Explore the New Kitchen Store in David

La Cocina has recently opened their doors in David, offering low-cost housewares of all types, lots of plastic containers and cookware.

To get to La Cocina, take the first left off the highway and drive past Romero’s until you get to one of the 3 traffic lights in David. Elmec is on the left and the new La Cocina Kitchen Store is on the far right corner, right across from Elmec.

The owners are very helpful, and they have items that are not readily available in other shops. Actually, I believe this is the only exclusive kitchen store between here and Panama City.

The first thing I noticed was the huge selection of mixing bowls beginning at only $1, the stacks of aluminum cookware and good-quality 5-piece wooden spoon sets for $2. I bought a set of spoons, which are just right for mixing up some artisan bread dough. I painted orange stripes on the handles to match my kitchen and to make them easy to find in my drawers.

If you are looking for plastic containers, pitchers, plastic and ceramic plates or bowls, La Cocina is the place to visit.

You won’t find any electrical appliances at La Cocina, which is unfortunate. I’d really like to find a place to buy an electric juicer, a big electric fry pan and a milkshake maker. With Lauretta’s “Gourmet Burgers & More” cooking class coming up, I know I’ll need a milkshake maker.

The owners were very glad to have us visit their shop. They are trying to bring items for the kitchen together into one place, making it easy for cooks like us. I asked if they handled wooden cutting boards, and the response was “Yes, we will be getting them soon.”

A very nice stainless steel thermos bottle was $4, just what I needed to keep a delicious cup of Boquete’s fine coffee hot to drink anytime. It fits perfectly into my car’s console.

I love kitchen gadgets, and La Cocina has a limited supply of basic gadgets. In the photo below, you can see their selection of gadgets on the back wall.

I’ll keep checking back to see the new items La Cocina will be offering and pass along interesting acquisitions to you, as they appear.

Upon leaving La Cocina, I turned left and walked one block to the new Cuidad De David Hotel, the perfect place for lunch!

Don’t you just love David?
Cora

If You Love Salmon – Come to Class

If you come from Canada or north-western US, salmon is abundant everywhere. But, if you live in Panama like me, it’s a bit tricky to find fresh salmon in most markets.

Yes, we can find salmon in Rey or Romero’s, two of the largest supermarkets in Chiriqui, if we’re lucky. Lately, both fresh and smoked salmon have been available at Deli Baru Market in Boquete.

Salmon is the common name for several species in the family “Salamonidae”, which also includes trout, a very plentiful fish in Boquete. Salmon is a healthy, “oily” fish because it’s high in protein, Omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D. More than 80% of Pacific salmon are wild-caught, where 99% of Atlantic salmon are farmed. I wonder which variety tastes best.

Boquete Gourmet will host popular chef, Renny Kranich on October 1, in my El Santuario kitchen to share her knowledge about salmon and some of her favorite ways to prepare this delectable fish. Renny’s class will include several salmon dishes that are just right to be served as appetizers, recipes to use when serving salmon for lunch, and she’ll demonstrate how to create a spectacular main salmon dish in a 5-course gourmet dinner.

While waiting for Renny’s class to begin, you might want to try one of my favorite recipes for an Easy Hollandaise Sauce to serve over poached eggs, accompanied with thinly-sliced smoked salmon.
1 stick butter, melted in microwave
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon cold water
1 tablespoon lemon or lime juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, poached
2 English muffins, toasted
4 slices smoked salmon or gravlax, thinly sliced

Partially fill the bottom of a double boiler with water and bring to a simmer. In the top of the double boiler, whisk together egg yolks, lemon juice, and cold water. Add the melted butter to egg yolk mixture 1 or 2 tablespoons at a time while whisking yolks constantly. If the sauce begins to get too thick, add a teaspoon or two of hot water. Continue whisking until all butter is incorporated, then whisk in the salt, and remove from heat. Place a lid on pan to keep sauce warm while toasting the English muffins and poaching the eggs.

To present, place opened English muffin halves on a large dinner-size plate. Top with smoked salmon, allowing the ends of the salmon to touch the plate, then top with poached eggs and drizzle with Hollandaise sauce. Garnish with a few rings of thinly-sliced red onions and capers, and serve immediately. No side dish is required, unless serving for dinner. This recipe serves two very lucky diners.

Renny has several new, exciting and tasty ways to prepare and to serve salmon you won’t want to miss. If you love salmon like I do, you won’t want to join this fun and informative class. Email boquetegourmet@gmail.com to reserve you seat now. The $25.00 fee includes hands-on class, recipe book, full-course dinner, Renny’s favorite cocktail and a glass of wine.

See you October 1!
Cora

From 65 to 95 Degrees in 45 Minutes!

This unusual phenomenon happens every time I go to David, just 45 minutes from Boquete, Panama. The mornings up here on the side of Volcan Baru are cool and the landscape is often spotted with bajareques, tiny puffs of white clouds. This morning, the Pacific Ocean can be seen from my kitchen windows and Volcan Baru from the terrace, it’s a lovely day.

