"El morrón es más caro que el asado"

(Bell peppers are more expensive than meat.) - El Observador, May 5th

A few months ago I put up a post on "Uruguayan Adventure" bragging how I could come home from the market with armfuls of groceries without much damage to the pocket book.
Things have changed slightly.
While some vegetables are still very affordable, others are sky-rocketing in price due to heavy rains and the change of seasons - that is, the lapse between growing produce in the south of Uruguay and the harvesting in the north.

The prices have risen 151% for carrots, 38.69% for tomatoes, 37% for lettuce, and 33% for potatoes. A kilo of bell peppers (about two pounds) is $93 pesos while a kilo of meat for asado is $69 pesos. The paper also pointed out that the price of one kilo is equal to that of a men's haircut or a ticket to the movies.

They are hoping the prices will go back down in about 50 days.

Anyone on the Atkins diet? Now it is not only more convenient to eat meat...but also more affordable.

Mexican Food

Happy Cinco de Mayo! And thank you so much to the Southron for hosting such a lovely party with great company and delicious food.

The food was catered by Hacienda Las Palomas which has two locations. A small version is located in Punta Carretas shopping, while the restaurant is in Carrasco. Everyone was commenting on how tasty the food was and wonderful it was to eat comida mexicana!!! We sampled beef and chicken tacos, cheese quesadillas, black bean dip, and various salsas. From the flavors we enjoyed tonight it seems a visit to the restuaraunt is worth the trek out to Carrasco. There was also a couple delicious homemade salsas from our friends over at A Girl and Guy in Uruguay.

We have had mixed results from the food court location in Punta Carretas Shopping. At times the fajitas are very salty or the meat is over cooked. But I have always liked the "Cruji" which is a hard shell taco with a layer of black beans, a generous portion of chicken, some lettuce, and a cheesy sauce (very similar to a tostada). For $23 pesos or so, it is a good snack or light meal. My husband loves the fact he can get a Mexican beer, and always opts for this choice over water or soda. Who can blame him?

Click on the following link for a review on another Mexican Restaurant
La Lupitas

Shout out to a reader

Thank you mysterious "la vieja" for the recipe you left on FALL PEARS. I made it last night when I had guests for dinner and it was enjoyed by all!
Two changes on the version you sent:
I plated one pear half. I served it cold, and instead of putting it over ice cream I melted a dark chocolate bar and a shot of chocolate liquor over low heat on the stove. I drizzled that over the pear and more on the plate.
Second, (and going along with the chocolate theme) I crushed up Ferror Rocher chocolates and sprinkled that on top in replacement of biscotti cookies.

Can you tell I love chocolate?

Qué aproveche!