nailed it! (well, almost)

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For as long as I’ve been going to Eslava (basically as long as I’ve lived here) I have loved THOSE honey pork ribs. The flavour, the texture, the wonderful comfort food aspect of that dish. And so I decided to try making a “home kitchen” version of it. After a small glitch when my newly-installed oven refused to cooperate the other day (my landlord quickly had the problem fixed – best landlord ever!) it was time to give it a go. And well… I almost nailed it!

I had been given some tips by the owner of Eslava, my friend Sixto. But of course trying to recreate something made in a professional kitchen at home is always tricky. But the result was pretty damn fine. The flavour was perfect, just like at Eslava, but I didn’t quite get the “fall off the bone” texture of the meat. I think I know why but, again, I will have to tweak the recipe so that it works at home. Which means I’m going to have to make these babies again sometime! Not a bad prospect at all. Who wants to come over next time?

Since there is no garlic in this recipe, I decided to add some on the side, and made my first ever whole-baked garlic (delicious!). I also made some “smashed” pan-fried potatoes. Then Peter @SVQconcierge and I watched a couple episodes of David Chang’s Ugly Delicious on Netflix while we ate… food obsessed much?

more cat toys…

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While continuing to pay next to no attention to the cat tower I got them last week, the cats have been finding other ways to amuse themselves. The most annoying of these is turning the new footstool I bought at IKEA into a cat fort, usually knocking the lid and cushion to the floor, followed by the other two fighting the cat inside the stool. Usually at 3 am…

Also, there were a few fun days vying for possession of the box that the cat tower came in, until it was taken apart for recycling. I give up…

no news is… well, no news

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Back from seeing the oncologist and basically there’s no news. Things are as I suspected, with both the colonoscopy and endoscopy results clean. But there remains that pesky – and mysterious – inflammation that nobody can explain, short of opening me up, which my doctor seems to think is a bit drastic at this point. She wants to continue with clinical studies for the moment and monitor my “well being”. And so the next CT scan will be in May and I’m to check in with her again mid-April just to report on how I’m feeling.

All of this is both comforting and yet still somewhat alarming, because if they were sure I was okay then they wouldn’t be doing another CT so soon. So there must be something about the inflammation they find worrying. I forgot to ask about possible peritoneum issues, which I’d had before, and which usually don’t show up on scans. But I was there on my own today and, as usual, I got nervous and forgot what I’d wanted to say. I had also wanted to ask about the “opening me up” options, but then got  caught up in the good news side of things. Basically I should never go alone to these appointments. I’d be more worried about this now if I wasn’t seeing the oncologist again in April. Next time I’ll take notes.

Anyhow, afterwards I made my way home, stopping at Casa Morales for a quick “brunch” (tortilla and a beer), because I had been too nervous to eat breakfast before going to the hospital. And it was nice to just chat with the guys there and feel normal, even though “life in limbo” continues.

almost…

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So this ALMOST happened. Given the forecast of a crazy-rainy weekend I made plans to do some extra stay-at-home activities, including finally trying my hand at making the famous Eslava honey pork ribs. Everything was ready, meat prepped, sauce ready to go, and then I turned on the oven and – BANG – all the lights went out. Damn. This is something I thought had been fixed when I got a new cooker last month and my new/old oven was installed here. But apparently not.

A quick call to my landlord met with a quick response, and things should be sorted out on Monday. Meanwhile, the ribs have been put in the freezer and the sauce should hold up in the fridge for a few days. I am so looking forward to having a fully functioning kitchen again. I’m also going to set up my small balcony herb garden. Just in time for spring…