A brightly colored mural was spotted on the main street of Boquete, just above the door of Sabroson Restaurante. It looks like they have an excellent chef, what a lovely way to advertise.

Several residents have murals painted on their walls by local artists. One of the finest I’ve seen is displayed in a corner of the Eickhoff home in Volcancito. The artist spent many long days creating this one-of-a-kind masterpiece.

A colorful map of Panama was painted on a large wall of the local high school. It shows the locale of the various artists throughout the country.

If you want to see where polleras or sombreros are made, look at this mural.

An announcement came out recently about a mural artist coming to Boquete to volunteer to paint a mural for a non-profit organization at no charge.

There are several organizations here that could take advantage of such an offer. The “Bid 4 Boquete Charity Auction” committee represents 4 large non-profit organizations in Boquete. The annual auction is the biggest charity event in Boquete, and every year it gets bigger.

I’m thinking this might be just the project for “Bid 4 Boquete” in the coming months, if we could find a building with an available wall to paint. Do you have any ideas?

When I agreed to co-ordinate this year’s Bid 4 Boquete Charity Auction event, I never thought that by doing so I would meet Vi, the gourmet baker from Volcan who makes what I call “real” cinnamon buns.  Vi’s buns are yeast-risen, full of spices, big, fat raisins and frosted with classic butter icing.

I couldn’t begin to tell you the recipe for Vi’s buns.  They’re not exactly cinnamon rolls, they’re more hearty and are more flavorful.  But, I’m pretty sure that Vi uses the same icing recipe that I’ve used for years.  It’s easy to make and I always have the ingredients on hand.  The sugar here is named XXXXX Azucar Micropulverzada, it comes in a clear cellophane bag.

Here’s my Classic Butter Icing:

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a medium sauce pan or saucier.  Add 3 tablespoons evaporated milk and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.  Slowly beat in 1 cup confectioners’ sugar until smooth.  Add more sugar to get a consistency exactly right to spread on the hot buns when they are taken out of the oven.

Rather than to try to find a recipe to make buns the way Vi makes them, you could visit www.billbaio.com and order them directly from Vi.  She visits David regularly and will deliver them to you there.

Vi is donating some of her buns to be sold at the big Bid 4 Boquete Charity Auction held at the Boquete Feria on Sunday, December 6, beginning at 1:00pm, thanks Vi.  I hope everyone will come to the auction and enjoy all the fine events, especially Vi’s buns.  See you there!

For this year’s Bid 4 Boquete Charity Auction, Papa Ricco, Chef of Papa Ricco’s Italian Restaurant in Boquete, is making pizzelles. Pizzelles are a European favorite, a crisp dessert loaded with flavor.  The batter is fairly easy to make, all you need is the baker.  I have a few models on the TBG Shops tab above, or click on a photo.

The annual Bid 4 Boquete Auction draws hundreds of donors, all looking for bargains and all hoping their purchases will bring joy and hope for a better quality of life to people living in Boquete and surrounding areas.  This year, donors will be able to enjoy this unique treat dusted in powdered sugar, for only 50 cents each.

Last year, the event raised $17,000, which was donated to 4 local charities, Lions Club, Handicap Foundation, Rotary Club and Buenos Vecinos, all worthy charities.  This year, the goal is to raise $20,000.  The  auction is on December 6, beginning at 1pm at the Feria Arco Iris Building.  While you’re there, you won’t want to miss getting one of Papa Ricco’s pizzelles.  If you can’t wait until December 6, stop by his restaurant, located at the entrance of Brisas Boquetenos.

If you have a pizzelle maker or would like to get one, here is Mario Batali’s, www.foodnetwork.com, recipe for making the batter for pizzelles:

Ingredients

• 6 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons fennel seeds

Optional:

• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, and 1 additional egg, or
• 1/4 cup amaretto and an additional 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• Note: You will need a pizzelle iron to make these cookies.

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugar and oil and mix until well combined. Add the flour, baking powder, fennel seeds, and optional ingredients if desired, and mix well to form a homogenous batter. Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Heat the pizzelle iron until very hot. Pour 2 tablespoons of batter onto the iron, close it, and return to the heat. Cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Repeat until all the batter is used.

P.S. If you purchase a pizzelle maker from this site, I’ll donate all proceeds to Bid 4 Boquete and announce it at the acution!  Thanks!