Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Chunky Salad

A Curran family recipe for warm German potato salad features vinegar-saturated potatoes, sweet onions, and tons of bacon. My great-grandmother Hap taught it to my dad, who makes it for holidays. Its one of my all-time favorite things to eat. In a recent lunch I tried to recreate this flavor combination with some additional ingredients. (Not that this recipe needs modification!) I tossed the cooked potatoes with apple cider vinegar, lime juice, and olive oil. Others who joined the party were peas, bacon, a hard-boiled egg, parsley, and some sliced raw onion. The result was delicious, something familiar and unusual at the same time. I would never go to lime juice for this salad, but we have limes, not lemons here in Mexico, and I like using them because it constantly puts that kind of surprise in my cooking. All the components worked with each other in their contrasting flavors to participate in a balancing act that suggested a refined gastronomic experience, but was still grounded in tupperware food. Great for spring and summer.

Tip: When using raw onion, briefly rinse the slices in cool water to remove the harsh pungency. The onion's flavor will remain but will not overwhelm the other flavors in the dish.

-Kenny

spree

Around the Centro Historico there's a shopping district for anything you could possibly imagine. For example, a couple city blocks are dedicated exclusively to bouncy-ball/balloon stores, and just down the street you'll find a row of shops that only sell buttons. It's very European (or something). Rather than going to one store that has everything, you have hundreds of stores that sell one thing. My favorite to browse is the lighting district, located between plumbing and kitchenware. They've got elegant chandeliers, laser-light dance club displays, neons... all lit up!




-PJ

Carrera

Kenny entered a 10 kilometer cross-country race this past Sunday with our friends Diego, Hiromi, and Ken-ichi. He's been running almost everyday.

This computer chip will determine his exact time.

The gun goes off at 8:00 am.


And they're off!

...

The hilly course concluded with a lap around the Olympic Stadium.

56 minutes and 40 seconds

Winners!

Friday, June 4, 2010

banners







(I don't know what's up with the Iran propaganda in Mexico.)

Thursday, June 3, 2010

...



The Main Event


Let's just get real for a moment. I've done my best to avoid the subject, because it's so obvious, but it's time to break the silence... Mexico = Color.
And if there's anyone still wondering why I wanted to live here, now you know.

A team of city workers came in the other day to repaint the playground outside our house. They completely reinvented the color-scheme and kicked up the saturation a few notches. I think it's a constant struggle to keep up with the foliage...

-PJ

Tuesday, June 1, 2010