Amusing, Belize, Our Products, Philosophy, Soap

Zazen Soap!!

March 16, 2016 Munchkin

Together.Sea.of.Tranquility So what’s our latest tout…or clout? Not only do we have Zazen duckies but we have Zazen soap! I have noticed that at some point, when we have done enough hours of an activity (Yes that 10000 hours thing), it evolves into an art. The other day, we had a moment of clarity whilst mixing up soap; we realised that by clearing our head of the internal dialogue (you know…the usual blah blah blah voice in your head) the soap mixes perfectly with no hitches. In contrast to this, when we are feeling chaotic, we get early thickening of the mixture and lumpy bits so that the soap has to be poured in haste. There you go…The Zen of Soap making by Munchkin and Gnome!!

Look at this soap…it is smooth and silky like custard:

Stacks of Chocolate Vanilla Cookie Soap. “Right Thought, Right Action” Soap!!

…better than maximal velocity soap. You can’t get better than Zazen!

Belize, Food, Our Products

It’s Curry Night!!

March 15, 2016 Munchkin

Munchkin.Another.Eating.Shot Tonight we have a Bengali style curry. Thank-you Rumpa for the priceless cooking lessons back in the good old days in Glasgow. This curry has our own coconut cream (which you can purchase at Green Supaul’s in Punta Gorda).

I love cooking up curries because the wonderful aromatic herbs pervade through the house. This is when the dogs and the cat start sniffing around because it smells so delicious! Even the cat gets curry sauce on his gizzard!

Herbs and Spices used; cardamom, star anise, cumin seeds, mustard seeds and bay leaves.

Plate.of.Spices

Powdered spices used; curry powder, yellow ginger (tumeric), green chili (home-made), cinnamon and clove.

Ooooh…look at this. A “quick” curry in 2 hours (most other curries take about 12 hours!) with fresh coconut cream!

Check out the recipe for Coconut Cream Chicken Curry in Belize Wild Recipes. Mmmmm…yum!!

Amusing, Belize, Farming, Medical Related, Our Products, Pets

Lime-Sulphur Pet Dip At The Farm Store!

March 14, 2016 Munchkin

Hello Everyone!!! We have the wonderful smell of brimstone pervading through our house since Gnome has made up a fresh batch of Lime-Sulphur Pet Dip for The Farm Store. Ahhh…like the Catholic Gnome that he is he feels spiritually cleansed and renewed with the richly aromatic vapours of sulphur!

The High Velocity Cleansing Power of Sulphur.

So, get your Lime-Sulphur Pet Dip at the Farm Store in Punta Gorda. Guaranteed to work regardless of religion of pet.

Ask Brian at The Farm Store. Use it for the treatment of Mange, Fleas, Ticks and Ringworm. If you can’t remember the cumbersome long name of the product, just ask for “Presidente.” You’ll know why if you look at at our cheap budget packaging.

Belize, Farming, Food

Look What The Wee Wee Ants Are Doing!

March 10, 2016 Munchkin

Munchkin.Bossie Can you believe what the wee wee ants are doing on our farm? We have one soursop tree here and the ants are systematically peeling the skins off the fruit. They leave the fruit whole and intact like this…you have to catch them before they go splattt!!

Here are some that I have rescued with a few holes on them. Look closely and you will see the ants crawling all over them.

I have written about these ants before but just in case you missed it here is a brief recap:

These leaf cutter ants (wee wee ants) usually form mounds above ground which lead down to their underground cities. I call them “cities” because these nests can grow to 100 ft (30m) across with smaller radiating mounds growing to about 260ft (80m) and can house eight million ants. Amazing!!

They cultivate a fungus by feeding it with fresh cut plant material (ie. all our lovely plants and trees). Furthermore, these ants carry a bacterium which protects the fungi from pests and molds. This is a really nice symbiotic relationship…sometimes you wish that us humans could form a better mutualistic relatiionship with the planet in the same way as these ants! The fungus is used to feed the ant larvae.

We have tried all sorts of ways to get rid of them and alas, have even resorted to ritualistic practice, dancing, singing and talking (nicely) to them. None of it works!! What to do…

Belize, Farming, Food, Our Products

Coconut Cream For Sale!

March 9, 2016 Munchkin 2 Comments

Munchkin.Shouting Hello Everyone!! We went into Punta Gorda today to deliver a fresh batch of coconut cream to Green Supaul’s. Just in case you are wondering, we make it by grating the coconut:

Next, we add some hot water to the grated coconut and squeeze the liquid out. The liquid is then left to sit for some time to allow the cream to separate and come up to the top (the coconut milk is at the bottom). The cream is skimmed off and sold in these bags. One coconut cream bag (about 4oz) is equivalent to one coconut.

This is fresh, organic, vegetarian, gluten-free, locally produced and politically correct in every way! 😉

!Sabor Natural! Ja-Ja!! 😉

Belize, Farming, Food, Plants

Everything Is Blooming!

