One of the best things about living in Nicaragua is the abundance of cheap fruits and vegetables. This entire group of veggies cost 155 Cordobas, or roughly $7. Here’s the breakdown:

Pineapple – $.90
Potatoes (7lbs) –  $2.54
Canteloupe – $.90
Onions – $.45
Cucumbers – $.45
Bananas – $.22
Carrots – $.63
Tomatoes – $.90 (we got the “gringo” price on that)

But here’s the real score…

Strawberries. Fresh, beautiful, red, smells like it came from the farm (via a bus from Costa Rica), real, live, strawberries. Where did I find them, you ask? We were on our way home from the market. It’s been a drizzly day, so our legs were dirty and wet. The humidity is out of control, we were mentally done from hiking a mile to and from the market and were loaded up with 20 lbs of veggies and fruit. Halfway through Parqué Central, we see a Costa Rican man with a huge box of apples. On top of this box, there are ten pristine packages of fresh strawberries.

I don’t think I can express how big of a score this is. It’s like finding a brand new Coach bag at the thrift store for $5. Well, maybe not that big. But close. So now the question is: What the heck do I make with them? I can’t just eat them. Strawberry shortcakes? Strawberry cupcakes?

Any suggestions?