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Everyday here is an adventure of extremes. The good, the bad and sometimes the ugly. Our neighbors are as good as it gets in any country. They are warm and caring, smart, highly educated, good salt of the earth people. My cousin in Massachusetts asked me yesterday if living here was everything I thought it would be? It is, and more. It is more joyful and on occasion more sad. There is more pleasure and sometimes more pain. My friend Joaquin, a Costa Rican, says I see things differently than he. I know this statement to be true as we come from different experiences, different cultures and because of my age I have had far more life experiences in a very different culture and time. All of this colors my view of life. We are not in Kansas anymore, not that I have ever been to Kansas.
Our neighborhood, Hacienda Atirro, is like a country club with pools, tennis court, a few horses, 2 cows and 5 dogs (we own 3 of them) who like each other and visit. This is not a gated community, it is special and unusual however.
I am cold smoking my bacon today with coffee wood. It will be whatever it turns out to be and we will like it. I am sure. I made sausage and eggs for breakfast today. My homemade sausage of course. It is good stuff. I would add fat to it if I could but the meat here has no fat. That may be the biggest problem with the beef, no fat and it is not aged. I am grinding my meat, but the flavor is just not the way I want it for hamburgers. It is too red, too fresh, not fatty enough; who would have thought that I would be saying, not fatty enough?
The family at the carniceria I patronize is always so glad to see me again. I bring my cooler and we fill it up for the ride home. Kristofer says, she loves seeing you come. Gringos eat so much more meat than Costa Ricans, or at least that is my observation. I eat very little meat actually but my family wants to know, "Where's the beef?", or any other kind of meat. Today the butcher gave me a gift of sausages. They are the sweetest people. I don't think anyone has ever given me sausages as a gift before.
We grilled the beef tenderloin (carne suave) this evening on the grill and added coffee wood for smoke flavor. It did add extra flavor and it was the best steak yet. I use a Jaccard tenderizing machine to help the meat out. That little machine is the most valuable tool in my kitchen. It is definitely in the top 10 of important gadgets.
Our neighborhood, Hacienda Atirro, is like a country club with pools, tennis court, a few horses, 2 cows and 5 dogs (we own 3 of them) who like each other and visit. This is not a gated community, it is special and unusual however.
I am cold smoking my bacon today with coffee wood. It will be whatever it turns out to be and we will like it. I am sure. I made sausage and eggs for breakfast today. My homemade sausage of course. It is good stuff. I would add fat to it if I could but the meat here has no fat. That may be the biggest problem with the beef, no fat and it is not aged. I am grinding my meat, but the flavor is just not the way I want it for hamburgers. It is too red, too fresh, not fatty enough; who would have thought that I would be saying, not fatty enough?
The family at the carniceria I patronize is always so glad to see me again. I bring my cooler and we fill it up for the ride home. Kristofer says, she loves seeing you come. Gringos eat so much more meat than Costa Ricans, or at least that is my observation. I eat very little meat actually but my family wants to know, "Where's the beef?", or any other kind of meat. Today the butcher gave me a gift of sausages. They are the sweetest people. I don't think anyone has ever given me sausages as a gift before.
We grilled the beef tenderloin (carne suave) this evening on the grill and added coffee wood for smoke flavor. It did add extra flavor and it was the best steak yet. I use a Jaccard tenderizing machine to help the meat out. That little machine is the most valuable tool in my kitchen. It is definitely in the top 10 of important gadgets.
