(In case you missed it, check out the prequel to this post in the Peruvian Altiplano) The sun shines off the water like a reflecting pad, its glare penetrating my eyelids. “What time is it, anyways?” I glance over at my iPhone and the time says...
Artisan Salt in South America
Salt. One of the essential minerals for life is composed primarily of sodium and chloride ions along with other trace elements. So simple. So basic. Salt can coax out and exalt flavor like no other condiment. Without salt, food is doomed to taste bland. Besides...
Into Thin Air: Altitude & Travel in the Andes
One of the questions and travel concerns we consistently field from our guests is how to prepare for, and potentially cope with, altitude sickness when traveling in the Andes. While Cusco and the Inca’s Sacred Valley immediately come to mind, keep in mind that...
Q&A with Chef Laurent Pasqualetto
We recently sat down with the talented chef of The Singular Patagonia, Laurent Pasqualetto, the creative food/beverage engine of this spectacular hotel in Chile’s far flung Patagonia. One of the most noticeable differences at The Singular is the simply divine,...
Five Chilean Wines for Meditation
Every morning for the past month, I have been waking up early to meditate. It’s become a sacred space to quiet my mind, focus on all the positive things I want to do/be/have/achieve in the day. By the time the dawn is starting to peak over the Andes I...
Tips for Weathering a Trip to Patagonia
Just saying the word Patagonia conjures up visions of jagged mountains, glaciers, and cold, often inclement, weather. The extreme weather in the remote lands of Patagonia in Southern Chile can make packing for a trip quite complex. Patagonia is notorious for...
Racy Corn Soup with Ginger & Basil
We are officially in soup season. While the afternoons here in Santiago still reach the mid-60s, the mornings and nights are frigid and have taken a dip into the 30s-40s. I have put to good use my favorite new hat, a chullo, made from alpaca from Taquile...
Sky High: Into the Peruvian Altiplano
Peru is a captivating country that continuously ceases to amaze me with the depth of its food, culture, climates, and friendliness of its people every time I visit, which fortunately is quite often. Many people have Peru primarily on their bucket list for one...
South American Fall Getaways
Yesterday evening, I needed to blow off steam from the office and went out for my favorite vuelta, walk, around Parque Forestal from the Fine Arts museum to Plaza Italia and back. Earlier that afternoon, it had been an infierno outside but now, as the...
Diversity: Chile’s Wine Buzz Word
Imagine this. Twelve dramatically different wine valleys packed into a 1,000 mile north to south mid-section of the country, no more than 100 miles or so wide at any point. Vineyards sit in the piedmont with jagged, snowcapped peaks cutting into the sky. Others...
Jungle Love
The air is heavy, humid and so full of oxygen it feels weighted. In the distance, bolts of lighting make contact with earth and a stormy breeze ruffles the palms. There's a scent of grilled meat perfuming the air. Next to the river, dozens of street food...
Eating Healthy While Traveling
This year I have been a bit of a road warrior. In fact, when I departed on a recent business trip to the US, I calculated that I had actually been home (in Santiago, Chile) about 4.5 months the entire year. Not a bad thing. I totally thrive off of being...
Bubbles & Bites
I love bubbly. Any kind. Champagne, Cava, Prosecco, Sparkling wines from California, Argentina, Chile, etc. etc. If you asked me what would be my preferred wine to pair with food for the rest of my life it would be (good) bubbly. What never bores me with...
Empanadas The Chilean Way
Over the Dieciocho, Chilean Independence, holiday, we traveled to Talca to see my husband’s parents in the countryside. Since it had been quite a while since my last visit, I petitioned a carga, order, of Señora María’s empanadas from the nearby village of San...
Peru is Coming to Texas!
After a very long weekend (5 days!) for Chilean Independence holidays, I am getting ready to head north for my third tour in Texas at Central Market’s cooking school in early October. Since many of you reside in the Lone Star state, I wanted to share the...
Rancho La Puerta & Tuna Tiradito Recipe
The starting point of our RTW trip was, fittingly, at a fitness spa in Baja Mexico, Rancho La Puerta, where I was invited to be guest chef on South American cuisine at their cooking school, La Cocina que Canta. To call Rancho La Puerta simply a spa is rather...
World Travels, Part I: China
In July, my husband and I took off on a 33-day round-the-world trip spanning three continents. One of the big motives of the journey was to go to Asia. I had not yet been, and it has been high on the list for a long time. After much debate as to where,...
The Last Passage
If somebody had told me that six weeks ago my life would have been turned upside down, I wouldn’t have believed them. It was not a trip abroad, or even within Chile. No, no, no. It was a journey in my own home, my own being, deep into my soul. Vika was...
Searching for flavors; the honest
and the meaningful
and the meaningful
