Category Archives: Food

Belize, Food, Medical Related, Plants, Saving Money

Eat Your Greens!!

October 17, 2015 Munchkin

People sometimes ask us what kind of green vegetables we grow on the farm to eat. This is mainly because, as doctors, we are always advising people to eat green, leafy vegetables for their high vitamin and mineral content which helps maintain healthy growth of cells and promotes healing. These people in turn, go to Punta Gorda market to look for them, only to find one common type of leafy vegetable to eat which is calalloo (Amaranth sp.).

This is fine to eat (though they still complain about the lack of variety) but also they are not found in such great abundance that they can be eaten in substantial proportions everyday. We eat about 100 to 200 grams (1/4 to 1/2 lb) of dried leafy green vegetable a day and this is the amount that we recommend to other people to eat.

Here in Belize, there is a plethora of greens that can be easily grown with the minimum of fuss and maintenance. You just need to regularly harvest (cut back) to stimulate growth and you will have them mostly all year round. The only time there might be a problem is the 2 months of dry season but this can be overcome with daily irrigation which should be possible for a small garden.

Malabar spinach is a climbing vine. It grows really well in wet areas. You eat the leafy parts and discard most of the fibrous stem. It can be eaten raw in salads, steamed or stir-fried.

Chaya plants, also known as tree spinach, needs little maintenance and even survive through drought without much irrigation. They are best chopped finely and boiled for about 20 to 30 minutes.

A more familiar green for people from temperate countries is kale. They need a little bit more care and raised bedding; nonetheless, they can still be cultivated in the Tropics.

This one is called Avuvo, apparently a well-known Nigerian green. The seed was given to us by somebody who had plans to grow Nigerian vegetables in Belize for an export market in the States. It grows prolifically.

Ok, guys go forth and start your own garden of fresh green leafy vegetables! You will find that they taste so much better than the bought stuff! As well as providing ingredients for a healthy diet, maintaining a garden will keep you fit (c’mon …don’t hire a gardener!) and you can save money on your grocery bill.

Belize, Food

Peach Palm Patties With Rosemary.

October 11, 2015 Munchkin

Hello Everyone!! I have been experimenting with peach palm a lot since each bunch weighs about 10kg (22lbs). Peach palm or pejibaye (Bactris gasipaes) is a palm which is indigenous to Central America. These trees produce bunches of orange-coloured fruit which can be eaten as a carbohydrate.

Fresh Peach Palm Bunch. — Fresh Peach Palm Bunch

Once cooked, they have the texture of a sweet potato and they taste almost fruity. In this recipe, I cooked up some of this carbohydrate, mashed it up and flavoured it with rosemary which really helps to bring out the peach-like flavour. This recipe is gluten-free and would also be a great base for a vegetarian burger.

We had our Peach Palm Patties with a generous dollop of chilli sauce! If you would prefer this as a sweet, you can omit the rosemary and serve these patties with honey and ice-cream…yum…now that’s a real treat!

Belize, Farming, Food, Plants

Peach Palm (Pejibaye) In Season.

September 29, 2015 Munchkin

Hello Everyone!! More fruits in season and this time it is the peach palm which is also known as pejibaye (Bactris gasipaes). These palms are an essential for anyone looking to grow lots of food for themselves. They start bearing within 3 to 5 years of planting and can produce for up to 75 years. It is a significant crop because it produces edible peach palm fruits, heart of palm and flowers. The heart of palm can be harvested from suckers so you need not lose the whole tree to procure this food (compare this to the cohune palm in Belize which is traditionally cut down for this ).

Today we harvested a single bunch of this fruit; one bunch weighed 10kgs (22lbs). We have about 20 more bunches to harvest and this is only from 2 trees. We probably have about 20 pejibaye trees on the farm so you can imagine the amount of food that we can harvest from them eventually. It will end up being a significant staple for us. Plus it will feed the rest of the animals.

To be honest, we have had problems eating peach palms and we have not been especially enamored by the texture. We find them stodgy, fibrous and difficult to digest. To prepare them, we halve the fruit, take out the seed and boil them in a vat of water for a couple of hours (I have read that they are boiled for 5 hours but if you did that, they would just turn to mush). The result is a carbohydrate which is not bad tasting (maybe at a push like sweet potato) but really heavy on the stomach. You certainly could not eat an entire plateful of them!

