The Food of Cuba -- with a Side of Ocean.

Today I asked my host to leave me in Varadero. This may because I need some meditation on the beach to write you this message. I think it is just a good excuse to spend a day on the beach writing. Today’s post is about food: breakfast, lunch, and dinner and everything in between. I guess the appropriate place to start is with coffee. It is fortunate that I have a very high tolerance to caffeine because here we drink coffee after every meal. Cuban coffee is in espresso form, consisting of a shot per serving. When people here ask me how I like my coffee I give them a very simple response, “Cuban.”

            Breakfast. Since I have arrived in Cardenas my breakfasts have been of five-star quality, at least by Cuban standards. Freshly squeezed juice, mango, guava, or a combination of any left over fruit that is around. Warm milk, coffee, scrambled eggs, fresh ham, and freshly baked bread make up my morning. If I am lucky I get something that’s called a disco, or CD. This resembles a grilled cheese but it is in the shape of a flying saucer. And if I am super lucky, sliced mango. The view that I have from where I am writing now is so stunning that it is truly a challenge to concentrate on food. The clearest turquoise water, palm trees, murals painted onto white pillars, a gazebo that seems to be only reserved for special weddings, and kite surfers taking advantage of the Caribbean breeze.

            Now back on subject, lunch. The key item that can be found in every midday meal is rice. White rice, fried rice, rice and black beans, or as Aurelio calls is arroz con todo. (rice with everything) Many thought that I would be sick of rice and beans by now but if I have a meal without them I feel like something is missing. Fresh avocado, cucumber, green beans, the occasional chopped lettuce, mango, radish, and the occasional other tropical fruit make up the salad portion of the meal. There is always some form of meat included: chicken with soy sauce, regular chicken, pork, hot dog, hamburger, or the occasional forbidden food -- beef. This seems to be the most important meal of the day, for this time is spent avoiding the intense noon sun and is often followed by an intense siesta.

            Dinner is relatively similar to lunch. The same assortment of fruit and vegetables for the salad, rice and beans of some sort, a meat of some kind and fried plantains. This is a time where the family gathers to decompress from the long day of work. Following dinner, besides the inevitable marathon of novelas, is desert, or postre. Ice cream, either chocolate or vanilla, fruit preserves of mango or grapefruit, and guava with cheese are the most popular forms of desert. Aurelio continually suggests that it is American cheese but I let him know that this cheese is far better than American cheese. Sometimes there is coconut pie, and thin pie that is sold by bike venders on the street. There are many more things I can write about the food yet but as I mentioned above it seems that the ocean is clouding my memory. So I will post more about food throughout my blog posts this year.

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            This savory post is brought to you by, Sally Ferrell, Audrey Scanlan, Drew Smith, and Bruce Shipman. Thank you all for your support.