Salsa and Guac, what more do we need?

It is winter and our season is in full swing!  All of our rooms are booked and we are loving it!   Never mind the fact that our maid has bailed on us.  This is a temporary but unavoidable situation, but it means that Kevin and I are doing double duty making sure our guests are well taken care of and everything that needs doing actually gets done.  A bit of a stretch some days, but we are doing a rather good job of keeping on top of things.

As we run around cleaning, fixing and tidying, our Fitbits have never been happier, logging each and every step we take.   So, from a fitness standpoint, our missing maid is a very positive thing.

I have to admit, that with all the added activity, we REALLY look forward to the end of the day, when we take a breather and join our guests on our rooftop patio.

Here, we can catch up on every ones day have a beer and enjoy one another's company while we wait for sunset.  It truly is the best part of our day.  

All good conversation seems to be made better with something to snack on, which is why our rooftop evenings always include salsa or guacamole.

I am sure most, if not all of you already have your own versions, but, incase you don't,  I will share mine with you.    So, if you can't get to our rooftop tonight, we hope that this will help warm up your winter's evening.

Pico de Gallo

4 medium size Roma tomatoes, cut into 1/8 inch dice.  

1 small white onion, minced

1 clove of garlic, mashed with 1/4 tsp salt

1 small jalepeno, minced

1/2 small bunch of cilantro, leaves and tender stems only, finely chopped

Juice from 2 - 3 small limes

Salt to taste.

Mix all ingredients well in bowl, adjusting lime juice and salt to taste.  Serve with corn or tortilla chips for dipping.  

Guacamole

2 medium avocados, choose nice ripe ones for this

1 medium Roma tomato, cut into 1/8 inch dic

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/2 medium white onion, finely chopped

1/2 medium jalepeno, minced (optional)

2 - 4 small limes, juice only

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Remove pits from avocados and scoop flesh into large bowl.  Add tomato, garlic, onion and jalepeno if using.  Roughly mash avocado while mixing ingredients together.  You don't want a smooth paste here, you want some chunks of avocado as well.  Squeeze in lime juice and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a few turns of freshly ground pepper.  Mix and adjust seasonings to suit your tastes.  Serve with corn or tortilla chips for dipping.  

"Homemade" Tortilla Chips

8 day old corn tortillas 

Oil for deep frying

Pour 1" of oil into large heavy bottomed pot, and heat over medium high heat until oil reaches 350F.  Or, use a deep fryer according to manufacturers instructions.  Either way, get your oil to 350F.  

Meanwhile, stack tortillas and cut the stack into 8 wedges (pizza style).  Fry in hot oil a few at a time, turning as needed with tongs or slotted spoon until lightly browned.  About 1 minute.  Drain on paper towels and sprinkle lightly with salt  if desired.  

Our Favourite Fried Chicken

If you are like Kevin and I, we don't eat as much fried food as we used to.  But our love of fried foods still dwells within us!  The big difference being, that now, if we are eating something fried, it had better be good!  No longer do we settle for mediocre fast food fare to satisfy our cravings (though I will admit to a weakness for the onion rings at Carls Junior lately).   Mostly when we want something fried, we want the best darn fried food we can find, and for food snobs like us, that usually means making it at home.   

Enter Bon Appetit magazine and their recipe for southern-style fried chicken.   Originally published in 2012, I only discovered this recipe last year.   (Go ahead and make fun.  Food nerds like us are thrilled to have back issues that we can read at our leisure as many times as we like.)   The recipe actually calls for the chicken to be fried in oil stove top, so I balked at trying it for a long time.  Both Kevin and I, being career insurance people, know very well just how dangerous a pot of hot oil on the stove can be.  

However, their claim that this is "the only Fried Chicken recipe we will ever need" had us searching for a good deep fryer at every store we entered for the next 6 months.  This is not Canada, and while they are easy to find now, 3 years ago when we started looking, it was like hunting for hens teeth.

We eventually convinced ourselves that we live in a concrete house, with marble counters and finally, we talked ourselves into making this without a deep fryer!!  We should have videoed our first attempt, as I am sure all the precautions and worry we took were worth a sit com series but in the end, the finished product was well worth the effort and worry!   Juicy inside with a crispy crust, and the hot vinegar pulls it all together.

You will need to start the vinegar a week in advance, and the chicken does have to sit overnight, so there is some planning inovolved, but I promise you it will be worth it!   We are used to doing it stove top now, and are  happy with the results but if you prefer using a deep fryer,  just be sure that your oil is at the magical 350F before adding the chicken.  I am sure you will get the same results.    The real key to this is to use a smaller chicken and to let it sit in the dry brine over night.

