You never forget your first for a reason. The anticipation, the longing, the excitement for what’s sure to be a sensory overload.

I had my first pupusa six years ago at Acajutla.  It was a moment that changed my carb-loving life forever.

Not much more than a corn dough pocket filled with good stuff like seasoned pork, refried beans, and cheese, the simple pupusa from El Salvador has few culinary rivals in my world.

[Apologies in advance for the many cellphone camera photos.]

[caption id="attachment_658" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Naked Acajutla pupusas"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_659" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Fully dressed Acajutla pupusas"][/caption]

I was happy enough with my Acajutla relationship until El Rancho came along. With additional filling offerings such as zucchini and loroco, my fidelity was seriously in question.  After my first taste, my heart now belonged to another.

If you’re from Edmonton, it is likely that someone at some point has asked if you are on Team Acajutla or Team El Rancho. Me? Team El Rancho.

[caption id="attachment_663" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="El Rancho pupusas"][/caption]

But in a town where you’re lucky enough to choose between the two, the difference is really just preference, not because one is substantially better than the other. I find that El Rancho pupusas tend to be smaller, thicker, and with a crispier exterior.  They are easier to eat with your hands if you like to split them open.  Acajutla pupusas are cheesier and have a larger diameter.  In terms of the pupusa accoutrements, Acajutla makes a better salsa roja (red sauce), El Rancho, a better curtido (cabbage slaw).

[caption id="attachment_664" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="El Rancho pupusas split"][/caption]

It’s all apples to apples after that for me.  I like the homemade tortilla of an Acajutla burrito, but I like the El Rancho insides better.  Acajutla gets many points for their avocado sauce, but El Rancho has better desserts… I love their tres leches cake.

[caption id="attachment_662" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Acajutla burrito"][/caption]

And I can’t forget about El Rancho’s salad.  I have no idea what their brown dressing is, but it’s addictive.

[caption id="attachment_665" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="El Rancho's house salad"][/caption]

I will greatly miss it.

*****************************************

This post marks my end in Edmonton and my beginning in Vancouver.

Cream has jumped the Rockies and set herself up on the West Coast.

This weekend, I finished getting everything out of boxes and am starting to feel comfy in my new home. To celebrate, I went for pupusas. With one mixed, two bean and cheese, and a side of guacamole as a nod to Acajutla’s green sauce, I have found a little piece of El Salvador to remind me of home.  And right on Commercial Drive.

El Rancho 11810 87 St Edmonton

Acajutla 11302 107 Ave Edmonton

Rinconcito Salvadoreno 2062 Commercial Drive Vancouver

Bacon. Salty, sweet, crisp, chewy, fatty goodness. For breakfast next to eggs, for lunch nestled between toast, lettuce, and tomatoes, for dinner a la carbonara, and for dessert? With comedy odes to the cured confection and a smattering of hot young chefs rethinking the salty ingredient, bacon is back on the menu as a decadent treat to finish the meal. Portland's Voodoo Donut is turning out the maple glazed bacon donut. LA's Animal Restaurant , which was our LA dining highlight this summer, has found a hit in its Bacon Chocolate Crunch Bar with Salt and Pepper Anglaise. And closer to home, Edmonton's Kerstin's Chocolates boldly offered chocolate covered bacon for those salt loving Dads for Father's Day. Inspired by pork, salt, chocolate, and those that have gone before, I embarked upon the Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookie project. With a recipe in hand that had only too many disclaimers about adjusting this and that to avoid dryness, I decided that I would adapt my own perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe. It goes a little something like this.... Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies with Maple Cinnamon Glaze 1 cup butter, softened 3/4 cup sugar 3/4 cup brown sugar 2 eggs 2 tsp vanilla 2-1/4 cups all purpose flour 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 2 cups of cooked bacon bits (Good quality bacon is key. A quick cheat: use the fresh cooked bacon bits from Sunterra Market) 1 cup dark chocolate chips 1/2 cup white chocolate chips 5 strips of cooked bacon, cooled and cut into one inch strips (to top the cookies) For the glaze: 1 cup powdered sugar 2 tsp maple extract 1 tsp vanilla 1/4 tsp cinnamon 1 tbsp water Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt, and set aside. In a large bowl, cream butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla, until light and fluffy. Gradually stir flour mixture into creamed mixture. Add both chocolate chips and cooked bacon bits. Mix to incorporate. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a cookie scoop (my favorite cookie baking tool next to parchment paper) or your hands, make approximately one inch balls. Bake for a total of 9-10 minutes. I recommend swapping the cookie sheets racks half way through baking to ensure even baking of both. While the cookies bake, mix the Maple Cinnamon Glaze by combining the powdered sugar, maple extract, vanilla, and cinnamon, and mix together until smooth and creamy. Once baked, move cookies to a cooling rack, add a small amount of glaze, and top with the reserved squares of crisp bacon. Soft, chewy, sweet, salty, indulgent cookie perfection. Warm from the oven, they were so good that I forgot to share.