Anyway, today we decided to do some experimentation in order to find a way that we could eat peach palm so we took a bunch of peach palm, de-seeded them and boiled them.

To get a good homogeneous mash, we then put them through a meat grinder (blender was too small for the large quantities).

We took a third of this to sun-dry. Another third was just bagged and frozen and the last third, we made into peach palm paste (like lotus seed paste or red bean paste) for Chinese sweets like mochi balls and Moon Cakes. This was the result…we even stamped them to make them look authentic. The sweet paste actually tastes very good (yay…a success) and the added sugar seems to make it more digestible.

Watch this space for more peach palm recipes and experimentation!

Belize, Farming, Food

Eating Eggfruit Everyday.

September 28, 2015 Munchkin

Wow!! It was unbelievably hot today with a temperature of 32oC (90oF) and a realfeel of 47oC (117oF). How can one get any farm work done??

Anyway, I would like to introduce you to a new fruit in season which goes by a few names including Eggfruit and Canistel (Pouteria campechiana).

This fruit is indigenous to Central America but despite this, it is not found readily in the backyards or jungles of Belize. Many people, including locals, have never seen or heard of it and the few people who actually have this tree actively made efforts to procure this particular fruit tree.

It is one of those fruits of Tropics which can never be viably exported because once it is harvested, it needs to be eaten immediately, probably within 48 hours before it starts fermenting. This fruit comes in different shapes and sizes; some are long and pointed like the picture above and some are more ovoid in shape. They can be eaten out of hand and in common literature it is described as having the texture of boiled egg yolk (hence the name). I think it tastes like cooked (mashed) sweet potato and to my palate, because of this carbohydrate taste and texture, it fits more appropriately into savoury dishes. But that’s just me!! I read that other people make ice cream and milk shakes out of this fruit.

We always look forward to canistel season which usually falls into September and October. We have four baring trees and they can be very generous hence the reason why we are eating eggfruit everyday. This of course, calls for a lot of imagination because if you eat them the same way everyday, you will naturally get bored of them. So here are a few pictures of my canistel creations. By the way, some pictures include pumpkin…

…so, to be more accurate, we are eating eggfruit and pumpkin everyday!!

Mashed Canistel (like mashed potato):

Canistel seared on a skillet:

Avocado stuffed with young pumpkin and canistel.

Seared Canistel with Pumpkin and Spicy Sausage with Steamed Callaloo.

There are more pictures which I will post them as recipes over the next week or so.

Go forth and find some Eggfruit to eat…they are yummy!!

Belize, Food

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.

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, Farming, Food, Plants

Hidden Pumpkin Technique.

September 14, 2015 Munchkin

We have found a great way of growing pumpkins without the headache of caterpillars boring holes into them and all manner of insects laying their eggs in the growing fruit. Previously, we grew our pumpkins “high and dry” on beds so that we would be able to spot them for harvest. Unfortunately, this also meant that that all the other critters could see them too and we had all sorts of problems with infestations.

Rather fortuitously, a pumpkin patch grew out of a voluntary plant on the ground and it has grown into a monster.

The surrounding perennial peanut and grass render the vegetables virtually undetectable to all. This is why we have called it the Hidden Pumpkin Technique. The pumpkins are deeply embedded in the grass and when picked, they are beautiful and pristine with no signs of insect damage.

All you need to do is to find a Munchkin to walk through the patch every day to try to spot any harvestable pumpkin. It can be a lot of fun because they are actually very hard to find and requires the keen eye of a forager.

We have been picking young pumpkins…at this stage, they taste just like courgettes (or zucchini).

I rarely allow the pumpkins to fully mature because I distinctly dislike hacking into the tough shell…it is so much work! They are so much sweeter when they are green and can be steamed like a vegetable.

We have been mostly eating pumpkin!!

Remember…you can still vote for your Favourite Candidate for the Mayoral Election 2015 for Paradise Piggies!!

Casa Mascia Apothecary

Category Archives: Food

Peach Palm Patties With Rosemary.

Peach Palm (Pejibaye) In Season.

Eating Eggfruit Everyday.

We Made Moon Cake!!

Coconut Squares with Chocolate Drizzle.

Kue Lapiz For Belize Independence.

Flowers and Fruit.

Easy Coconut Milk Dessert.

Hidden Pumpkin Technique.

Everything Handmade in Belize.