The 4 Best Things I Ate In Costa Rica

My father was a commercial pilot, so I have had the fantastic fortune of being able to travel all over the world for cheap.  My most recent excursion took me to the incredibly beautiful Manuel Antonio area of Costa Rica over a long weekend.  Located along the country’s central Pacific coast, the region is known for its small but stunning national park and magnificent sightlines along the coast.  While my girlfriend and I went for some beach themed R&R, we really wanted to get a taste of the Tico culture, and the best way to learn about a new place is through their food (pun, absolutely intended).

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do” has become a travel mantra of mine as I seek out the local delicacies anywhere I am, and Costa Rica was no different.  Over my short stay, we thoroughly enjoyed everything we ate, but only 4 made the list of the absolute best things I ate in Costa Rica.

Check it all out after the jump.

Simple and healthy: Seared Diver Scallops, Butternut Squash Puree, and Sauteed Swiss Chard

So as mid-February approaches most people are either giving up on their New Year's resolutions or finally getting around to them.  Well here is a meal that surely can't hurt and will definitely impress (to offset that embarrassing belly fat that is still inexplicably hanging around).  Check out the rest of the pics and some basic instructions after the jump.

What I Cooked During Sandy

First of all, I apologize for the hiatus.  A change of residences, coupled with the holidays, added to some sneaking laziness has kept me from putting together a post for a while.  So bare with me as I play catch-up, but I promise to start pumping these out with a little more regularity.

Let me start off by saying that we were some of the lucky ones.  Hurricane Sandy devastated the state of New Jersey and her wrath will be felt for years to come.  However, since this blog is about food, we'll stick to that.

In between the aforementioned moves, I was shacked up at my parents house in suburban Northwest NJ, far from the reaches of the lurching ocean or any other swelling bodies of water.  So things were pretty normal for a while besides a few missing shingles and down trees, but I knew it could get worse, so I decided to throw a big pork shoulder in the slow cooker with the plans of having plenty of leftovers.  The result was some delicious pulled pork that I topped with a quick bbq sauce of tomato paste and the pork stock, and a spicy green sauce with a cilantro and jalapeno base, modeled after Peruvian Aji.

I awoke the next morning and the wind was still whipping, but the power was still on.  Taking advantage of the situation, I decided to make a frittata studded with some of the left over pulled pork, sauteed onions, green onions, and cheddar cheese.

Thennnnn...the lights went out.  For the next 8 days, we were relegated to cooking on the grill on the deck or  the camping grill that my dad had picked up while traveling through the Blue Mountains a couple weeks prior.

Blue Mountains courtesy of the Captain

Lucky for me, not only did my dad pick up the camping grill, but he also had some nice ribeye steaks from Costco.  Salt, pepper, and a basic salad and I was ready to go.

The next day, I decided to breakout the colossal crab meat that Lisa's dad had been kind enough to donate to us from his warehouse at OceanLine Seafood.  I went with a fillerless crab cake that was all crab all the time.  I pan seared them on the camping grill and topped it with some of the left over Aji sauce from the pulled pork.

Finally, after exhausting all of my fancy treats, I kept it as simple as possible - a buger with American cheese on a toasted bun (on the camping grill).