TastyDesign

Got Cacao?

Yes, we have some cocoa beans! They are beautiful and tasty.

I bet most of you, like me, love chocolate...dark or white, and have experienced the wonders -cocoa butter-, a fantastic natural moisturizer, does to your skin (massages, cosmetics, soaps) AND in you kitchen.

I have to admit I am a chocolate NUT, being that the only reason why I do not eat it often. Ohh chocolate, greatest chocolate...why do you make me suffer like this? WHY is it I have to deprive myself of eating my favorite -cream cheese cappuccino brownies-?  with that silky texture, the melting dark mouth watering filling of a truffle, or the white chocolate ganache of one of my favorite cakes? Life is so cruel. The destiny is unfair when it comes to chocolate.

I just hear it coming:... OK Mely...calm down, breathe hard and think of something else...

No! No! and No!...I wont think of something else...I want chocolate. I have chocolate, plenty chocolate, all kinds of it: 100% dark choc from Bocas del Toro-Panama, Bittersweet German and Swiss, Hershey`s four different types, Ambrofoli Professional Choc, blanc choc from Chile, Baker`s premium white chocolate, and Lorann oils Cocoa Butter, one pound. I have to do something with chocolate :)

Sooooooooooo, after convincing myself I have to bake something with chocolate...I came up with this scrumptious recipe for: Flan de Coco con Chocolate! Hope you enjoy it :)

Love,

Chef M/

P.S. The white fruits in the picture are cacao (cocoa beans), and the man next to the tree is Mr. Gabriel, (a Kuna indian) the gardener who takes care of the garden.

Bocas del Toro: beautiful tropical paradise

What an unexpected adventure. I have been traveling all my life, but the one place I didn`t know well until now was my own country. I guess it happens sometimes. Don`t you think?

Our relatives came to visit and we took a trip to Bocas del Toro (one of the provinces at the Panama-Costa Rica border). The idea was fantastic (at first), it was my  opportunity to visit what other people thought was great. Then we headed to Bocas del Toro by plane, a 30 minutes flight from Panama City. I felt it was like a day...because I do not like small planes (I would prefer to eat crickets, seriously). Since we wanted to fully experience Bocas...we booked a couple of bungalows at an ecologic retreat on an island 45 minutes from Bocas del Toro city (only accesible by boat). Ohhh well,...it was great for the boys, but since I am the cooking diva, the same one that gets eaten by mosquitos in every single place of her body, it was just hell to me. Just take a look at the picture where Britt is drinking coconut water...I am the one next to him, yes, and the big blue bottle in my shirt pocket was a USELESS mosquito repellent. People say I am TOO sweet (for the bugs), then my friends and family always invite me to go places so the bugs love me :) Sad.

Besides the bugs, the trip was fantastic. Loved the fruit, seafood and fish---and of course the marvelous landscape.

For you to enjoy we are posting today some pictures of our trip to Bocas...and a fantastic recipe for Pudin de Naranja y Coco - Orange and Coconut Pudding by the CookingDiva :)

Fishing for dinner (in the Panama Canal)

Recently our relatives from Florida came to visit and (of course) since they wanted to go fishing, one of the places we took them was: The Panama Canal! Yes, it was so much fun...just take a look at the pictures, we were right there were all the action was taking place: cruise boats, cargo ships, etc...And also, lots of great, beautiful looking fish for dinner. You can rent a boat (including a local guide) for $40 a day (per person). When you come back they have local fishermen that clean the fish, included in the $40 price. It`s fantastic! The days after that fishing experience, I prepared fish in so many ways: ---souffle, baked, stuffed, fried, in soup, cakes, empanadas, with eggs, in omelette, in ceviche ---you get the idea! :)

Enjoy the tasty Fish and Spinach Pie recipe by visting the CookingDiva website

Love,

Me