gulfporter

Seared duck breasts. Dandelion greens sauteed in duck fat with white beans and shaved parm. Cherry chipotle dipping sauce.

Blackened salmon sandwich with tartar sauce and tomato on a toasted croissant.

Shrimp, poblanos and onions over cheesy and creamy polenta.

It's not a looker, but it tasted great. On New Years Day we are leaving for over a month so are going thru fridge/freezer to use up foods. Leftover charred tomatoes, leftover grilled asparagus, a previously cut shallot, 2 rashers of bacon. Tossed with fettuccine and grated parm. .

I usually buy a MXN orange liqueur (Salamander brand) to sip after dinner (a poor Señora's version of Grand Marnier). I ran out and didn't want to make the trek to my usual liquor store in the heavy holiday traffic, plus we're leaving for a month+ in a few days. When I stopped at our local grocery I was surprised to see a line-up of miniatures behind the cashier. I asked if any were 'de naranja' and she looked thru them and said wit a question mark, "este??" I had already held up the line long enough so I said, bien and bought it. It's quite nice! Not orange, but an interesting blend of citrus and spices, with big vanilla notes. Definitely sippable. I found this online description,

https://www.forkknifeswoon.com/bakery-style-cranberry-scones/ fyi, I did put a hefty sprinkle of sugar on the top before baking which was a suggested 'option' in the recipe.

This is why I often quit baking for months at a time ☹️ I followed the recipe to the letter; it resulted in the most sour scones ever made! The recipe emphasized to use fresh cranberries, not dried. I don’t crave overly sweet bakes, I sometimes reduce the sugar called for (as long as I think it won't impact the results). I used the full amount of sugar in this recipe. After they cooled, I removed the cranberries using a toothpick and in some cases breaking the scones open. You can see the holes left behind in my 2nd photo. I hate wasting food so will try to salvage these scones.

One would think after 15 years of part and full-time living in Mexico that I'd have learned not to panic and instead invoke the mantra, "usually everything in Mexico works out....eventually" I started shopping for oxtails (cola de res) early this week to be sure to have them since 2 chain MXN carnicerias departed our village a few years ago and the smaller shops can be hit or miss on pretty much any item. None found Tuesday thru Friday at either of 2 village shops. Staff saying "mañana" but with a question mark after it. Found a bounty of them today. Will pop in freezer until I instant pot them on Xmas Day. fyi, to price compare, they cost equivalent of USD $4.50 per pound; when I purchased in Tucson last winter I paid $12.99 a pound.

Another gorgeous label fom España. Tastes great, too.

Recipe says 'pour' into pan but mixture is very thick. I place in pan and even out the top. If using frozen berries add 5 minutes to bake time. I toast the pecas before adding. And I beat eggs and sugar 5 minutes because our MXN white sugar isn't ground very fine. I don’t think you can overbake this, so no harm in erring on the longer side of baking.

Cranberry Squares. I make them most every Xmas season. It wasn't easy finding fresh cranberries here in Central Mexico in mid-December. One of the 'gringo' markets imports them in October for CDN Thanksgiving, estimating what they'll be able to sell thru US Thanksgiving and Christmas. I got one of the last 2 bagsj crammed in the back of his freezer! We were in US thru mid-November and buying cranberries didn't cross my mind until a few days ago. Baking in my un-insulated and thermostat-less Mexican oven is a challenge. It managed to mostly hold the 350 degrees (it's recipes above that temperature that often fail). I added an extra 10 minutes to the 1 hour bake time as the last 2 attempts at this recipe had a dip in the center with some underbaking. We just took a taste and these are spot on!

Grilled salmon with 'green' sauce. It was a puree of arugula and cilantro (4:1 in favor of arugula) with serrano chiles, garlic, lime and olive oil. Sides were chunked grape tomatoes and Persian cukes, along side of (store- bought frozen) fried breaded medallions of espinaca and queso.

Fettuccine with bacon, shallots, charred grape tomatoes in a white wine reduction. I am making more pastas now that I boil a big bag of it very al dente then freeze in meal sized portions. I thaw ziplock in cold water then add to sauce to heat thru. Saves time and an extra pot to wash.

I use Bartenders Friend for stains in mugs. I always have it on hand for stainless steel sinks and my talavera toilet.