u/CockroachTheory

Spotted on our walk at our usual spot, along our road, in Costa Rica’s Southern Pacific Zone

The bright Fuchsia did not enjoy Florida until the rainy season, whereas the orange, fading to and often appearing pink specimen was intensely vigorous and generous with its flowers. Regrettably, both were left behind when I moved in August, but I have plenty to choose from at the local shops, where we are now.

We recently relocated from Florida to the lush surroundings of Costa Rica. My experience with bougainvillea in Florida, was that potted specimens seemed temperamental, but those in the ground did well.
Here, there are a few standard fuchsia colored mounds, spilling over fences or slopes, but we have a fairly cloudy climate in the rainy season, with a few months of clearer skies, and the soil is dense, red clay. Leaf cutter ants also abound!
Would you plant these in the ground, on the top of a slope, in your sunniest spot, or would you attempt them in pots? What sized pots? Apparently these are both larger growing varieties.

I’m from the USA, where these vehicles are denied to us, but I recently moved abroad, to Costa Rica and purchased this low mileage gem, as soon as I arrived. She is a beast, I love her, and we call her Mercedes.☺️ Interesting remote start on these. Very enjoyable to drive on these rugged mountain roads. I hope she’s with us for a long time.🙏

12 Quart pot:

4 TBS Thyme
2 TBS Marjoram
3 tsp of celery salt
4 tsp ground black pepper
4 Bay leaves

Couple pinches of salt and pepper for browning the chicken , onions, and veggies separately

4 TBS avocado or cooking oil of choice
2 cups White Wine ( Sauvignon Blanc )
4TBS Worchestershire sauce
Juice from 2 lemons
2 TBS Roasted Garlic Better than Bullion
2 TBS Better than Bullion chicken
Parmesan rind

2 lbs of chicken thighs cubed into 1” pieces
1.5 lbs of cannellini beans or white navy beans soaked overnight
1 garlic bulb minced
2 leeks trimmed, cleaned, split lengthwise, cut into 1/2” pieces
4 parsnips cut to 3/4” thick pieces
1 lb of carrots cut into 1/2” pieces
7-8 celery stalks cut into 1/2” pieces
1.5 lbs Yukon gold potatoes cut into 1/2” chunks
4 large yellow onions diced
1 large white onion diced
Lacinato or regular kale veins removed cut into 1” pieces

Brown your chicken with a couple pinches of salt and pepper in about 2TBS of oil, remove and set aside

Add onions and a few pinches of salt and pepper and caramelize the onions

Add 2 cups of wine and cook off the alcohol, scraping the pot bottom to release the heavy fond

Add the leeks, carrots, and celery cook until softened
Add garlic and dry spices except bay leaves cook for 6 mins, stirring

Add 6 quarts of water and bring to a simmer
Add better than bullion
Add beans stir and let simmer covered for 25 mins
Add Parmesan rind
Add potatoes, chicken and parsnips- allow to simmer covered 25mins and stir occasionally
Add worchestershire sauce and stir in

Let simmer 7 mins, stirring

Retrieve leftover rind and bay leaves

Wilt kale into the soup, about 5-7 mins

Remove from heat, stir in juice of 2 squeezed lemons and top with shaved Parmesan before serving

Stumbled onto a bank that was littered with artifacts, there was so much material there that I called and canceled an appointment I had later that day. I found over 20 broken or complete points that day in a very small area. This was located in a small washout on that bank, it was lying along with various flint flakes and broken points. It’s hard to imagine that something this unique would be with all the other artifacts. I’m sure early people had a sense of humor no different than ours and some dude probably saw this rock and was like oh man so and so is really going to get a kick out of this or it could be a total coincidence and I just found the oddest shaped rock ever. Either way I packed it home and have gotten a lot of chuckles out of it.

12qrt pot

2tsp smoked paprika
2tsp allspice
2tsp thyme
1tsp curry
2tsp turmeric
2tsp cumin
2tsp celery salt
2tsp black pepper
2tsp salt

1TBS butter
2TBS avocado oil
2 cans of coconut crème
2TBS better than bullion chicken or 4 cups chicken stock
4-10 cups of water

2 large sweet potatoes
8oz frozen corn
Cilantro
1 red bell pepper
Green onions/spring onions
Kale
1 large leek
2 large yellow onions
Celery 5 stalks
Carrots 3-4 large
Garlic 3-5 cloves
Ginger 5” portion
3 limes
2lbs of boneless dark chicken meat
1lb of black eyed peas, soaked overnight and drained

Cut the onions into coarse 1/2” pieces set aside
In one bowl
Halve the carrots lengthwise and cut in 1/4” pieces
Trim the leek by removing the coarse green outer leaves, split it lengthwise and cut into 1/4” rings
Halve the celery lengthwise and cut into 1/4” pieces
Cut the red pepper into 1/4 pieces

Mince you’re ginger and garlic and set aside

Cut your sweet potatoes into 1” chunks set aside

Strip leafy parts of kale from stems and tear into 1-2” pieces

Cut your chicken into 1” pieces

Finely chop the cilantro near the end of the cook
Juice all 3 limes and zest 2 near the end of the cook

