Cactus pears

The other day while shopping at Zion Market, I noticed these fruit that were called cactus pears.  They did look like cactus and had a pretty red skin.  I decided to buy a couple to try them out.

I wasn't really sure how to eat these.  I cut one in half to see what it looked like inside.  I was surprised about how red the flesh was.  It was even prettier inside than it was on the outside.  However, the majority of the inside seemed to be seeds.  So I decided to google the fruit for the proper way to eat it.

I found a couple of videos and articles about catcus pear.  They suggested to cut off both ends and then peel the fruit.  (They also warned about the pears having thorns and to handle with a towel.  Luckily for me, these didn't have thorns.  I had handled quite a few at the store when choosing mine.) However since the flesh layer without the seeds is so thin, I didn't think this was a good idea for the cactus pear I had.  Instead, I scooped out the flesh with a spoon, and spit out the seeds.

The fruit wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be.  Pears usually are pretty sweet.  Perhaps I just didn't choose good ones.  One of the videos I watched on how to eat cactus fruit named a bunch of fruit that cactus pears taste similar to.  The one I identified with was sour watermelon.  That is what mine tasted like.  Like watermelon that isn't sweet.  It's too bad because these fruit were so pretty.  Maybe I'll try again some other time.

Cotixan Mexican & Seafood

Cotixan Mexican & Seafood
4370 Genessee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117
(858) 571-8843
www.gotburritos.com

 

I had a craving for Mexican food the other night, so Boyfriend and I stopped by Cotixan.  We used to come to Cotixan all the time when I was in school.  It was the perfect place to satisfy late night munchies with its conveniently open 24 hour location.  The prices were cheaper then too.  Now the prices have steadily gone up.  It no longer seems so cheap.  Usually my mexican food cravings are satisfied during work hours at the local taco shops nearby, which offer huge portions and cheaper prices.  Cotixan still tastes good, I just wish it hadn't gone up in price.

My favorite items to get here are the carne asada burrito and the nachos supreme.  I really enjoy the carne asada here.  Some places make it too salty. 

The burrito is very filling, and has a good amount of salsa and guacamole. 

The nachos are good too.  Best shared with someone else.  Tons of salsa, guacamole, sour cream, cheese, chunks of carne asada, and bean paste.  Not very healthy, but oh so good!  You can read my previous quick post on Cotixan Nachos here.

Matcha green tea latte

A couple of weeks ago, the folks at Matcha Source sent me package container some recipes, a small packet of matcha green tea powder, and a hand electric frother.  I wasn't sure what I wanted to do to try out the matcha green tea powder.  I decided to try making a simple latte from their recipes.

Directions

• Sift 1 tsp Matcha powder into a cup
• Melt matcha by adding 2 oz hot water and stirring until matcha becomes a smooth paste
• Pour 6 oz steamed* milk into a cup
• Add matcha tea to the milk
• Scoop foamy milk on top

The matcha latte tasted good.  It had an interesting green color.  Matcha Source's powder appears to have a deeper green color than the powder I've been using for baking.  I think I may use the rest of the powder for my next matcha flavored baked goods because I'm hoping the darker green will come out better for baked goods.  Sometimes the lighter green tea powder I use ends up brown if I don't use enough green tea powder.

I'm lucky to have a lot of local markets that carry matcha green tea powder.  But I know that is not the case for everyone.  I've had a few of my readers inquire into where to buy matcha powder from.  Matcha Source appears to be a good source to buy matcha powder from. I forgot to take a picture of the cute box everything came in, but here's a quick shot of the packet and the frother.