photo op: BIRTHDAY weekend

RER 4.20.14

Not only was this weekend a holiday weekend, but it was also a very special birthday weekend. It was the perfect chance to indulge in bold brunches, decadent snacks and Easter goodies. Stay tuned for more of our Easter and birthday adventures.

RER 4.19.14

RER 4.19.14

RER 4.19.14

Hope you all had an amazing Easter and Passover! Welcome spring and the sunshine!! Don’t forget to follow on facebook, instagram, twitter, yelp and pintrest to keep up with all the food adventures.

RER

4.22.14

RER 4.20.14

SOUTH of the border: SWEET thangs

RER 2.8.13

I could never forget about the sweet snacks that I chomped on while away (well, can’t really let go of the savory bites either), from candy like brittles to frozen treats to airy fluffs of meringue. Can’t I just go back for a little more of these sweet sensations? 

RER 2.8.13

coco dulce y pepita dulce

These sweet almost circles of goodness were perhaps one of my favorite snack foods we tried (emphasis on perhaps). They were amazingly sweet, crunchy and textured almost like brittles. These rounds were thick with crumbly like candy texture, and were littered with flavors, like pumpkin or coconut. I was lucky to try both. The pumpkin seed flavored one offered some savory and meaty elements to counter the extreme sweetness that surrounded the seeds. The softer texture of the seed actually added a kind of moist crunch to the candy like feeling of the snack. The coconut flavor did not taste like the sweet coconut  that we are used to, but it was a barky, stiff texture and flavor rendering the goody mildly hard to chew.

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mazapan de pepita

Another sweet treat that I got to experience, was unlike the brittle, soft and chewy. It had the grainy, gummy consistency of one of my favorites, marzipan. I could feel the crumbly crystals of the sugars in the dough. Unlike the marzipan we know made of almonds, this was created from ground pumpkin seeds. It was sweet and savory, chewy and satisfying. The texture was really exciting and familiar, but the flavor and ingredients were different.

RER 2.8.13

merengues

Who does not love the contradictions of meringues? They are light and fluffy, but also crunch and hard at the same time. Each time we got merengues they were two orbs fixed together with a citrusy sticky liquid, large enough to need almost two hands and messy enough to lick your fingers. My friend informed us that these homemade delights are traditionally made with lime, a tart contrast to the light sugary white. Candied lime rinds sometimes floated in the sugariness of the meringue. The only downfall (if this even counts) was that the constant heat and humidity of the area, made this snack for a sticky situation. The meringues were melting from the inside, oozy and sticky like syrup. Still delicious but the crunchiness of the slow cooked treat diminished and was only like a shell.

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boli de coco

Though I got this frozen treat at a taco spot (twice), my friend assured me that these homespun kind of ices are found all over, and in all different flavors. It was like a smooth sorbet and crystallized Italian ice, both at the same time. It came in a plastic bag with a knot at the bottom. The delicious filling is loaded into said plastic bag, knotted and frozen. To get into the insides you have to bite off one of the tiny corners and squeeze the frozen goodness out. Once I tasted it, I was addicted. My coconut frozen gem was sweet and creamy, and smooth save for a few chewy bites of sweet coconut. It brought me to childhood, and the imagined childhood of the kids of the region.

Now you got the sweet and salty sides of it… which snacks would you want to try the most? Maybe we should plan a trip…

RER

2.22.13 

RER 2.8.13

SOUTH of the border: SAVORY bites

RER 2.8.13

Mexico is full of vendors on the road at the stop light, or lining the sidewalks at city centers, and they are always carrying something delicious to sell. Some have fruits doused with salty spicy flavorings popular with the natives, or crunchy fried corn or potato snacks drenched in hot sauces. Others have sweets galore. Throughout our travels in various large and cities throughout the Yucatan region and even making our way to the regional day of the Carnival celebration in Merida, we got a chance to try many of these tasty street treats.