Over medium heat, heat the butter and oil
Once heated add onions and 2 pinches of salt and black pepper to taste
Allow soften about 6 mins
Add bowl with celery/leek/carrots/red pepper
Couple pinches of salt and pepper
Cook until softened slightly and celery is starting to get translucent 8-12mins
Add garlic and ginger and allow to cook 2-4 minutes
Add dry spices and stir in well, add chicken and stir in well
Once chicken is starting to get white, add your 4 cups broth/4cups or water or 8 cups of water and 2TBS of chicken flavored better than bullion
Bring to a low simmer and add your black-eyed peas cook for 25/30 mins covered, at a gentle simmer
Add sweet potatoes, 2 cans of coconut crème and simmer low, covered for another 35 mins
Add frozen corn and kale simmer 10 mins
Turn off heat, stir in green onions and cilantro
Remove from burner and stir in lime juice and zest
Serve

Dry:
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1.5 tsp of black pepper
2 tsp marjoram
1 tsp of thyme
2 tsp of celery salt
3-4 pinches of salt

White wine ( Sauvignon Blanc in my case )
Parmesan rind
1 cup wild rice

Fresh:
2-2.5lbs of chicken thighs ( I use boneless but if you don’t mind looking for the bones later bone in gives more flavor and nutrition )
Spinach (1 bag baby spinach 8oz bag )
1/2lb baby carrots
3-5 parsnips
2 leeks
2 lemons
4 stalks of celery
2 lemons
1 large white onion
Dill
5 garlic cloves from the bulb

2 cans or 1 lb soaked overnight if dried cannellini beans
Butter
Olive oil

Wash and chop accordingly:
Carrots- lengthwise and 1/4” pieces
Onion- coarse chopped 1/2” pieces
Leeks- same as carrots- use all but the root and tough green leaves
Celery- same as carrots
Parsnip- same as carrots

Chicken- 1-2” chunks
Dill- reserve 1/3, finely chop the rest
Garlic- minced
1 lemon zest
The juice of both lemons
1/4 cubes of 1/4lb of Parmesan rind

Rinse and drain the beans

In a 12 qrt pot, heat 2 TBS of olive oil and butter over medium heat

Add onion, pinch of salt and pepper, stir every minutes until softened and translucent

Add carrots, parsnips, celery, and leeks pinch of salt and pepper cooked until softened 8-10 mins, stirring every few mins

Add dry ingredients and garlic, cook for 1-2 minutes

Add 1 cup of wine- cook off alcohol 3-5 minutes

Add chicken- cook until just turning white on the outside- stirring every couple minutes

Add 8-10 cups of water or broth. I used better than bullion-2TBS of chicken and 10 cups of water

Add 1 cup of wild rice

Add Parmesan rind and chopped dill, remembering to reserve 1/3 for the finish.

Allow to cook at a low simmer of 30 mins

Add rinsed and drained beans cook for 20 mins

Reduce heat to low

Remove any remaining rind if any

Add spinach

Once wilted (5-7mins) add reserve of dill torn coarse with no stems, fresh lemon zest and lemon juice. Stir well. Add 2TBS of olive oil, stir and serve.

1 large white onion chopped about 1/2” pieces
3 large celery stalks spit and chopped small
1lb of carrots chipped small
Garlic cloves minced
1 bunch of washed and drained kale or collards, torn into 1”-2” pieces and stripped from the stems
2 medium sweet potatoes coarse chopped with skins on

6 strips of thick cut bacon
1 smoked turkey leg

1lb of green split peas, rinsed

Smoked paprika
Celery salt
Thyme
Black pepper
Red pepper flakes
Salt
Bay leaves
Better than bullion chicken
Worcestershire sauce
Lemon juice

Wash and chop all fresh ingredients

With just enough oil, cook down carrots, celery, and onions until onions are translucent
Add dry seasoning except bay leaves and garlic and cook another minute until spices bloom

Place turkey leg, peas, better than bullion, bay leaves, and the cooked vegetables, and sweet potato, with 6 cups of hot water into the crock pot, with lid and set for 6-hours or medium low.

Allow to simmer for 8 hrs, stirring only twice, quickly, so as not to lose heat.

Before the last 30mins of the cook,
Remove meat from the leg and retain in the pot, careful to remove the bones from the soup.
Crisp the bacon until it breaks or chops easily apart, but do not burn
Wilt the kale in the hot bacon fat and add some additional red pepper flakes
Add the kale to the crock and allow to finish the 8hr simmer

Once the peas have dissolved and thicken, turn off the crock and add some final shots of Worcestershire sauce.

Serve with a couple splashes of lemon juice stirred in and crumbled bacon on top

This cook included parsnips, northern beans, green lentils, zucchini, butternut squash, sweet potato, leeks, kale, onions, beef chuck, and tomatoes/tomato paste.
I deglazed the pot with Merlot, as well.