House guest

Mr. C from Advice and Humor from Mr. Condescending has invited himself to spend a night in my home. Presumptuous, I know.

And, he's not just asking to spend the night, but he expects me to wine, dine and entertain him as well. Well Mr. C, you're in for a treat at my house! Here's how our night would go....
The evening would be begin with appetizers and wine in my cozy living room. I would serve a bottle of Montecillo Gran Reserva, a lovey Spanish red, and one of my favorite appetizers, roasted beets with fresh goat cheese and mint from my garden.

When it was time for me to start making our main course, I would leave you to peruse my books shelves. Here's what you would find--every book ever written by Isabel Allende (they're in Spanish, but for you Mr. C, I'd be willing to translate) and books about Taoism, Buddhism and other forms of spirituality. I have a nice collection of Calvin and Hobbes books too.

You'd also find guidebooks from the many "exotic" places I've traveled to, books about local hikes and wildlife and cookbooks.

Here's my favorite cookbook. I got my awesome Mole Poblano de Guajolote recipe from this Hot & Spicy cookbook. This dish takes two full days to prepare--the sauce is made of dried, roasted chiles, almonds, raisins, cocoa, and more.

My most cherished recipe is not from a cookbook. It's written on a loose sheet of paper and includes such non-specific instructions as "cook it until it's done." The recipe for pastel de pollo was given to me by my madre tica, the woman who fed and housed me when I studied abroad in Costa Rica.

Anyway, back to our lovely evening Mr. C....

For our main course on this night, we'd have grilled Tilapia

with a tomato and fresh herb salsa, garden-fresh green beans and rice pilaf.

Our meal would be accompanied my mojitos, made with the chocolate-mint from my garden. We'd enjoy our meal and drinks in my lovely backyard.

How does that sound, Mr. C?