Thanksgiving in Mexico

Yesterday was Thanksgiving, the first I've ever spent spent away from a family gathering. How come it took so long? My wife asked if this might be the most memorable one we've ever spent - without a doubt it is. The highlight was getting fresh frambuesas (raspberries) directly from the farms near Jocotapec, the western most town along the Lake Chapala shore. From across the lake in Ajijic you can see the shimmering reflection of the white plastic toldos (sunshades) that cover the rows of berries. Pick a farm, drive up a dirt road and look for a sorting hut between the rows. You need to bring your own pail, and hopefully they've got extra berries to sell you. What the sorters do is set aside the ripe berries as they pack the unripe ones for export to the US; the best berries are the rejects.

It took us two tries to find a hut that had any, beating out a couple of other cars with norte americano plates. We picked up a half gallon of the freshest, most delicious berries imaginable, for forty pesos (less than 4 dollars) - about the price you pay for small plastic tray at the supermarket at home.

As Ajijic and Lake Chapala are the winter home to numerous gringos and many of the local restaurants run by expats offer a Thanksgiving feast - we booked a 7 PM seating at Pedro's Gourmet on Calle Ocampo. An absolutely gorgeous day yielded buen tiempos for the evening as we sat outside sipping our limonade and tamarind margarita. We soon enjoyed a sumptuous buffet that included scallion souffle, gorgonzola cheese mashed potatos and as tender a pavo (turkey) as I've ever had. Pedro's grew up in Canada, parents of a Toronto oil executive and a Mexican mother (his father's translator). His madre, determined to bassimulate, learned to cook a Canadian Thanksgiving, and last night's menu was redux of the recipes she had mastered.