I have tweaked the recipe a bit from the original, which you can find at www.bonappetit.com

Here is my version of Skillet Fried Chicken:
(serves 4, 1 serving is approximately 616 calories)

2 tablespoons kosher salt, divided
5 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1 3 - 4 lb chicken cut into 10 pieces, back removed
1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 egg

3 cups flour
4 teaspoons cornstarch

1 litre canola oil for deep frying (more or less, depending on size of your pan)

• Whisk 1 Tbsp. salt, 2 tsp. black pepper, paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, and onion powder in a small bowl. Season chicken with spices. Place chicken in a medium bowl, cover, and chill overnight.
• Let chicken stand covered at room temperature for 1 hour. Whisk buttermilk, egg, and 1/2 cup water in a medium bowl. Whisk flour, cornstarch, remaining 1 Tbsp. salt, and remaining 1 Tbsp. pepper in a 9x13x2" baking dish. 
• Pour oil into a 10"–12" heavy straight-sided skillet (not nonstick) to a depth of 3/4".  Heat over medium-high heat until thermometer registers 350°.  You can try propping the thermometer in the pan, but I never have luck with that.  I just keep it close and check the temperature of the oil frequently.  Meanwhile, set a wire rack inside a large rimmed baking sheet. 
• Working with 1 piece at a time (use 1 hand for wet ingredients and the other for dry ingredients), dip chicken in buttermilk mixture, allowing excess to drip back into bowl. Dredge in flour mixture; tap against bowl to shake off excess. Place up to 5 pieces of chicken in skillet. Fry, turning chicken with tongs every 1–2 minutes and adjusting heat to maintain a steady temperature of 300°–325°, until skin is deep golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of chicken registers 165°, about 10 minutes for wings and breasts and 12 minutes for thighs and legs. 
• Using tongs, remove chicken from skillet, allowing excess oil to drip back into skillet; transfer chicken to prepared rack. 
• Repeat with remaining chicken pieces; let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
  
  
  And voila, better than takeout any day!  Oh, and don't forget the Spicy Vinegar!  
  
  
  SpicyVinegar
  1 cup white vinegar
  1 habanero chile
  1 serrano chile
  
  
  Slice chiles into quarters, lengthwise and place with vinegar in resealable jar.  Seal and shake.   Let sit at room temperature for 1 week before using, shake daily.  After that it will keep almost forever in the fridge.  

Tamales

We moved here armed with 2 Mexican cookbooks and a great determination to learn to cook the cuisine while we were here.  

And we did get an excellent start on it!!  Those who have been following us from the beginning will remember Kevins' hilarious account of using the washroom right after working with chiles.  Yes, he learned the hard way why men here wash their hands both before and after using the washroom!

The honest truth, though is, I lack motivation.  I can get some of the best tacos in the bay right down the street and  the only effort I have to make is to put one foot in front of the other for about 15 minutes.   A 5 minute drive gets us to Valle Dorado where the options to taste authentic Mexican food are endless.   I'm talkin' GOOD Mexican food.  Not the stuff one often finds in the tourist zone, made by people who know they will never see you again so why try anyway.    Made by cooks who know that their business is only as good as their last service because word in a small town travels fast and even a poorly made tortilla could stop people coming to their spot.  And, it is inexpensive.  So why go thru all the effort in my own kitchen?

After 7 years here, our knowledge of Mexican Cuisine is mostly limited to knowing which restaurant or taco stand has "the good stuff".

There is, however, one Mexican Food challenge I have been working to perfect - Tamales.

Even though, every night, there is a truck at our Oxxo, selling Oxacan-style tamales, we have yet to try one.    Our reluctance to do so stems from our first weeks here, when  we would buy tamales from a vendor who passed by our apartment nearly every day.  They were wonderful.  Until the day Kevin bit into one with a whole, uncleaned shrimp hidden inside of it.  So whole, the antennae and shell were still on it.   Thus ended our love of the tamale lady, and tamales in general.

We don't buy tamales anymore, but the flavour still haunts me.  Plus, I love the concept - Little bundles of corn husks, hiding more corn  and filling inside.  They are tasty snacks that are nice to have on hand, and, they re-heat beautifully in the microwave!

Perfecting this particular Mexican food has become my challenge,  and, for the most part, I have had pretty good reviews.

