order is called "Tlayuda simpel", the most standard version). Extra toppings such as crispy grasshoppers, several types of grilled meat, greens, avocado etc are optional. Quesadilla filled with Quesillo (Oaxacan string cheese) and courgette flowers are also super popular. An English-speaking muscular Mexican who sat next to me ate one and drank 2 beers. I thought he was a vegetarian and that was his meal. Then his tlayuda arrived. Whoa, the works. Had all the optional toppings on it, including all the different types of meat and grasshoppers.. You see a pile or 2 or this on most counters in this market. Giant crispy corn tortillas for Tlayudas. Another meal on a different day. Local restaurant on a street just outside the market. Lots of gringos stop to look but don't dare come in. Owner and employees treat us as locals. Mexico is one of the few countries where people are kind and don't treat us as walking wallets. Announcement on chalk board outlines new prices and asks for patrons' understanding. Condiments. Only Duvel's table cover is more psychedelic. I ordered all 3 kinds

Lunch on a full day excursion visiting a Zapotec archaeological site Monte Albán, black pottery village and 2 other villages. Looks weird but it's chicken in mole negro, because hey, when you are in Oaxaca, the place to try real moles. Two different meats on this plate. Plus potatoes and sweet chayote (squash). Cactus "salad". Beetroots have pineapple chunks mixed in. Hadn't thought of that. I eat lots of beetroots, gonna steal this idea. "Dry beef" (known as "tasajo" in Oaxaca, but something else in other Spanish speaking countries) and mini corn tortillas with cheese. Heavily overcast day at Monte Albán. This is just one area of the site. Traditional Zapotec weaving Tortilla cooking rig, it's everywhere in Oaxaca.

Mamey is aromatic. The flesh and big seed remind me of avocado. I scooped out the flesh with a spoon just like when eating avocado. Here's the one I bought and made it part of breakfast. Grated jicama in the middle. Took me some time to finish this giant bowl and the avocado milk(shake). I gave up buying papaya at home. Papaya in Mexico is perfectly ripe every time, and flavourful. Mangoes as well. Fruit paradise Mexico. Grated jicama in the middle. Took me some time to finish this giant bowl and the avocado milk(shake). I gave up buying papaya at home. Papaya in Mexico is perfectly ripe every time, and flavourful. Hot chocolate again. They brought us sugar for the chocolate, just in case. We always order ours 100% cacao without sugar. Wood-carved hummingbird I bought on an excursion. It wants pure sugar water, though. Mexicans love their chilli sauces and they are not only for savoury food. Yesterday I watched grown men and women eat tamarind paste on a stick. They dipped the tamarind in little individual plastic containers of chilli sauce. They ate all the sauce, too.

Hot chocolate and atole blanco (corn massa drink). Fruit monster in Oaxacan fruit paradise At home you eat 'some fruit". In Oaxaca it comes in a massive bowl with all kinds of fruits. I bought one. Very dense flesh, and sweet.

I had reservations about tamales but wanted to try anyway. Much better and almost nothing like the stuff I ate in Chile (slimy and pasty). Same problem with S.E. Asian boiled (sticky) rice parcels wrapped in banana leaves. It's not the food. Comes down to my texture aversion. Sweet tamal. Rajas, but does not contain cheese/cream. Chicken and chillies, probably poblanos. I often see them sold on streets or at the produce stalls. Spicy. The chilli sauce is spicy enough to make me sniff. https://i.imgur.com/m9HAkOM.jpg https://i.imgur.com/tzBjYZs.jpg https://i.imgur.com/nsl1vP2.jpg Probably their most sold tamales, chicken in chocolate mole. Comes with extra mole negro. At busy times I noticed most Mexicans ordered this one and another one wrapped in corn husks. Glad I tried all 3. No slime issue, corn massa is coarser. At this pleasant chocolate shop-restaurant you can see everything being made in the open kitchen, if you stand at the counter or if your table has views of the kitchen doorway. The pasilla Oaxacaqueños come in 3 sizez (I got all 3) but the biggest ones are most smokey, darkest and a a little moist. First batch of pure chocolate and pasilla Oaxacaqueños. Wanted to know how much could fit into my rucksack. Found out I had room for twice as much and went back to the market for more. My bag smells amazing now, a mix of chocolate and chillies. The small round-shaped chillies in previous photo. They also have vanilla. Chilli sellers know that if you know about Oaxacan pasilla chillies then you probably also want to buy vanilla. I gave her all the cash I had in my pocket for only a few of these, as they are quite expensive. Home-made salsa macha with different chillies. Seen on a random door in a non touristy part of town.

Checked out another "organic market" where I had some lunch. Food does not look like in the advertised photo but it's prawns. Oaxaca is corn territory. Flour tortillas don't exist here, and don't even dare ask. Fish ceviche 'tostada', on same big and crispy tortilla. Crispy critters, but no earworms and isopods. Mostly garlicky, savoury grasshoppers. Master potter demonstrates how Zapotecan black pottery is made. Takes about 4 weeks or from this to the final product, all manually. No glaze is applied. @chefmdand @Kim ShookI have asked. Apparently the lead issue does not extend to black pottery as the lead is in the glaze. I would have bought these 2 cups but I no longer buy stuff. Only edible souvenirs.

Enchiladas "Swiss-style" (filled with cheese, drenched in a red sauce, topped with crumbly Oaxacan cheese and cream). I thought the black stuff was beans but apparently it's not. Grainy like a thick mole paste or chocolate. Part of a Oaxacan meal (or snack, or whenever one fancies, really): hot chocolate. Speaking of chocolate, I went to another producer and checked out theirs after this breakfast. The menus: It's grainy and the last bits are always thick as mud. I rinse out the bowls twice with my own water. Tools for crushing the beans Modern processing machines. At all the chocolate shops in town you see how it's done, around the clock.