Cooking in an Open Air Kitchen

This photo takes the meaning of cooking in an open air kitchen to a new level. It was taken when we were putting a new roof on our house, either in ’03 or ’04.

Construction in Mexico can be simple — brick walls, roof of tiles — and we have a simple house. We had removed all the roof tiles to have a “real” roof put on. You can see the blue sky overhead and the green of bamboo outside the kitchen. I see I had on a hat and sunglasses. And I see a level, wrench and bucket in the foreground.

I still remember what I made for dinner — Pinto Bean Enfrijoladasfrom the May 2003 Bon Appetit issue. I topped it with Avocado and Tomatillo Salsa. I have a notation in the magazine that I cooked black beans with two toasted avocado leaves instead of using the canned pinto beans called for in the recipe.

We were so hungry and it was so good. I’ll have to make it again in homage to our new roof.