One of my very best friends moved to Virginia a while ago. She’s only been gone for two months, but it felt like much longer. I was used to spending a couple of days a week with her while she lived here in Las Vegas. I have missed her so much. This week, she flew out to visit me. I was so happy to see her again. We talk on the phone and text often, but it is not the same.

It was as if she never left. We fell right back into our usual shenanigans. She landed here in Las Vegas fairly late and all she wanted was an In N Out burger. I took her straight to In N Out to satisfy her craving. I know what it’s like to be somewhere and feel deprived because one of your favorite meals is not available.

Several years ago, I could not find any good Mexican food in London. I craved a good burrito or taco. I needed some authentic Mexican salsa. I didn’t care if it was green, red, hot or mild. I searched high and low, only to be disappointed. The tortillas were all wrong. The beans were not how they were supposed to be. I was miserable wandering around looking for the Mexican food that I was used to. As soon as I made my way back to Los Angeles, I drove immediately to La Salsa, the burrito restaurant I loved and ate a big chicken burrito. I was so happy. La Salsa is nothing fancy, but this was the flavor I missed so much.

Thank goodness, London has changed. Not only do they have all sorts of good Mexican restaurants now, but also friends of mine own two of them. So, I am very lucky to be fed delicious Mexican food in London every time I go, and it’s free. You can’t do much better than that.

Karen told me she hasn’t found a really good Mexican restaurant in Virginia yet. So, on her second night, I cooked shrimp fajitas. These were inspired by the shrimp fajitas I ate at my friend’s Mexican restaurant in London. I was thinking about that fajita experience because on Tuesday, we are flying to England and I plan on eating these at my friend, Sage’s restaurant at least once while we are there. I’m so excited to fly out to England, not just for the food, but also to see my son, Jack, who is living there. I have missed him so much. I speak to him every day and he is having a blast wandering around London with his cousins and friends. He is enjoying a lot of fish and chips. Oh, I cannot wait to get my hands on some delicious fish and chips.

I wanted Karen to have the full Mexican food experience and made side dishes and appetizers to go with the fajitas. We started with guacamole and queso dip with chips. I really love hot queso dip with chips. I have noticed that many restaurants out here add chorizo to their queso dip. I made mine with some jalapenos. I think people could get pretty creative with this dip. I made a Mexican Caesar salad with crumbled queso fresco and pepitas. I bought the Mexican Caesar dressing but I think I would really like to make some homemade. It is similar to a regular Caesar dressing but has cilantro added. I cooked Spanish rice with tomatoes, onions and peppers. Then, I heated refried beans. I still don’t know how to make homemade refried beans. That is another project I need to work on in the future. It is just so easy to scoop them out of the can and heat them up. I am not sure if it is worth the effort to make them myself. However, I don’t mind trying.

Finally, I cooked the shrimp fajitas, which were so easy to make. Once I sauted and seasoned the onions and peppers, I added the shrimp. Shrimp cooks really quickly. A few years ago, Sage gave me a couple of fajita skillets to bring home from her Mexican restaurant. So, I get to present fajitas sizzling like they do in the restaurant. I love that. These make my fajitas look much more authentic.

Karen loved this Mexican feast. We were so incredibly full at the end of the meal. We plopped ourselves into the couch and watched a movie. I was so happy to have her near. Sadly, she left last night. It’s bittersweet because her leaving means it’s time for me to pack my things for England. I’ll be writing to you from across the pond next week.

Shrimp Fajitas:

Time: 20 minutes

Serves: 2

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, sliced

1 green pepper, seeded and sliced

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

Salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon chipotle seasoning

1 teaspoon cilantro

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add onions and peppers. Saut for ten minutes. Add salt, pepper and chipotle seasoning. Add shrimp. Cook until the shrimp turn pink, about five minutes. Top with cilantro. Serve with tortillas, Spanish rice and beans. You can also add sour cream, cheese, guacamole, salsa, and jalapeos.