I was lucky enough to have Sonia Belostotzky as my guide in Buenos Aires. She organized a very interesting tour of the most colorful Markets, bakeries, butcher shops and other locations just for foodies. Next time you visit the city of "Good Airs," Buenos Aires, send me a mail and I'll be happy to provide you her contact information.

Although Argentina is mostly known for the great wines and scrumptious meats, I would say their culture in its totality is an ongoing worshipness to all things edible. No doubt is the land of the gourmets, and the perfect place to explore, and learn.

Enjoy the photos!

Aren't these veggies gorgeous? Purple artichokes, asparagus, endives, onions, mushrooms. Ahhh!

The Fish stand.

Simply delicious, what a find! I was greately surprised when I found the little deli during our last day in Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay, just a few hours before we took the ferry back to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Exploring every inch of the cozy place, like a child would do in a candy store, I was in total state of bliss. Then, almost when my basket was close to the top, filled with all kinds of local spices, herbs, locally-made alfajores and marmalades...there I found the shiny, elegant stand that impecably showed off the delicious delicacy. I suddenly was in "smoked ostrich heaven."

So now you know where I've gotten this precious meat.

I have heard there is an ostrich farm here in Panama, somewhere in the countryside. One of these days I'll visit them, BUT, in the meantime...I've plenty. ;D

The basic recipe to prepare Ostrich Carpaccio could be found HERE. To add my personal touch I added some balsamic vinegar and served it with baby greens. If you are a Parmesan cheese lover like me, just add as much as you want.

From the Wine Tour - Discover New Wines:

Etchart Cafayate Cabernet Sauvignon (2004) - Etchart, Argentina

Here the traditional Calchaqui winery re-initiated by Pernod Ricard has reached an elevated mark in high-altitude Cabernet Sauvignon, a worthy legacy from Jose Luis Mounier for the house in which he worked for so long. With its overwhelming price-quality ratio, this great wine will help show the world that Argentina has other wonders besides Malbec and other optimal terroirs besides Cuyo. (Vineyards, Wineries & Wines of South America 2006 - 70 Top Wines)

Cabernet Sauvignon is one of the world's noblest of grapes. You will find this red wine to have an aristochratic character, with such an intense perfume, and an essence with overtones of raspberry and other wild berries. Enjoy with hard cheeses, grilled steaks, and in this opportunity: Smoked Ostrich Carpaccio with baby greens.

Have an extra-tasty week!

Best,

Melissa

Tags: argentina, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

The confession: The popping noise gives me goose bumps. I have always loved wine, but now The Enthusiast woke up and life would never be the same. Being passionate about the world of wine makes my mission in life to search and purchase wine to enjoy with family and friends. If this requires traveling the world, then so be it.

Nothing gets my juices going like a wine tour in the most exotic of places, wearing, of course a t-shirt that proclaims me as the "Wine Diva." Nevertheless I am not afraid any more to spit and criticize or swirl and admire as a wine demands.

Now, I am finally back home from the Wine Tour.

I missed you very much, but have to admit the Wine Tour was an unique and espectacular opportunity to explore my beloved Argentina and Uruguay in a new way. Loved to argue over a chardonnay and found the romance of corks irresistible.

Andres Rosberg, a fine gentleman that happens to be the President of the Argentinian Association of Sommeliers, traveled with our small group trough the top vineyards of his country and Uruguay. Winery after winery, I lost track of how many wines we tasted, but I sure remember the places we visited:

First, Cafayate in the Salta province. There we stayed at the Cafayate Wine Resort.  We visited Bodega El Esteco, and later we went to Bodega Laborum and vineyard. We had lunch at the home of the Laborum owner, Marcelo Romero, who is the brother of the governor of the province.

October 8 was the perfect day to visit the Domingo Hermanos Winery. It was sunny with a refreshing breeze that accompany us through our journey. Thirty minutes away was the San Pedro de Yacochuya winery waiting for us. The delicious lunch was as good as their wine.

Then, Mendoza. What an unique place. We stayed at the Park Hyatt Hotel, and to tell you the truth I could NOT resist the temptation to nurture my wine-loving body with one of their beauty treatments with wine. Oh my! It was quite sticky, but I loved every second of it. Ahhh...

Tomorrow I will write about the places we visited in Mendoza, including a great video featuring "the making of empanadas in a rustic oven made of mud." Stay Tuned!

Now, I leave you with a link to Asado Argentina, a very nice blog on Argentinian Asado. They have an array of recipes and tips to cook the perfect asado and side dishes to accompany such a delicacy.

AND, if you are in the mood for some Argentinian Empanadas and Chimichurri Sauce, check out this scrumptious recipe. You WON'T regret it.

Have a tasty afternoon!

Melissa

Tags: argentina, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

I know, I know, I have been bad. I went on vacation and I didn't even mention where was I going, right?  The good part is that although you didn't know about this trip, the Wine Tour to Argentina and Uruguay, I have been gathering great information, photography and videos that you will just love. I'll keep you posted.

During my stay in Buenos Aires, I had the fantastic opportunity to meet SaltShaker, the only food and wine blogger in Buenos Aires I know. I have been following his blog since the beginning of the year, so it was a surprise when he talked about his travels to Uruguay and the reviews he made on the top wineries. Coincidentally I will be visiting most of them during this trip too. How exiting!

I will write more later about my meeting with Dan Perlman, the talented writer and chef behind SaltShaker. For now, I invite you to visit his blog and Casa SaltShaker's website (his restaurant) for great info, menus and fotos. If you are in the area, give him a call to schedule a visit...you won't regret it.

Have a delicious day!