As a matter of fact, my Ecuadorian girlfriend liked them so much, she set aside a whole afternoon so I could teach her how I make tamales.  (Yes, this the truth!)  We made a fairly large batch and she took half home.    In an uncontrollable fit of generosity, she actually shared our hard work with a Mexican woman in her condo.  A couple of hours later, the woman returned.  Not to thank her for the gift, but simply to tell her that they were dry, period.   Suggestions, tips, insider secrets....????   Sigh.

So, today, another try, at less dry tamales.  Armed with a pot full of leftover braised pork shoulder, I tried again.

For todays version of my tamales, I used Alton Brown's recipe on FoodTV.com as a guide.  The braised pork and liquid were from earlier in the week, and the masa recipe I took from the bag of Tamale Masa.

My results while not entirely authentic, are a very tasty attempt, which at the end of the day, is really all we wanted.

Watermelon Agua Fresca

Its summer the weather is fine and watermelons are plentiful!  

I love watermelon, But I have to admit after the first half, I am looking for ways to get rid of it!

Yummy as it is, just plain fruit gets kind of boring after awhile.  

Being it is the weekend, I thought I would focus on drinking it.

One of the quickest and easiest ways to use it is just to fill up the blender with chunks of the watermelon, seeds and all, add a little water, a small chunk of bit of ginger,  peeled and  roughly chopped, some sugar if you like and blend away for about  45 seconds.



















Strain the mixture thru a fine mesh sieve and there you have it, Watermelon Agua Fresca!!

You can then drink the juice, or freeze it in ice cube trays, then put the ice cubes in the blender for a watermelon slushie.

A great after work treat, and if you have had a stressful day, add a splash of tequila and you have a watermelon margarita!



Oh, if you want the flavour of a watermelon margarita but don't want to go thru all the effort, just cut some cubes (abut 2 cups), add 1/4c silver tequila and 1/4 cup simple syrup or a couple tablespoons of sugar.

Let it sit for a few hours, stirring every once in awhile so the tequila gets into all the pieces.

Serve in a Margarita glass with a salted rim and a fork.  There you have it!

Enjoy your weekend, and remember to eat and drink responsibly.

It's All About the Dough!

We love the food here.  Especially the authentic Mexican fare.  Nothing can beat it.  However,  occasionally, our Canadian roots show themselves and cravings for pizza like they make back in Alberta causes us to go in search of the perfect pizza here in our new back yard.

Oddly, pizza was one of the first foods we realized we missed.   Perhaps that was because, for the first couple of years, we honestly could not find, what we felt, was a good pizza!  We tried many, but none came close to matching the taste of Kevin's' favourite, the Pepperoni, Ham and Green Pepper combo from Royal Pizza in Sherwood Park  http://royalpizza.ca/locations.aspx.  No trip home will ever be made without at least one stop here, 5 if he can fit them in.

My favourite pizza has always been the deep dish pan pizza from Pizza Hut.  You know the kind.  The stuff they served back in the 80's and 90's, when in my opinion, they were at their best.   I can hear many of you right now, gasping and gagging because you think the crust is too oily, but to me, it is the ultimate comfort food.   I love the crispness the oil in the pan gives the bottom of the crust - and biting thru that into the gooey layer of cheese and toppings - nirvana.

Pizza Hut Pan Pizza
http://www.pizzahut.com.mx

Which is why I so excited to discover that Pizza Hut right here in Puerto Vallarta served exactly that pizza!!     At first, I thought it strange to find a Pizza Hut here, but, it turns out that Pizza Hut opened its original location at the Plaza del Sol mall in Guadalajara, in 1959!  Fancy that!   PV now has 2 locations, one conveniently located in the Galerias Mall, right upstairs, just beside Chili's.

Clean, modern and fully air-conditioned, we will probably eat here a lot this summer

Plus, the view is pretty nice

Unfortunately, Pizza Hut does not deliver to Nuevo Vallarta.  In the beginning, when we started working to open Casa Madera, there were only 2 only pizza delivery options and while both were excellent options at the end of a long of painting, furniture finishing, plumbing, yard work,  whatever, we were both too exhausted to do anything but pick up the phone and call for dinner.  However, neither offered the pizza "experience" we craved.  Not that it mattered much,  back then, I could fall asleep while eating, so taste wasn't all that important.

When La Dolce Vita opened within walking distance,  we were thrilled.    A swanky new pizza joint right down the street!!   And, we have enjoyed our share of their wonderful thin crust pizzas.  http://www.dolcevita.com.mx

And now, it seems, pizza places are popping up all over the place!  Locally owned joints, with wood fired ovens and a range of crusts from wafer thin to thicker than deep dish!  And they are all putting out quality product.  The difficulty now, is not finding a pizza place, it is deciding which one!!

