<\/a><\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n <\/span>I thought I knew Mexican cuisine before my recent trip to Cancun.\u00a0 I grew up on Mexican food.\u00a0 Where I lived in Franklin, TN, La Hacienda was the only restaurant open past 8pm and therefore became a staple.\u00a0 I’m fairly certain my first cocktail was a margarita at that very restaurant.<\/p>\n <\/span>Comedian Jim Gaffigan has a bit that embodies what most Americans think about Mexican food.<\/p>\n <\/span>“Mexican food\u2019s great, but it\u2019s essentially all the same ingredients, so you\u2019d have to deal with all these stupid questions. \u201cWhat is nachos?\u201d \u201c\u2026Nachos? It\u2019s tortilla with cheese, meat, and vegetables.\u201d \u201cOh, well then what is a burrito?\u201d \u201cTortilla with cheese, meat, and vegetables.\u201d \u201cWell then what is a tostada?\u201d \u201cTortilla with cheese, meat, and vegetables.\u201d \u201cWell then what i-\u201d \u201cLook, it\u2019s all the same!<\/i>\u00a0Why don\u2019t you say a Spanish word and I\u2019ll bring you something.\u201d You can view it here.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n It’s funny and pretty true.\u00a0 The Mexican food we as Americans are typically exposed to, is usually just some configuration of tortillas and cheese, which is great, but Mexican cuisine is so much more.\u00a0 My recent trip to Cancun changed all I thought I knew about Mexican food.<\/p>\n <\/span>I experienced approximately 7 billion courses of Mexican goodness and countless variations on the margarita in my week in Cancun.\u00a0 Of course 7 billion is a lot to keep track of, so I’ll just be hitting the highlights.<\/p>\n My Mexican culinary adventure started just a few hours off the plane at <\/span>Xoximilco Cancun<\/a><\/span>, which I mentioned briefly in a previous post and still intend to elaborate on.\u00a0 Perhaps it was the thrill of being a foreigner alone in a strange land, or perhaps it was the all you can drink tequila, but I had my first non-roller coaster or convertible related taste of insect.<\/p>\n \n <\/span><\/span>Chapulines<\/span>–<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span> crickets or grasshoppers fried with lime, chili, garlic, and salt.\u00a0 A popular treat in the summer and early autumn in Mexico.<\/span><\/p>\n\n