Do you miss this as much as I do?

I know, I know. There’s nothing to stop me from putting beans, rice, and the other components of a Costa Rican casado on my plate at midday.

But I just don’t. While the venerable olla de carne, picadillos galore, and homemade tortillas are all in rotation in my lockdown home, the casado remains, for me, a dish to be eaten at a soda for a workday lunch, or at a roadside restaurant when I’m traveling. Rice and beans: every week. But rice, beans and all the fixins’, down to the perfectly caramelized plantain and a dollop of ensalada rusa, is something I’ve really missed during this stay-at-home phase.

Do you feel the same? Or do you serve up casados at home on the regular? Let me know. Maybe I can get myself motivated (and set up for some mid-afternoon naps).

Featured image from user Esdelval via Shutterstock.

I’m a writer in San José, Costa Rica, on a year-long quest to share daily posts on inspiring people, places and ideas from my adopted home as a kind of tonic during a rough time in the world. Sign up (top right of this page) to receive a little dose of inspiration every weekday in your mailbox; tell a friend; check out past posts; learn how to join my Overwhelmed Writers’ League, every Saturday at 1 pm EST; and please connect with me on Instagram or Facebook! To learn more about how to support Costa Rica during the crisis, visit my COVID-19 section – or for ways to enjoy Costa Rica from afar, visit Virtual Costa Rica.