Taking a little break in sunny Cancun.... well, not so much, while the temp was 75 to 80 degrees, we got cloud coverage most days and even a little rain. Not that I am complaining. Back home was 10 below and cloud coverage means better running weather.
While at the resort I completed three 4 mile runs in my Bikilas. I know it isn't much, but the day before our trip started I was running the Zoom! Yah! Yah! indoor marathon, so I am even surprised I run at all (I usually take a week off after each marathon).
Anyway, this post is not about running, but food. We traveled to an all-inclusive gourmet resort, and once you lowered your standards just a bit (this was after all a beach resort), I have to say we were very impressed. A few items had a price tag (like the lobster below), but most everything else was free of charge.
The lobster was served "mar y tierra" (surf & turf) with flank steak, which I am not a big fan of, but I was very surprised by how tender and juicy it was. The lobster was grilled, something I have wanted to have since I saw Godfather II, where you see them splitting one in half and immediately put it on the grill.
One of the highlights of the trip was our visit to The Little Mexican Cooking School in Puerto Morelos,where Chef/Instructor Pablo Espinosa (pictured below sharpening his knife) delighted us with a few dishes.
The session lated several hours (four or five but the tequila shots got in the way of remembering the exact length) and resulted in a tour of mexican cuisine, techniques and ingredients.
Of particular interest were the salsas, most of them with habaneros and some of which were hot enough to require lost of agua fresca to put out the fire.
The class offered some participation and some of our friends had an opportunity to test the tools under the guidance of Chef Pablo. We also made the obligatory tortillas and guacamole, but also had an opportunity to explore less common dishes and beverages.
The class was followed by a full meal (something that would have been good to know ahead of time, since by the time we made it to the table we weren't that hungry any more. Still, the food was so good that we cleaned the plates. It really was a terrific experience, which happened to take place on the day in which we got the most rain (shear luck)
Along with the entertainment, meal and drinks, we got a little booklet with the recipes the chef cooked. There were, however, a few off-the-menu dishes that were worth writing down. Specifically there was a vinaigrette that surprised not only by the ingredients and ease of preparation, but also by its fresh flavor and great presentation in the way it was served.
Chef Pablo halved and pitted an avocado, cut a little but of the bottom to make a flat surface and help the avocado not roll on the plate and filled the void left by the pit with the vinaigrette. This made for a great and very simple dish. To finish it off, he added a few drops of olive oil on top of the vinaigrette and dusted the avocado with ground arbol chile.
The ingredients were quite simple. Here is a complete list:
Juice from 1½ limes (if they are too dry use 2)
¼ cup soy sauce
½ cup avocado oil (any light vegetable or canola oil will do, just don't use olive oil, as it has too strong a flavor)
2 chipotles in adobo
To prepare it, simply blend all ingredients in a mixer until a emulsion is formed. You can eat it right away. The second day is a little better and after that it starts getting a tad spicy, but it is still great. If you let it sit for more than a couple of days, the chipotles really take over and the heat is just too much.
Another nice surprise was a restaurant called las Pepitas. It looked more like a shack than a restaurant, but it was highly recommend by the cabbie as a less touristic place that locals enjoy. When checking with the Chef during our class, he also recommended a visit. So a couple of days later we payed them a visit.
We had some chips and guacamole and shrimp ceviche (a favorite of mine when in Mexico) and then jumped into the entree and reason for our visit, a whole fried fish.
You pick the fish you want from a large cooler they have in the back and pay by the kilo. The small ones were a tad too small, so we opted for a pretty large one and didn't regret it. The 2-1/2 pounds went pretty fast. (BTW, the picture below is very misleading, the plate was quite large)
All and all a pretty good trip. Got a few miles, got a full belly (several times over) and got a couple of days of sun. Just what we needed before getting back to the daily grind. 
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