Diva Boutique Bakery & Cafe: cooking lessons abroad...

The summer is a very busy time for us at Diva, and most of our customers know that we do close for a few months after Christmas...this year we intend to open on the 18th of March..we will also be participating in a street market in Cork city on Sunday the 20th...

My customers always ask what will I be doing when we are closed...and for the last 3 years I have travelled to sunnier climates...this year I went to Mexico..2 of my good friends that I used to fish with in Alaska bought a beautiful condo in a town called Manzanillo...there, they have made good friends with a local family...I spent one day with Laura cooking traditional Mexican food..one of the ingredients was pig skin! Now, I know you are thinking crispy crackling, but this was boiled and thinly sliced, then made into a tostado...I tried it, but I had to discreetly pick out the skin..the rest was yum! I also made some great sauces and made a beautiful pickle(at the cafe we make one that we serve with our burgers that is pretty similar, but now I think we will upgrade to this one)

The great thing about traveling is getting ideas for the cafe...I think you will be seeing some new and tasty items on the menu this year! Here are some photos...