Simple Sunday ~ Culebra

A boy. Puddle. Mud.

Irresistible drawing.

Splash on, little frog.

Free Range Friday ~ Silk Purses Out of Faberge Eggs

Remember that paella from a couple of weeks back? And the duck that came later? And a mention of soup? All of that came together the other day, a windy, almost chilly - for us - afternoon that whispered 'Soup! Make soup before it is too hot to make soup!' so I did.

In the freezer were two bags. One had trimmings - fat and some nice bits of meat - from the boneless, skinless chicken thighs used in the paella that just could not be tossed. The other contained the duck carcass. Both went into a pot and the boiling and simmering began. Once any meat left on the carcass had fallen off the bones and the fat had been totally rendered from any meat bits of chicken, it was set to cool and then put in the fridge for the fat to harden and make it a lot easier to remove it from the now awesome broth.

Broth cooking with picked off chicken and duck bits, onions, garlic, carrot, potatoes. And a roux getting started.

I made the roux because even though the broth was really flavorful it was just missing something. I know myself enough to know I have come close or completely wrecked a dish by adding a 'just try this and see if it works' ingredient. This had already taken a long time, which was fine, but to wreck it now would have been slightly criminal. Solution? Roux, made with the chicken fat. I could add a little bit and see how it worked and if not, no big harm would be done. 

Roux's also take time but are so worth it!

There are a lot of ways to make a roux. I used the skimmed off chicken fat and flour and stirred it on medium until I got the consistency, color and taste I wanted.  It worked, adding that roux-y something to the soup that pulled everything together. I wanted to post a friend's video on roux making but the techie gremlins are hards at work today, so that's not going to happen. Instead, here is a link for starter information. The best way to learn to make a roux is to just make one, after understanding what you make one from and why you'd want to do it in the first place. Play with your food!

If I'd had okra, this could have faked itself for a sort of gumbo. Next time.

As it was, it was pretty damned delicious!

These last two photos are from the Krusty Krab (next to the Post Office). I was leaving the PO and looked in to see Steve and Zuleyma inside. We were talking when these two plates of deliciousness showed up. There are very good ways to end a conversation and this was one or two of them.

I could only say buen provecho! and carry on, slightly drooling, with my errands while they feasted on Jose's cooking. 

Have a familiarizing Friday. Do something fearlessly. 

And p.s. Happy birthday to my favorite in all the world brother Jonny!! Best friend, personal comedian, great cook (yes, this IS like a match.com ad for you! You're welcome). Love you!

Always a Trip ~ Fajardo

It isn't unusual to run into friends on the ferry; after all, it's a small island and eventually you know a lot of people, if not by name then by sight. So running into friends, sitting right across from me, was nice but not surprising. Running into friends who have exactly the same errands with the same agencies, that's a little more unusual. Running into friends with the same missions who also have a car to use complete with the offer to come along? That pretty much tops it out. I decided not to pay attention to the fact that it was April Fool's Day.

Looking ahead

and astern

Light show

 For no apparent reason, this rainbow bit appeared. Just a bit. 

and then it started growing

The rainbow and daydream dozing kept me occupied until we got ashore. With coffee on the menu (not realizing the ferry left at 6 and not 6:30...I was being my usual early self meaning I made the ferry but with no time for coffee, really meaning I wasn't really awake).

To get our caffeine fix, we headed to Dulce Aroma. I'd peeked my head in here once but it was packed and I didn't feel like waiting, so it was a nice surprise to see a few empty spots available. First things first; lattes

 lat·te

ˈlätā/

noun

a type of coffee made with espresso and hot steamed milk

(ok, I ordered cafe' con leche, but friend fixed that for me, thanks!) for three, some croissants with egg and cheese and we were good to go. Except that the coffee was taking a pretty long time. And then I understood why.

Yin and yang coffee

Buddha coffee

Carnival coffee

I made those names up, otherwise I probably couldn't have ordered at all. Served in real mugs, it was coffee artwork. Maybe I've been living in a strange world - maybe - but I think this was only the second time my coffee has been decorated. Most important, it was really good coffee. Really Good. Check out Dulce Aroma if you haven't already. Real mugs, cardboard food containers, it's a little sustainable outpost flung into Fajardo.

After some fairly fruitless missions agency wise (except to find out what paper needed to come with us next time; if you live here you know what I mean, if you don't - well, you don't), we headed to a small side road cafe off the plaza for lunch. There is so much good food tucked into unexpected places all over Puerto Rico. This was one of them and I don't remember the name. I doubt  you'd find them with their own web page anyway...just be willing to take a chance, you'll probably be happy with the results.

Below is NOT the cafeteria. We asked but couldn't find out what it once was, but it has probably some of the nicest architecture remaining in Fajardo. Sadly, many others were replaced with the boxiness associated with fast and cheap and a huge chapter of cultural history was lost. This building is for sale now. I hope it finds a really loving buyer - it could change the neighborhood.

Lots of details unseen but I didn't have the panoramic thing going on

Since no one, including myself, is interested in photos of Econo, Kmart or Sears and on the passenger ferry home outside is verboten, I'm skipping that and going right to the finish. With no photos of that either. Home, a quick stir fry with fish and chicken and rice, some visual mindless entertainment and sleep. A good day. Thanks, chicas, for letting me come along for the ride.

Because two of us didn't have enough official paper and because things like fax machines haven't been invented yet in certain segments of our governmental facilities, we need to go back and do this again very soon. Making the trip fun is the name of the game. We've got this.

Have a technophobically free Thursday. Do something therapeutic.