RER 2.11.13

chicharrones

These are goodies that speak to Mexican childhood and snack culture. These are crunchy addictive bites that come in corn or potato varieties. Chicharrones are puffy and light, crunchy and greasy at the same time. The vendor asks if you want spicy hot sauce or a popular snack sauce with a bit of heat. The sauce softened the Styrofoam chip like snack, making them wilt and heavy but extra addictive. I preferred the corn cousin to the potato. The corn chicharrones were stiffer and held up better to the hot sauces and the flavor was stronger. Either way, this snack was delicious, a perfect salty pick me up.

RER 2.11.13

marquesita

At the parade celebrating Carnival, my friend invited me taste this street food. The marquesita is an amazing mixture of sweet and salty. The goody starts off almost like a crepe, a thin batter spread in a circle on a hot surface. This is almost where the commonalities stop (except for filling). Unlike the French crepe, it was smushed between two hot plates, switched and flipped. Once the batter is secured in the shape of a circle, the vendor sprinkles a handsome handful of shredded cheese in its center. He then rolls the whole treat into a column and adds more cheese into the hole in the middle. I was told to wait until the roll cooled and the exterior was crunchy, before I devoured it. The magical treat’s crust was crunchy and crisp, sweet and sugary like a fortune cookie, malleable and almost flaky in a way. The inside was the salty melty popular Holland cheese, countering the texture and the flavor of the crust. It is genius and delicious, perfect for any mood.

RER 2.11.13

RER 2.11.13

 esquite

Another example of street food that I had at the parade was something I have experienced at fairs here in the States, or on the high street in London; corn in a cup. Here at the little vendor booth, you could see the full ears of corn on the cob resting in their husks. The vendor also had a wild assortment of toppings and accoutrements ranging from mayo, to spices, to salt, and other goodies. I tasted my friend’s concoction including some of the above. It was warming, spicy, and tangy, the corn fresh, yellow and delicious. However, I really only needed one bite  to get the idea.

RER 2.11.13

waye tu'kí

The Mayan name for this delicious, snackable treat is pronounced why-é-tukee. This might be my favorite contender of the savory snack category, mostly because of its addictive nature and its almost nutritional content (beans are good for you right?). These tortilla goodies are made out of a lady’s house in Tekax, so they are not necessarily widespread, but they are extremely local eats. In between the two grainy tortillas there is a smear of spicy black beans, made like a creamy blue black paste. Each of these thin sandwiched snacks is smothered with a red tomato based sauce, mild, and acidic. The baseness of the beans, with its smoldering heat, counters the acidity of the tomatoes nicely, so that no flavor is too overwhelming. But the homemade tortillas dampen out the spice even more, increasing the snackability (for me and my heartburn especially). Somehow they end up feeling meaty, hearty and satisfying, even though, each on its own is thin and indistinct. Waye tu'kí comes in stacks, and peeling each unit, is like trying to separate two pieces of wet tissue paper, messy, difficult, and well worth the challenge. You can eat them like potato chips or popcorn, but they are much much heavier than that; too many can feel like a meal, but too few is not nearly enough to feed the addiction.

Stay tuned for the dark side (well the other side) of my Mexican snacking… the sweet side. 

RER

 2.21.13

2.11.13

 

SOUTH of the border: a TASTE

RER 2.9.13

This is just a taste of the different kinds of foods and dishes and snacks I experienced on my recent adventure in Mexico. Don't worry you will hear all about it in the coming days... from street foods and snacks, to tacos, to traditional (and not so traditional) sit down meals in the Yucatan region of Mexico.

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RER 2.9.13

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RER 2.12.13

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Stay tuned. Be excited. Your mouth will water!

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2.20.13

RER 2.7.13

second YELPing

RER 1.31.13

Just stopped in Tavern on Third for a little bar action and snack. See what I had to say on yelp... I would deffo go there again especially when happy hour comes calling.

RER 1.31.13

And don't forget to comment or email me (foodiventures@gmail.com) if you have food suggestions, places to try out, or events that are food interesting. I am always up for a food adventure!

RER

1.31.13

RER 1.31.13