Melissa

Tags: argentina, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

Would you believe me if I tell you that I only watch TV when I want to take a nap? Well, it is the raw truth! That's why I am so happy because I found a link to Anthony Bourdain's show on Peruvian Cuisine on line. First I saw it at Chef Elena's blog, and to tell you the truth, I couldn't resist the temptation to post it here and share this great source of information with you.

One of my favorite Latin American Chefs, Gaston Acurio,  guides Anthony Bourdain through the best and most authentic places. The casual atmosphere of the conversation, the colorful sites of the city and the mysticism all over the air captivated my attention, and that sometimes is not an easy task. I was actually drooling while they talked about the ceviches, being the case that here in Panama we are very fond of ceviche too. Although the traditional Panamanian ceviche has its differences from the Peruvian, there is no doubt they both were born in our countries because of the abundance of the freshest fish and seafood.

On that same subject, I will tell you now what happened the other day. Believe it or not, I received a kind of nasty comment on my Ecuadorian Conch Ceviche recipe. The comment's author supposedly was from Peru and his complaint was about his "idea" that the "ceviche" is a strictly dish from Peru, and no one else in the whole world can prepare, write or talk about IT other than the Peruvians. Well, I wish I hadn't deleted it, but I did, and I also blocked his IP. Ha! Is this some sort of Blog RAGE? Just when I thought I was over the "I have been Cursed: The Revenge of the Guinea Pigs," the ceviche madness begins. This is a teaser for you my bellicose reader, just because you asked for it, next you will find a link to the most popular of the ceviche recipes I have published in this blog. I hope you enjoy them all :-)

We are very proud of our internationally famous method of serving fish tidbits. A mixed assortment can include squid, octopus, scallops, clams, lobster, crab as well as longorones, a black shellfish similar to scallops. You can use what you have available or what you like the most..., what insures a variety of textures and flavors. Now the recipes:

• Ceviche de Pescado, Panamanian style (fish ceviche)
• Ceviche de Pescado y Pulpo with Pineapple and Golden Raisins (Fish and Octopus ceviche)
• Conch Ceviche from Ecuador. Yum!

Have a tasty day!

Chef M

Tags: ceviche, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

I discovered Blyberg.net and its Catalog Card Generator today and immediately loved the vintage look of the cards. In seconds I was inspired to share with you this recipe to prepare delicious Fruit Cookies. They keep well for months, and like good fruitcake, improve with age.

Now, head over to Blyberg.net and enjoy the Catalog Card Generator service for free!

Estas galletas pueden guardarse en envases herméticos o congelarse en bolsas ziploc por varios meses. de hecho, el sabor mejora con el tiempo!

Ingredientes:

• 1 taza de mantequilla
• 2 tazas de azúcar
• 2 huevos
• 3 tazas de harina
• 3 cucharaditas de polvo de hornear
• 1/4 cucharadita de sal
• 1/2 cucharadita de clavito de olor molido
• 2 cucharaditas de canela
• 1/2 cucharadita de nuez moscada
• 3/4 taza de leche
• 1 taza cada uno de: piña deshidratada, pasitas, cerezas deshidratadas o dátiles, nueces. Todo bien picadito.

Procedimiento:

1. Pre-calentar el horno a 350° F por 10 minutos. Batir la mantequilla y el azúcar hasta alcanzar una consistencia cremosa. Agregar los huevos uno a uno, batiendo bien despues de cada adición.
2. Cernir los ingredientes secos y agregar a la mezcla alternando con la leche. Incorporar las frutas secas y revolver hasta que esten distribuidas uniformemente.
3. Colocar por cucharadas la mezcla en una bandeja para galletas engrasada, dejando un espacio de 2-3 pulgadas entre cada una.
4. Hornear  de 12-15 minutos o hasta que empiece a dorar. Retirar la bandeja del horno y dejar reposar las galletas por 10 minutos antes de removerlas a una parrilla para que se enfrien por completo.

Happy Cooking!

Melissa

Tags: cookies, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

Felicidades a todos los miembros de la comunidad de Global Voices. La ardua labor del equipo, consistencia e innovación fueron reconocidos ayer por el Instituto de Periodismo Interactivo de la Universidad de Maryland, quienes adjudicaron a Global Voices el Gran Premio en el prestigioso 2006 Knight-Batten Awards.

From Today on Global Voices Digest by David Sasaki:

Knight-Batten Awards: And the winner is… - Congratulation to all members of the Global Voices community. The worldwide team's hard work, consistency, and innovation were recognized yesterday by the Institute of Interactive Journalism at the University of Maryland, which awarded Global Voices the Grand Prize at the prestigious 2006 Knight-Batten Awards. Managing Editor Rachel Rawlins offers her own congratulations and links to all the relevant press.

Global Food Blog Report #32 - Has the global conversation got you hungry? Not to fear, Panamanian Chef Melissa De Leòn serves up ten tasty food posts from around the world. I don't know about you, but I'm going for the Salmon Carpaccio with Herbs and Pesto from Denmark with Tanzanian Kashata for dessert.

To read the previous Global Food Blog Reports visit Global Voices Online.

Have a tasty day!

Melissa

Do not forget to Visit:

• Tasty Recipes - Chef Melissa's recipe and post index
• Blogs that Cook - A delicious, international food Blog Directory
• Paladares Unidos - Chef Melissa's Cooking blog en Español

Tags: global voices, food blogs, cookingdiva, cooking, panama, recipes, food & drink, food, chef melissa

Yuca Croquettes with Chorizo and Broccoli, served with Orange-Tamarind Sauce. Yum!

Yuca , cassava or mandioca (Manihot esculenta, Crantz) is a root originary from Brasil and Paraguay. It is an annual tuber crop grown widely in tropical and sub-tropical areas. It thrives in sandy loam soil low organic matter and can tolerate low rainfall and high temperatures. It is therefore a cash crop cultivated by smallholder farmers within the existin farming systems in many countries.