Category Archives: Belize

We Made Moon Cake!!

September 27, 2015 Munchkin

Yay!! We made Moon Cake!! Look at the picture: we are soooo pleased that we can make such an auspicious cake.

Moon Cakes are enjoyed during the Mid Autumn Festival by the Chinese. The night of the 15th day of the 8th lunar moon is called “Night of the Moon” and the 25th day of the 8th lunar month is called “Mid-Autumn.”

As a child, I remember eating Moon Cake with my family at this time of the year. The ones with lotus paste and duck eggs were always our favourite. Traditionally, they can also be made from red bean paste. More contemporary fillings contain durian, jackfruit, taro, chocolate and even ice cream. I can already see the creative possibilities…how exciting!

We baked traditional lotus paste Moon Cake this year.

I made the pastry and wrapped it around the lotus paste.

Gnome did his bit which involved the moulding of the cakes. This part is not that easy because you need to tap the moulds on a hard surface in order to get the cakes out perfectly. This is the Gnome Magic, of course.

We had such a lovely time in the kitchen making them and then we had an even nicer time eating them! We enjoyed it so much that we have decided to do this every year to celebrate the Mid Autumn Festival. We would like to thank our Singapore connection for the thoughtful gifts of lotus paste and Moon Cake moulds.

Check out the full recipe for Moon Cakes with Lotus Paste in Belize Wild Recipes.

By the way, the Lunar Eclipse will start at 6.11pm tonight and the full eclipse begins at 8.11pm (Belize time).

Belize, Food

Coconut Squares with Chocolate Drizzle.

September 24, 2015 Munchkin 2 Comments

Yum!!! Another dessert from the Munchkin kitchen: Coconut Squares with Chocolate Drizzle. This dessert is soft and richly textured and it is so easy to make. The chocolate sauce is made from coconut cream too!

Yes, you may have guessed it…torrential rain every night so that the farm is covered in puddles (getting to pools actually). So, what else can I do but sequester myself in the kitchen and cook up yummy stuff with our lovely coconuts!

The chocolate sauce complements the sweet very well; it is made from Cotton Tree Chocolate:

and our own coconut cream.

Check out the full recipe in Belize Wild Recipes. Enjoy!!

Belize, Food

Kue Lapiz For Belize Independence.

September 22, 2015 Munchkin

Yesterday (21st September) Belize celebrated its 34th year of Independence. We celebrated with a Kue Lapiz in the Colours of Belize.

Kue Lapiz in Belize? A bit of an oxymoron…I know…but you know that we like to mix things up a bit. Kue Lapiz is a steamed multi-layed dessert, made typically from glutinous rice flour and tapioca flour, traditionally made in Indonesia (South East Asia). It is usually made of bright vibrant colours so that is why I thought of colouring it with the Belize colours: red. white and blue.

Hmmm maybe there are Indonesians (or Dutch) in Belize or Belizeans in Indonesia (or The Netherlands) who would appreciate this gesture!! Nevertheless, Happy Independence Day to Belize!!

Note: I did not post this up yesterday on the actual Independence day because I did not want to steal the Thunder from the Paradise Piggies Mayoral Election. I know that y’all out there were on the edge of your seats waiting for the results. Congrats to Mayor Gnome on his re-election. Now, life can go back to normal on the farm.

Amusing, Belize, Fiction, Pets

Paradise Piggies: The Results Are In!!

September 21, 2015 Munchkin

Paradise Pastures, Toledo, Belize:

15 Guinea Pigs eligible to vote (ie. Over the age of 6 weeks).

VOTES:

Mr. Arnold Wang: 1

Magical Rodent: 4

Mayor Gnome: 8

Spoiled Ballot Papers (eaten or chewed up): 2

100% TURN OUT!!

Mayor Gnome Wins with The Majority!!

WELL DONE MAYOR GNOME!!
All Piggies will be celebrating in Paradise Pastures tonight!

Mayor Gnome Says:

Thanks Piggies!!

It is crazy out here in Paradise Pastures with all the whooping, chirping and weeeing. We are totally beside ourselves with the joy and excitement!!

And…we haven’t finished yet with all the news.
Mayor Gnome has appointed Magical Rodent as Deputy Mayor!!

Magical Rodent Appointed Deputy Mayor of Paradise Pastures.

Mayor Gnome:

I like Magical Rodent. She may be mad but her heart’s in the right place. Besides, she’s got audacity and guts of steel…my kind of mouse!

Magical Rodent:

Hmmmm…position accepted, albeit reluctantly.

Any last words from Arnold Wang?

Sounds like there will be a sequel…

Amusing, Belize, Fiction, Pets

Paradise Piggies: Newsflash!!

