Culinary update

It has obviously been way too long since I've focused singularly on one very important topic: food that I am eating. Worry not- job searching has given me more time to think excessively about food again.

I recently tried my hand at making perogi, a Polish dish. I stuffed mine with cheese, potatoes and onions, and let me say- they were amazing! Unfortunately, I've never tried authentic, fresh perogis, only the frozen kind. But I thought mine were pretty good, and while the recipe was time consuming, it wasn't difficult. Here are my super professional, ready-for-food-blogging photos. 

I took these photos on top of the washing machine in my kitchen. You can also see the plant that rests on the washing machine when we're not using it- whoops.

I also tried a new Ecua-fruit that I hadn't seen or heard of before- it's called a caimito locally, and a quick Wikipedia search revealed that it's called a star apple in English. When I asked the guy at the market what it was, he told me to try it, and that I would like it because it has a yogurt-y taste. I didn't really see how a fruit could be yogurt-y, but it really is! It has a milky interior, and a light, fruity taste. I peeled the skin off and then just kind of slurped at it at first, but it left a sticky, starchy feeling on my hands and lips- a lot like when you peel a plantain and it leaves a similar feeling on your hands. It also has these seeds that I sucked around and then spit out. I liked it a lot, but definitely need to figure out a neater way of eating it.

Finally, Alvaro prepared a new breakfast food for us the other day- shucked corn and cheese. I usually buy full ears of corn, but unless I plan on eating it on the cob, I end up shucking the kernels off. I recently realized that I can buy bags of the kernels pulled off the cob (by the women selling it) for the same price at my outdoor market, and I've been appreciating it big time- I've saved so much time! Alvaro said that he heard from some friends at work that sauteed corn and cheese is a standard breakfast food along the coast. I've never tried it, but it's now definitely one of my favorite breakfasts. I only thought to take a picture when I had almost finished, but the corn has been sauteed in a tiny bit of olive oil, and I added chives and basil for flavor and color. We also added some chunks of queso fresco. Notice that the corn kernels here are significantly bigger here than sweet corn in the US, and they're much sturdier as well.