March 8, 2016 Munchkin 2 Comments

New.Munchkin.Gnome.Yellow.Boots Hello There!! More farm pictures for you all to see and the promise of wonderful exotic fruit in the next few months. The mango trees are blooming all over Toledo so it looks like it will be another wonderful “stuff-your-face-with-mango-season” this year. Our running joke on the farm is that we never started planting mango until a few years ago…which was pretty silly of us since it is our favourite fruit! Anyway, we have our first blooming mango tree!!

We have three jackfruit trees flowering this year…they should grow into giant sized monsters and we will have a bumper crop in July.

The cashews are starting too. By the way, we noticed that we have mountains to the south side which block a few hours of morning sunlight and so our trees flower about a month later than others in Toledo.

These are our cinnamon trees looking very formidable at one year. Also there is a tall ylang-ylang tree in the middle with a lemon tree to the right. I wanted to sneak this picture in to show you how good we have been at keeping the grass down this year! Ooooh…look at that!

Belize, Elixirs, Our Products

More Apothecary Pictures.

March 7, 2016 Munchkin

Munchkin.Kimono.Table I have updated The Apothecary section of our Website and finally (it has been more than a year) put in the following pictures:

This is our Body Salt Scrub range available in lemongrass, lavender, passionflower and ylang-ylang scents. The scents are all made from plant extracts or essential oils.

Here is the Foot Spa Range which is also available in the same scents. These foot soaks are ideal for soothing tired or swollen feet or used as a natural anti-fungus (Athlete’s Foot) remedy. Or you could just use it as a relaxing treat!

Last but not least, here is a picture of our Chocolate Velvet range which is available in original, orange, mint and all-spice flavours:

All labels are designed by Gnome, printed out here in the middle of the bush and pasted by yours truly. These are Authentic 100% Munchkin and Gnome products. Be aware of “Made in China” Cheapo copies!! 😉

Amusing, Belize, Food, Our Products, Plants, Soap

What’s Happening?

March 6, 2016 Munchkin

Munchkin.Sitting.Down Hello Everyone!! I have not been so regular with writing the Blog lately due to…the weather of all things! It has been dull with thick grey clouds which block the sunlight. When it gets like that I just feel, “Ugh!” and Gnome reacts with, “Oh, dear!!” and then we start a fine merry-go-round of ranting and complaining!

Munchkin.Another.Funny.Shot

Thank goodness the sun is out today and the mood has lifted. I feel more inspired to write about our usual Munchkin and Gnome activities.

We have been making a marathon run of soap. This takes the whole day with mixing and pouring in the morning and cutting (Gnome) and polishing (Munchkin) in the evening. It is a good activity to do when you want to stay out of trouble!

Gnome started a mini project to grow watercress:

And I made lotus paste mochi balls today!

Yum!! These were the mochi balls that I had promised Gnome for Chinese New Year which he didn’t get because I decided, rather inconveniently, to go on a diet plonk in the middle of Chinese celebrations. I am feeling a bit happier about my weight so I made the belated mochi balls to celebrate a good day together!

Amusing, Belize, Pets

How Many Zazen Duckies Does It Take To Change A Light Bulb?

March 2, 2016 Munchkin

Together.Pointing Answer: None. Zazen Duckies carry their own light.

Yes, the Zazen Duckies are meditating under the dappled shade of the kenip tree. They have even made a nesting spot out of old century plants…completely ignoring the modern luxury nests built to international ISO quality standards. The Duckies are doing are it “the organic way.”

Oh, what’s that funny noise….

“Oi!! WEEEE WEEEEE!!! What about us??! Has Mayor Gnome forgotten about us?!!”

Mayor Gnome’s reply:

“Personally I don’t think any of you have a clue about spiritual intent but I am willing to give you a chance. Mayor Gnome always gives chances…get ready for the big move to the Zen Garden!”

“…oh, and by the way, I contacted George Lucas…you can’t change your name to the Jedi Piggies.”

The Piggies:

“Can we change to the Ewok Piggies instead, then?”

Belize, Food, Plants

Pacaya Season Ending Soon.

March 1, 2016 Munchkin

Food.Munchkin Hello Everyone!! We’ve really enjoyed them this year. Pacaya Palm are the inflorescences of Chamaedorea tepijilote. Below are my gallery of pictures:

You just need to peel and then boil them for up to 20 minutes:

And this is how we ate them this year.

Mmmm…dipped in egg and deep-fried (Thank-you Isabel for the tip).

Cooked with Chinese Pork Soup:

The extra bits make a great garnish for my baked lentil and shitake mushroom dish:

More Pictures:

Sheer simplicity with a dollop of our own peach palm miso:

Casa Mascia Apothecary

Monthly Archives: March 2016