September 20, 2015 Munchkin

YOU won’t believe it!! WE can’t believe it!! MGNews PrimeTime Sunday brings you an exclusive news flash.

Mayor Gnome has changed his campaign!! The day before the Mayoral Elections, no less!!

Here it is guys:

THIS IS A PAID ADVERT!!!

MAYOR GNOME PROMISES: FREEDOM, FRESH GRASS AND BEYOND.

I Guarantee 5pm Tickling Time For Toddlers!! — I Guarantee 5pm Tickling Time For All Toddlers!

MAYOR GNOME PROMISES: 5PM TICKLING TIME FOR ALL PIGGIE TODDLERS EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR!!

Well, this certainly is a change of heart from Mayor Gnome. Tough love has been replaced by promise of love and fresh air. Mayor Gnome had done a complete U-turn!!
It looks like GOOD prevailed and Mayor Gnome has won the battle against EVIL!

MGNews PrimeTime Sunday. What a whizz…we can’t get enough of this election. This is awesome beyond all proportions. Out of this world!!

Don’t Forget MGNews PrimeTime Monday Mayoral Election 21st September 2015, Paradise Pastures. 6Pm Central/Mountain Piggie Time.

THE RESULTS WILL BE IN!!

Amusing, Belize, Fiction, Pets

Paradise Piggies: Reader’s Poll Results!

September 20, 2015 Munchkin

Reader’s Poll Results and Last Day before The Mayoral Elections 2015, Paradise Pastures!!

MGNews PrimeTime Sunday. We are all in a tizz!! We are soooo excited, we can’t contain ourselves. The suspense is killing us. We look back at all the campaigns, the thrills and the spills, the good and the evil, and twists and the turns, it has indeed been a roller-coaster ride all the way to Election Day.

We are proud to present to you the results of our Reader’s Poll.

Who is the best candidate?

Mayor Gnome 66.67% .

Magical Rodent 33.33% .

Mr Arnold Wang 0%

So, is the Reader’s Poll a reflection of the votes on Paradise Pastures?

We are literally on the edge of our seats…

Who is it going to be?

Results Tomorrow 21st September 2015, MGNews PrimeTime Monday. 6Pm Central/ Mountain Piggie Time.

You can’t miss the Election of the Year!!

Belize, Farming, Food, Plants

Flowers and Fruit.

September 18, 2015 Munchkin

Hi Everyone!! The heavy night time rains have stopped for a few days and there are less puddles around the farm. The grass is long (again) and we are gearing up for another big clean up. Didn’t we just do that already?? Here are some pictures which I took whilst trudging about in my rubber boots…I try not to walk in deep puddles because I have a hole in one of my boots!

We have lovely purple basil growing which will be processed into pesto:

The last of the cashew fruit for the season…we have really enjoyed cooking with them this year in savoury dishes. Note also the funny looking bug on the green fruit.

These are bilimbi fruit which are really, really sour. So, far I haven’t found anything too exciting to do with these except for stir frys and soups. Any ideas?? Here in Belize, some people like to make a juice out of them but I personally find them a tad too tart.

This flower is of the Aristolochia sp.; they are start off looking like this and at this stage we call them alien pods:

When they open up they look like this and they exude an odious carrion-like smell to attract flies for pollination.

Beautiful baby woodrose flowers. Once the flowers mature, they produce a wood-like pod which looks like a wooden rose.

Sometimes I have to remind myself to stop and admire the beauty on our farm rather than running around like mad trying to achieve agendas. Have a good night everyone!! We are staying in tonight and I have made another one of these Chaos Cinnamon Cakes which I will lavishly drizzle with icing:

Ooooh yum!! We are going through a sweet phase right now!!

Oh, and for the rest of you 93.75% of readers who haven’t voted yet for the Favourite Candidate for the Mayoral Election 2015…Hint Hint!!

Belize, Food, Our Products

Easy Coconut Milk Dessert.

September 17, 2015 Munchkin 2 Comments

Just the other day, Gnome was asking me if I could make some sort of dessert which wasn’t heavy like cake but something light and sweet.

We have been processing a lot of coconuts lately so I tried to think up of something with this ingredient.

Then I suddenly remembered that a long time ago (10 years to be exact) when we first came to Belize, a Hawaiin- Filipino couple had invited us to their farm and served us this delicious dessert made from coconut milk. I had forgotten about it until now and so I rummaged through my personal recipe books and found that I had written it down. I recall that my friends had mentioned that there are variations of this dessert Haupia and that some people like to add fresh fruit to it. I have opted for simple and pure coconut milk squares. They are soft, silky and melt in your mouth.

Gnome was very pleased with the dessert and scoffed off the whole lot in one sitting. This is very unusual for him because he does not have a sweet tooth.

