More tasty culinary surprises

More surprises today...pleasant ones too, which are the best kind.  Of course, the best one is that the world did not end today as predicted by the Mayan calendar.  I would have been really ticked too since we did so much planning to move to this wonderful place.....how could it be the world would end when we were just beginning our new life here in Costa Rica.

The farmer's market was busy as usual this morning.  I had read about some fabulous wheat sourdough bread made and sold by a vendor, Tom, who also makes wonderful pies.  The taste buds were not disappointed.  Good sourdough bread is not easy to find.  I will definitely be a repeat customer at Tom's stand.

The second culinary surprise of the day was finding fresh corvina (sea bass) at the open market.  I love pecan crusted dishes so I pan fried the fillets in a bit of olive oil, coated with a mixture of crushed, toasted pecans, some Panko bread crumbs, and cajun seasoning (after dredging in flour and then a couple of lightly beaten eggs.  Muy sabroso!  Served it up with a favorite refreshing cole slaw made with cabbage, thinly sliced onions, cilantro, chopped jalapeño, and chopped tomato with squeezed lime juice and kosher salt for dressing.  I cannot imagine a more perfect meal.....okay, maybe if I had some great coconut cake for dessert it would have been perfection.

We had an electrician over most of the day doing miscellaneous repairs at the house we are renting.  We had been told he would be installing a ventilator in the restroom.  So, of course I was picturing some type of exhaust fan.  Well, it was a Costa Rican ventilation system which is basically an oscillating fan above the built in cabinet that is controlled by a light switch.  Ingenious!  Easy to replace and practical.  We also discussed the high cost of energy here and options for hot water heaters.  He has suggested considering installing solar water heaters.  Will have to do some further investigation.