CookingDiva

I am back from Ecuador! This definitely was a sweet and sour trip. Because of the many political protests in the province of Pichincha, where the City of Quito rests, it was impossible to accomplish a few visits planned somewhere else. From my point of view, the protests are a result of the public misinformation. The government officials who are negotiating the TLC (Tratado de Libre Comercio Andino EEUU) a Free Trade Agreement between Colombia-Ecuador-Peru-United States, are not doing a good job informing their people what this agreement is all about. That is the main complaint I have heard everywhere, and also it is being reported every day in the TV local News.

The government struggles by the constant and growing indigenous protests, and explains that all the information, documents and progress are offered in their website. They invite everyone to read about it. Then, I stop for a moment and meditate about the fact that probably 99% of the thousands of the indigenous people protesting do not have a computer, nor have access to the Internet. Or, maybe the problem is that they do not know how to read. Ha! Ironic, right?

Obviously, there is the possibility of the indigenous groups being financed by political groups that won't benefit from the trade agreement in question. The truth is that political instability is once again the everyday meal of the country. So wrong from every point of view.

Now that you've got the news on local politics, how about preparing a delicious and super easy ceviche de concha, or conch ceviche? One characteristic of the Ecuadorian ceviche is that it is very juicy, almost like a cold soup, it is eaten with a spoon! I have also prepared this recipe using fresh oysters and it is definitely a keeper

I was born with  my umbilical cord attached to a computer and the Internet. Maybe I was way ahead from my piers and fellow normal kids in my generation. It is sweet and sour I would say. I have had "Internet withdrawals" for the last week. Believe me when I say that I have been barely one step from the complete and nonsense computer death and resurrection. I have been there; it's bad. A real mean human-nature interaction, or should I better call it "revenge?"

Ten days without Internet and telephone just because Father nature's heavy rain caused a mudslide in the area we were visiting in Ecuador, the beautiful Andes itself at the maximum expression. Full of tricks and treats I enjoyed to the fullest. It made me think and re-think about what is really important in life. Sometimes we forget about those little details.

I was convulsive at times. Revolting every minute the first day that the telephone line kicked the bucket. What a way to disappear. Oh boy! Sure it had some style I would say. No telephone. No Internet. I sure could have traveled back to Quito every time I wanted to connect to the Internet, BUT then it was that two hours drive, and all the traffic, and the altitude change. Ahhhhhh! I better stayed in Nanegalito. Just beautiful shades of green, the morning fragrant mist in the gardens after a night full of rain, the fresh milk and cheese, the walks in the farm and the meals with friends that were experiencing the same internet-ical issues

The Gilded Fork: "Savory Coffee Recipes", Coffee Vinaigrette, Cashew Mole, Rosca de Reyes Tropical al Café.

For the Spanish version of the following post and more photos, visit Chef Elena's El Amor por la Cocina***Para leer este post en Español, visitar El Amor por la Cocina

Gastón  Acurio's remarkable presentation at the Madrid Fusion 2006 has received rave reviews from food critics and chefs all over the world. It was not only the fact that he is from Perú, a Latin American country dear to our heart and one of the richest ones when it comes to culinary culture in this continent, and why not say it: from the whole world too!

His story is the perfect example of a person that when exposed to the world and it's many choices, found his real love in life: "cooking" in his case.

This is his story:

Many summers ago, there was a Peruvian young man who went to Spain to study law. Half way he realized that spending the rest of his days like a lawyer, was not his thing. It was then when he dreamed of being  a Chef, he dreamed dreams of grandiosity for him and his country, which through his cooking, would one day be known. It was then when he packed his life in a suitcase and went to Paris, where he obtained the Cordon Bleu's Grand Diplome back in the early 90's, at the young age of 24.

While at the culinary school he met Astrid, a beautiful German girl, who later became his wife. After spending sometime in Paris, and experimenting the life of a cook in that beautiful city, they moved to Lima, Perú and opened their first restaurant: "Astrid y Gastón" or "A y G", portraying a modern concept of the traditional Peruvian cuisine, very "personal" is how he describes his own food.

The success of "A y G" has trespassed the Peruvian borders to the points of which nowadays, they have branches in Quito-Ecuador, Santiago-Chile, Bogotá-Colombia, and soon in Panama, Caracas-Venezuela, and in México City-México.