Irresistible, no?

Within a 25 minute walk, from our door, we have:
La Dolce Vita as already mentioned, and
Ciao  https://www.facebook.com/CiaoPizzaNV .

For those who wish to venture further, a 50 peso cab ride will get you to either

Pizza Diavola https://www.facebook.com/diavolapizzaitaliana?fref=nf 
or
Buenos Aires https://www.facebook.com/RinconDeBuenosAires

and, of course, our go to spot in Bucerias, is
California's Pizza https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaPizzaMexico,

California's Pizza in Bucerias 

These are the places we have eaten at in the past year, and, no, they have not paid me to mention them by name.  (though if they were so inclined, they could do so.  lol)  Most likely, they will never even know that they have been mentioned in this blog, but many of you readers will be guests with us in the near future, and you will want to know about the great eateries we have here.

Ultimately, at the end of most days, we prefer to eat at home.   Since there are still only 2 options for delivery,  Kevin has embarked upon a quest to find his perfect pizza dough.   After numerous recipes, many, many taste tests, and a whole lot of fun, he has  found the dough that works best for him.  

Inspired by none other than FoodTv's Guy Fieri  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/prime-time-pizza-dough.html, this is our go-to dough for at home pizza, baked right here, in our own oven.

Our own, fresh from our oven.  

1 tsp sugar
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups flour, plus more for kneading
2 T olive oil
1 cup warm water (110F)


In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk sugar, yeast, salt and flour.  Add  warm water and olive oil and mix with dough hook until the dough starts to come together.   Allow the machine to continue kneading the dough until smooth and elastic.

Turn onto lightly floured board and knead 3 minutes.  Place in oiled bowl, turn to coat, cover with plastic wrap and let stand in warm draft free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.  Punch down and divide in half.  Each half will make 1 large thin crust pizza.   On lightly floured board, form into smooth balls and cover loosely with plastic wrap.   Return to warm draft free place and let rise another 35 - 45 minutes.  (You can wrap 1 ball well in plastic and freeze at this point if you don't want to make 2 pizzas. )

Preheat oven to 500F.  If using a pizza stone, put it in the oven now so it preheats along with the oven.

Press the dough with your fingers until it is as flat as possible, then pick up and stretch over the backs of your hands, gently pulling the edges outward while rotating the crust.  If that proves too frustrating, just use a rolling pin to roll it out.  The texture will be different, but you won't be so frustrated.

Try for round, but amoeba shaped is ok too.

If using a pizza pan, put the dough in the pan, and top the pizza as you like it.   Pop it in the oven and bake 8 - 14 minutes, depending on thickness, until the edges are golden and cheese is melted.

If using a pizza stone, stretch your dough and put on a well floured pizza peel before putting on the toppings.  Once you have the toppings on, slide the pizza off of the peel onto the stone and bake.  Baking time could be less on the stone so keep a close eye.  When cooked, use the peel to lift pizza off the stone and transfer to cutting board.

Buen Provecho!

Oatmeal-Chocolate Chip Freezer Cookies

Kevin and I have lost a ton of weight over the past 2 years.  Well, maybe not a whole ton, but between the two of us, we have lost a small child.  Well, ok, maybe a larger, older child.  We are not there yet, but we are proud of ourselves and our progress thus far.  It is true, every step in a forward direction does encourage us to keep moving forward in our mid-life efforts to get in shape after years of over indulging.

We are trying to eat healthier, however, that does not mean we don't crave carbs and, dare I say it, SWEETS!  Yes, sweets!!!!  Anything with sugar in it!!  Problem is we don't want a whole pie, just a small taste.    Often I will foist half of some creation upon our Beti, without whose help I would have no time to play around in the kitchen.   She happily takes whatever it is home to share with her family.  Problem is that she is here on Tuesdays and Thursdays and we have time to do our baking on Saturday and Sunday so she is not always getting the freshest representation of our talents, and sometimes a thing just needs to be consumed within a day or 2.  Half batch, you say?  Sometimes that is still too much.

Enter the freezer cookie.   In just a few minutes, we can have fresh baked cookie goodness whenever we want.  I may actually buy a toaster oven just for these little gems of goodness.




Oatmeal-Chocolate Chip Freezer Cookies

Everything you need to make these is right here, except for the cinnamon and allspice.

