snack away #13 - my puerto rican last meal.

another week, another new guest blogger! today we've got a TOTALLY INTERNATIONAL post from the eatinist bitch, who heeded my call for guest bloggers just days before she left NYC for a few days vacation in puerto rico. she was all "i'll write something about the snacks & drinks down there" & since i don't have a budget to fly columnists to puerto rico, i was totally for the idea. so yeah. enjoy & read her blog & stuff. it's the eatinist, bitch.

so i went to puerto rico two weeks ago in a stunning display of last minute traveling and proceeded to have one of the best vacations ever. i could go on forever about the landscape and the people...but you know the only thing that matters is the food.

seeing as that my friends flew back a day early, my last day in isabella (the town i stayed in) was spent by my lonesome. i wanted something tasty and quick for my last meal there and i knew something tasty would be found at the beach front plaza, villa pesquera. there are a ton of little restaurants and bars, but i picked one stand that i had been eying during my stay. i can't remember its name but i can damn sure remember what i got:

snack: pastelillos (one chicken and one beef)
drink: passion fruit juice
honorable mention: gasolina urban blends

those are pastelillos (one chicken and one beef), basically HUGE empanadas. the major differences are size and dough type. the dough was incredibly tender with a little bit of flake because of all of the lard.

the first one i ate had huge pieces of juicy, shredded chicken (dark and light meat) and potato cubes in tons of spices. nothing too hot or overpowering, just perfect. the beef one had potatoes in it too, but a slight change to the spices, a little heavier on the cumin. so freaking filling and good.

i really loved the crust. i often lament about how people should use more lard in baking, because it tenderizes so well. it's not that high in saturated fat, and as far as i know, has no trans fat. piggies are safe to eat, guys! show the porkers some love.

to wash it all down: a big ol' bottle of passion fruit juice. i've always have had an affinity for that sweet musky fruit, and i try to have it whenever i can. i did dilute this brand with a little water because it was rather sweet. but with some ice, it was the perfect way to clean my palate from the savory food.

honorable mention: now, i completely forgot to get a picture of these, but these are AMAZING. a drink company called gasolina (dame mas gasolina!) makes these little mixed cocktail drinks with straws inside...they freaking look like capri sun pouches.

photo via sea, sand & sienna

i know what you're thinking. effing nasty, right? ¡pero no! i had the sea breeze and the mojito, and they were really good! just a hint of sweetness, and a good dose of booze. it was on par with a mixed drink you'd get at any decent bar. you can also throw these in the freezer, and they'll get all sexy and slushy. just the right size for getting schwasty-faced on a beach. on the label it said it was only available in puerto rico, but when i did a little research, i found out that they had just started becoming available in florida. bring that ish right to new york, please.

eatinist bitch hails from queens, NY and loves food almost as much as she likes to talk. she's been blogging since summer 2010 and is currently interning for robicelli's cupcakes in brooklyn. check out her blog and like her on facebook to get recipes, reviews, and other tasty nibbles.