Most folks up here don a light jacket in the early morning, and sometimes a knit cap to fend off the morning chill. It’s about 60-65F degrees when David and I decide to make our way down the mountain to do some specialty shopping, visit my dentist, and get the car tuned up.

Our little town is quiet at about 8:30am, as most shops here don’t open until after 9am, nothing seems to be a set routine for opening or closing. But, by the time we get to David, the capitol of Chiriqui Province, everything will be up and running.

No air conditioning is needed in our car up here in Boquete, it’s still a bit chilly as we begin our journey. But slowly, I can feel the heat creeping into the car, just about the time we get to Dolega, a small town about half way to David.

This morning I dropped off some “Boquete Gourmet Community Cookbooks” with Harold at The Bookmark Bookstore in Dolega. The bookstore is open early, set with tables of bargain books on the front patio. Harold has enlarged the store with several small rooms stacked with hundreds of books in English, nicely organized for easy shopping. My autographed cookbook is available there for $8, including a collector bookmark, of course.

Then, it’s time to turn on the air conditioning for the remaining 20 minutes of our trip down the mountain to David. We slow down through Algarrobos, drive over the Chiriqui River, past a couple waterfalls, and we’re soon entering the lush residential neighborhood of El Terronal in David.

Yes, the temperature is now 95F degrees, the sun is beating down in the city and people are everywhere. This place is alive! As we pull into the Cuidad de David Hotel parking lot in the center of the city and open the car door, the heat hits us like we’re in a totally different part of the world.

The streets of the city are teeming with happy shoppers dressed in light-weight clothing, some carrying umbrellas to protect themselves against the tropical rays. The new city park is full of residents going about their busy lives.

The day is mine to enjoy, I can “shop ’til I drop”! It only took me 45 minutes to totally change my environment from cool, quiet and laid-back to hot, vibrant, and hustle/bustle.

I’ve noticed that the meals offered at restaurants in both locations are quite different, as well. In David, we can have nachos at a casino, fast-food at KFC or McDonald’s, or eat in an open-air cafeteria. Could choices like that be coming to Boquete one day soon?

David is fun to visit, but I like our little mountain town up in the clouds best.

The cool view from the top is awesome, wouldn’t you agree?
Cora

City of David is Going “Gourmet”!

Forty-five minutes south of Boquete is the City of David, the provincial capital of Chiriqui, Panama. The city is sprawled out for miles, with streets going every direction inside the “U” of the Pan-American Highway. Whichever way you drive, you’ll end up at this wide Highway, it’s very confusing. Until recently, there were no traffic lights of any kind, anywhere in Chiriqui, but now there are 3! There were no “5-star” hotels, large department stores, mega supermarkets or an International airport. But, that has all changed.

It was fun to arrange for 30 “recent” residents of Boquete to tour some of the new and developing areas in David, which we did last week. Touted as the “Gourmet Tour of David” was quite surprising, especially when being deprived of anything “gourmet” west of Panama City for years.

Ely’s Bakery isn’t exactly “new”, they have been supplying supermarkets in David and Boquete with fine baked goods for years. What was surprising, were all the varieties of breads and fancy cakes that are made in such close quarters, so quickly and so tasty. Owner, Danilo and Pastry Chef, Chomp, gave everyone a close-up tour of the facilities, including a giant, walk-in oven and each of us took home a loaf of his specialty bread. We’ll all be back for some of Ely’s delicate, gourmet pastries, and more.

We toured the Cuidad de David Hotel and inspected some of the beautifully decorated, “high-end” rooms and suites. One had a sunken whirl-pool tub, elegant fixtures and “5-star” amenities.

Chef, Jose Valdes, showed us some of his world-class cooking skills and everyone enjoyed a full “dinner” for lunch, including 3 delightful desserts presented by Swiss-trained Chef, Nicole. Thanks to Idu and staff for such a fine afternoon in this gorgeous, world-class hotel.

Another surprise was the huge housewares department on the 3rd floor of the new Conway Department Store. Thanks to managers, Mr. Taylor, clerks Roberto and Viedna, I was able to arrange 4 of the housewares department’s displays to depict French, Spanish, Italian and Asian cuisines, including recipes from each country. This is a photo of the Asian display, complete with a stone place mat. Everyone enjoyed seeing the extensive inventory of “gourmet” cooking items now available in David.

The final event of the day was a wine tasting at the new Felipe Motta Wine Store, located in the same shopping area as the Conway store.

Manager, Gina, provided the wine room of the store and 5 interesting wines for us to taste. The plum saki seemed to garner the most raves, but when Gina asked which was my favorite wine, she presented me with a bottle of Mouton Cadet Bordeaux 2007 from France. What a delightful way to end the perfect day in the upcoming City of David.

I can’t wait until David and I have a nice, fresh salad, a filete of beef to grill, and twice-baked potatoes for a candle-light dinner some evening soon. Of course, the star will be my “Bordeaux” wine from Felipe Motta. Talk about “gourmet”!

Cheers!
Cora