Who is Felipe Calderón?

Mexico was exactly the vacation I wanted it to be – relaxing, sun-filled and interesting.  One day I found myself sitting on the beach having a conversation about politics with a man from Guadalajara. He wanted to know everything from what I thought of President Obama and if he’d get re-elected, to whether or not I liked Hillary Clinton.  It was rather embarressing to me that he knew so much about our politics, while I’m pretty sure that in a game of Jeopardy I wouldn’t know the answer to “Who is Felipe Calderón?”  He was most interested though in the state of our economy because it affects Mexico so much.  Sadly, I couldn’t give him any reassurances that we’re on our way back.

While we enjoyed a lot of really great chips and salsa, can I just tell you that they made the best french fries at our hotel?  Maybe it was because we were enjoying them beach and/or pooside, but I think the real reason is that they’re not frying these in the healthy oil.

Mike and I enjoyed really great meals each night when we’d made our way into town.  After meeting a couple of girls from Kentucky (Hi to Regina and Diane!) at the hotel pool, we hi-jacked their evening and after a couple of cocktails the four of us made our way to, of all things, an Italian restaurant for dinner.  Mike and the girls raved about their pizzas and the crispy crust. No pizza for me.  I had spaghetti with a simple pesto sauce and loved every bite of it.  Pesto is simple to make, freezes perfectly and is a nice reminder of summer when we get to January and February.

Pesto
Yield: 3/4 cup

2 cloves garlic
3 tbsp pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
2 tbsp romano cheese, grated
2 cups fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, process the garlic until finely chopped. Add the pine nuts, parmesan and romano cheeses and process until finely minced. Add the basil, and with the processor running, add the oil in a steady stream through the feed tube.

Refrigerate up to four days, or freeze.