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 cup butter @ room temperature

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups regular rolled oats

1 1/2  cups chocolate chips

Whisk dry ingredients, including the spices in a medium bowl and set aside.

Put both sugars and the butter  into the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on high speed until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, and vanilla and beating until blended, scraping down as needed.  Reduce speed to low and slowly add dry ingredients, mixing just until combined.  Add rolled oats and chocolate chips, again, mixing until just combined.

Looks yummy already

Tear 2 long sheets of wax paper and divide the whole mess between the two.  Do your best to form into long rolls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.  

Mine look more square than round, but by this point, it was 90F in my kitchen and the dough was starting to "melt".  hahaha

Wrap well in plastic and freeze overnight or up to 1 month.

You should end up with 2 rolls, each about 12" long.  

On baking day, preheat your oven to 350F, unwrap dough and cut into  rounds about 1/2 " thick.

This is the best part.  you can cut as many cookies as you would like and just pop the rest of the frozen round back in the freezer for another day.

  Place the frozen rounds 2" apart on a silpat or parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake 15 - 18 minutes, until edges are golden brown.

15 minutes to cookie goodness!

Let them cool a bit before eating them!  You can put them on a wire rack to cool, but it's ok if you skip that and just let them cool in the pan.

Freshly baked cookies!

Life with Cats

There is a lizard in our car.  Never, in my wildest dreams, did I imagine these words would apply to my life.  Nor,  that they would be spoken so matter of factly.  I guess life here has changed us a bit.

Many of you already know that we have 4 cats.  Over the years, for a variety of reasons, the faces have changed, but for reasons known only to the Universe, the number has remained constant.  

Ask anyone, the cats have an unwritten rule that says we can only EVER photograph 3 at a time.

Yes, 4 of the little furry darlings, who in spite of our best efforts to keep them full of Purina Cat Chow, do what cats do best, which is hunt.   Over the years they have brought home a variety of trophies.   We live beside a jungle, so you can let your imagination run.  

Of course, Alexa, the dog,  is always curious about what they bring home.   

A couple of times, we have even caught them playing with a scorpion, which is a big NO NO, and always causes us to move faster than we ever thought we could to separate the hunter from its prey.    In this particular instance, we are not sure which is which.  Cats are not immune to the sting, but their thick fur makes it difficult for the scorpion to sting them, except of course on their cute little noses and bottoms of their paws.

Sorry, no scorpion photos, this frog will have to do.

As I am sure all cat owners do, we have grown accustomed to the odd trophy, mostly small lizards of one type or another,  being dropped at our feet at inopportune times.  Often we try to save the poor creature, but other times, we have had to let nature take its course.   

Sometimes the trophy does escape and we find them in surprising places, like behind the fridge or under the microwave, rolled up in the window blinds, or in the case of one very small bat, flying wildly around the dining room looking for a way out.  We helped him find an exit VERY quickly!  Often there is just a pile of feathers to tell us what occurred during the night.

But, this afternoon, we had a new experience with lizards.  As Kevin was driving past the OXXO store, with no cats in the car, a lizard dropped onto his lap!  Kevin started so violently he injured his foot on the brake pedal, but managed to keep control of the vehicle. The lizard screamed and ran away.  Well, it didn’t really scream, but it did run away, jumping off of Kevin’s leg to take refuge somewhere in the depths of the dashboard.

Our car is parked in the driveway with the hope that while we are not looking the lizard will find his way out.  Meanwhile, for the next few car trips, I will be on high alert! 

The Journey to Casa Madera - Replacing The Palapa

September 24, 2011 - It's hot, very hot today at Casa Madera Bed & Breakfast in Nuevo Vallarta.  32 degrees with humidity so it feels like 39.  You move, you sweat.  It's that simple. You cannot escape it unless you lock yourself in the house with your air conditioner on.  We don't use the air conditioning so we pay the price.

Yes, the price.  The average September day is a 3 shirt day.  You wear one until it gets too heavy and you put on another.  I had never had to stop typing to dry my keyboard in Alberta.  Who knew that fingertips sweated!

That's just the way it is in late summer in Vallarta.  While our friends in Northern Alberta are trying to protect their tomato's from frost, we are just trying to stay dry.

Heather and I spend a lot of time on our kitchen patio because of the breeze coming off the ocean or mountains but later in the day as the sun comes around it just is not the place to be.   It is then we head downstairs to relax under the palapa.