Check out the full recipe for Haupia: Coconut Dessert in Belize Wild Recipes. It is soooo easy to make and it is made from simple ingredients including cornstarch and sugar. If you live in Toledo, you can purchase our coconut cream from Green Supauls (Punta Gorda) to use for this recipe. Otherwise, use fresh or canned coconut milk.

Coconut Cream For Sale At Green Supauls.

You only need to use a 1/4 of this bag, diluted with water to make up the coconut milk component of the recipe.

Enjoy!!

If you haven’t already…Get Your Vote In!! C’mon guys!! We need your votes for the favourite candidate for Paradise Piggies!!

Amusing, Belize

Truck Chasin’ in Punta Gorda!!

September 16, 2015 Munchkin

Munchkin and Gnome have been super cool and happen’ today chasin’ trucks through the mean streets of Punta Gorda Town in Belize. Yes, readers, you can indeed live your life vicariously through the exciting exploits of M&G!!

Munchkin and Gnome Mission of the Day:

Find an unmarked white truck driving through Punta Gorda Town between the hours of 0900 and Anytime Now (Belizean Mountain Time). Secure 6 bottles of orange oil from the truck.

Tip offs: Driver goes by the name of Eugene. Able to procure the mobile number of truck driver but here in Belize, nobody answers their phone if they do not recognise caller ID. So, no chance of him actually answering the phone.

Munchkin and Gnome at 0900 Hours:

Detective Munchkin enquired at the Chinese Supermarket “James Shop” and asked if they had seen the white truck.

The Chiney Girl replied in perfect Kriol,

“Da truck no di come yet.”

Munchkin and Gnome at 0930 Hours:

Circled the mean streets of Punta Gorda in search of the white truck. No sign of any big white vehicles.

Munchkin and Gnome at 1000 Hours:

Watched and waited like hawks ready to pounce on their prey. Parked vehicle on the edge of town waiting for the appearance of the “white truck.”

Munchkin and Gnome at 1030 Hours:

Munchkin: Ooohhh!! White Truck!! White Truck!!

As soon as the truck passed, Gnome trailed behind in silence and anticipation. Always keeping a distance so that the truck driver would not get wind of the quiet truck chase. Meanwhile, Munchkin was on the edge of her seat brimming with excitement at the thought of “the catch.”

The truck finally came to a stop and Gnome surreptitiously slowed down and parked quite a ways behind to avoid detection.

Oh…but lo and behold:

Wrong one…this unmarked truck was selling eggs from Spanish Lookout. What a red herring!!

Munchkin and Gnome at 1100 Hours:

Back to the secret waiting spot.

Finally a second truck flashed by and they were hot on their heels.

When the truck finally stopped, Munchkin accosted the driver and he confirmed his name as Eugene. Six bottles of orange oil were procured outside the Jose Maria Supermarket. There was a silent exchange of money and Munchkin walked away cleanly with the goods secured. Operation successful.

So you might have found this true story funny but this is the reality in Belize (at least here in Punta Gorda). Wholesale trucks from Belize City, Spanish Lookout and Stann Creek have designated days in which they bring their goods down to Punta Gorda. Organisation of delivery of products is precarious at best and for all intents and purposes, practically non-existent. So, if you want something in particular from a wholesale truck, you need to go Truck Chasin’.

Amusing, Belize, Our Products, Soap

Chocolate Artisan Soap Gallery.

September 15, 2015 Munchkin 1 Comment

We have been busy little bees over the last 6 months or so making Chocolate Artisan Soaps for the new tourist season which starts around November. Here are a collection of pictures to show Gnome’s artistic expression…it is the Italian in him!!

An Artistic Tumble of Chocolate Artisan Soaps. Sheer Indulgence. What Every Woman Secretly Wants!!

Soft Midnight Tones for the New Season:

Add Panache and Flair To Your Bathroom:

Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate and White Chocolate. Delicious and Seductive Warm Colours.

The “Must Have” Chocolate Artisan Soaps. Sets Aside Your Bathroom From The Rest.

Live Life To The Max..Maximal Velocity With Chocolate Soaps.

Truly Casa Mascia, Truly You.

Bathroom Bliss. Gnome: The Style Guru!!

Don’t Forget To Vote For Your Favourite Candidate For The Mayoral Elections 2015!!

Casa Mascia Apothecary

Category Archives: Belize

We Made Moon Cake!!

Coconut Squares with Chocolate Drizzle.

Kue Lapiz For Belize Independence.

Paradise Piggies: The Results Are In!!

Paradise Piggies: Newsflash!!

Paradise Piggies: Reader’s Poll Results!

Flowers and Fruit.

Easy Coconut Milk Dessert.

Truck Chasin’ in Punta Gorda!!

Chocolate Artisan Soap Gallery.

Everything Handmade in Belize.