The Palapa.  Who knew that a whole bunch of grass that was not cut into fairways or greens would be so inviting.  But it is.  It is shady and cool when the sun is beating down.  It keeps the rain out when it is in torrential downpour mode.  It is a natural roofing material whose price does not go up because maybe half the town needs a new one due to a hail storm like an asphalt shingle.

We have since found out that a Palapa is made from the dried palms that are used in churchs throughout the world on Palm Sunday.

It's beautiful and we think it is one of the most becoming features of our Bed and Breakfast.  It is our favourite place to serve our guests breakfast.  It was not always like that....

December 20, 2009 - Heather and I are sitting under the palapa enjoying a Corona while surveying the lower floor and deciding what we should do with what.  It has been a long day what with doing insurance work in the morning and doing demolition in the back room in the afternoon.  There was a small breeze coming off the ocean which was rattling the grass in the palapa and causing a great deal of it to fall on our heads!

[caption id="attachment_398" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="I don't think this will keep the rain out anymore!"][/caption]

There was no denying the fact that the palapa had to be replaced.  Now!  It was falling down around us so we vowed the next day we would look into getting it replaced.

Three company's came out to quote on the job with 2 of them being the same price and one being way too high.  The last man who came out to quote, Angel, walked into the area where the palapa was and you could tell that as far as he was concerned, he was going to rebuild this palapa.  He looked at it and asked if we wanted dimension lumberor rustic.  Same price either way.  We said rustic.  He said, give me $20,000.00 pesos and we will start tomorrow. We replied we will pay you the deposit when you arrive.

[caption id="attachment_399" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Glad it's him and not me!"][/caption]

Angel (pronounced Anhel) was the a typical Mexican cowboy.  Long and lanky he weighed maybe 120 pounds if he was lucky.  Looked to be about 60 but who knows.

At 9:00 am the next day the truck pulled up and out jumped about 5 young guys who immediately started tearing down the old palapa.  The grass was crumbling in their hands as they moved up the 2 x 4's that were the trusses for the main support system.  These guys had no fear, it was something to see.  A good many of the 2 x 4's were rotten after being exposed to the elements for a good many years.

[caption id="attachment_400" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Bare feet!"][/caption]

That day they removed everything and cleaned up the site.  Angel came by to pick up the deposit and said he would be back in a day or two with the grass.

[caption id="attachment_401" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Looks just a little different"][/caption]

2 days later, a Sunday morning, Heather and I were up on the roof enjoying our coffee when a truck full of palapa grass pulled up in the driveway.  For the next 45 minutes they dumped the grass on the patio along with some tree trunks which were obviously the rustic supports.

[caption id="attachment_402" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="The first truck load of grass with the support poles."][/caption]

We chatted a few minutes when they were done in Spanish and our take was they would be back in the morning to start.

[caption id="attachment_403" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Angel is sitting on the lower beam"][/caption]

And back they were.   They were preparing the trees for use.  The tree bark had been removed but they needed to be ground and cleaned for use.  So for two days we listened to the sound of the hand grinder going up and down these logs.

The next day the whole crew arrived and started to build the support system.  It was fascinating to watch these skinny guys and the old man toss these logs around.  Heather and I would be lucky if we could lift an end of one. They were tossing them around like they were toothpicks.

Once the south side supports were up they started weaving the grass.  It was amazing watching them do this.  Taking a piece of grass and weaving it over the cross member.  The worker would do a whole row and then go along with pruning shears clipping the edges to make sure they were even.

[caption id="attachment_404" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="One side done!"][/caption]

It is like watching performance art, except it makes sense and you get a reliable product at the end.  However, the work takes time.  Something neither Heather or I ever realized.  It took a lot longer to do than we ever imagined it would.

[caption id="attachment_405" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Almost finished!"][/caption]

It was about 10 days into construction when Angel told us he had got a job to do a very large palapa for a hotel in Yelapa.  A small village only accessible by boat from Puerto Vallarta.  The size of the palapa escapes me now but we worked it out based on the amount of grass that he needed that it was worth $30,000.00 us dollars.

And everything had to be transported by boat.  We referred to it as the Yelapa Palapa...

[caption id="attachment_406" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Now that's a nice palapa!"][/caption]

It took just over 3 weeks start to finish for our palapa to be completed.  It is beautiful.  It provides shade when you want it.  It keeps out the rain so you can sit in comfort while it is pouring outside.  And most importantly, it has fans installed that help keep you cool when its 35 degrees outside in the shade....

[caption id="attachment_407" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="We have the fans now we just need the Corona!"][/caption]