Category Archives: Food

Amusing, Belize, Food

Two Baking Disasters in 1 day!!

Full.Face.Munchkin.DarkThis was a foolish and cavalier attempt to ‘fast-track’ my baking skills to an appreciative level.

Disaster No.1: Sesame Cookie Mess!
Disaster No.1: Sesame Cookie Mess!
Disaster No.2: Big Hole in Spice Cake! How embarrassing!
Disaster No.2: Big Hole in Spice Cake! How embarrassing!

Firstly, the sesame cookie thing all coalesced into one big cookie in the oven.  Furthermore, it got stuck in the baking tray and I had to scrape it off (with a paint scraper of all things!).  Then I concentrated all my efforts into making a spice cake and it rose beautifully in the oven with the yummy whiff of baked cinnamon, all-spice and clove.  But, then when I tried to bang it out of the tin disaster struck and the centre flopped out of the tin leaving a crater in my cake!

I have never been much of a baker especially of cakes and biscuits and now I have two very important tasks to fulfill!

Firstly, as a follow-up from yesterday’s post on cassava, we did finally get 4 cups of farm fresh home-made tapioca flour from 10lbs of fresh cassava.

Our Very Own Blessed Tapioca Flour! We are so proud!
Our Very Own Blessed Tapioca Flour! We are so proud!

I want to bake a tapioca bread(Argentinean or Korean!) made from this but I have only one chance since I only have 4 cups.  I really don’t want to mess it up since we went through such a labourious process to get it.  Hence the reason why I was trying to bake other things to get a bit more experience.

Secondly, Gnome has made a special request for home-baked Panettone(traditional Italian Christmas cake).  I have looked at the recipe and it involves a long drawn and complicated procedure with yeasting, letting it rise 4 times through-out the day over about 8 hours and the kneading of tacky, gloopy dough.  This is a real challenge and I have 7 days to make the perfect Christmas cake for him which will hopefully remind him of cold winter nights in Italy by the fire hearth waiting for Santa! Aaaarghhh!!! I hope I can do this!

 

Belize, Farming, Food, Plants

Farm Fresh Cassava Hash Browns.

Munchkin.Eating.Bun.SmileThis one is truly farm fresh from digging in the dirt to the dining room table!  This morning, Gnome dug up 5kgs (10lbs) of cassava on our farm (about 3 plants only) and afterwards we both set about to wash and peel our freshly acquired roots.

Washed Cassava.
Washed Cassava.
Cleaned and Peeled Cassava.
Cleaned and Peeled Cassava.

Next, we grated the cassava.  This was done by hand and this part took the longest length of time (about 2 hours).

Grated Cassava.
Grated Cassava.

We then washed the grated cassava once with water to remove some of the starch.  The washed water was retained so that the starch (tapioca) could be obtained from it.

We reserved some washed cassava to make Cassava Hash Browns Topped with Mozzarella which was a lovely treat after all the digging, washing and grating!

Cassava Hash Browns topped with Mozzarella.
Cassava Hash Browns topped with Mozzarella.

Next, we took the remaining grated root and reserved cassava water and laid them all out in the sun to dry.  This is to make dehydrated fufu which is an African/ Caribbean preparation of cassava in which the vegetable is boiled and then pounded with a large wooden mortar and pestle to make a dough-like food.  Traditionally fufu is eaten with soups.

So, out of our harvest of 10lbs of cassava, we obtained: 2lbs of sun-dried fufu and 2lbs of tapioca flour.  Not to mention a snack of Cassava Hash Browns!

Jar of FuFu. The Finished Product!
Jar of FuFu. The Finished Product!

Gnome said that today was a good lesson on realising the time and energy required in processing food from harvest to finished produce.

Belize, Food, Plants

Foraging Wild Greens in Belize.

Munchkin.Eating.Bun.Smile

This one is about eating again!  Well, we do have to do it everyday! There is a very common green which can be foraged in Toledo, Belize.  Wild Purslane has a sour bite to it when eaten raw in a salad.  When cooked, it maintains some slight sourness and still keeps its hard texture.  It is full of vitamins and minerals and the best thing is that you can find it in the wild…so, it’s free!  Yeah, hooray for foraging fresh greens!

One very interesting thing about this plant is that it concentrates its acidity over-night so that if you pick it in the morning, it tends to be more sour.  By the evening time, the acidity goes down so that if you prefer it to be less sour, it can be best picked at this time.

Wild Purslane of Belize.
Wild Purslane of Belize.

I like Wild Purslane so much I have two recipes for it!

Coconut Purslane Salad.

Purslane Chicken Chow Mein.

Do you want to read more about this wonderful vegetable?  Read my article on Wild Edibles of Belize: Purslane.

Belize, Food, Mushrooms

Stuff Yourself with Garlic Shiitake Mushrooms!

Munchkin.Eating.Bun

Here in Belize, finding your normal ubiquitous button mushroom is quite an endeavour!  If you are lucky, there may be a meagre two punnets of mushrooms found in the whole of Toledo.  And, you won’t like the price when you see it!  The reason why button mushrooms (Agaricus sp.) are so scarce is because there is no mushroom industry within this country and so we end up with imported goods from Mexico.  Once they reach the country, they end up fetching such exorbitant prices and as a consequence of this, they cannot be eaten as normal everyday produce.

I really like mushrooms but I also do not agree with paying for over-priced goods so I have found a great alternative which is the Shiitake Mushroom.  Chinese people love their own foods and will find any way to get their own familiar food into Belize.  Lucky for us, many Oriental people own supermarkets here where they take the opportunity to sell some of these imported Chinese foods.  You will not believe it:  shiitake mushrooms are found everywhere in Toledo!  So much so, you can stuff yourself with them!

So, today’s recipe is Stuffed Garlic Shiitake Mushrooms!  Enjoy!  I certainly did.

Stuffed Shitake Mushrooms served with Lentils.
Stuffed Shitake Mushrooms served with Lentils.
Belize, Food, Mushrooms

Chili Con Carne Munchkin Style

Munchkin.Eating.Bun.Smile

I am not a Texan Munchkin so I like to show my cheeky nature by embellishing Chili Con Carne.  It sounds like when it comes to the truly authentic Chili Con Carne, people have many different ideas about it.  The only idea that I have in mind is to “spice” it up “Munchkin Style” which basically means looking for anything growing on the farm and chucking it into the pot with Chili and Carne.

These are things I found to throw into the Chili Con Carne:

Split Gill Growing on a Log of Cashew.
Split Gill Growing on a Log of Cashew.

 

Green Peppercorns.
Green Peppercorns.

Wild Split Gill Mushrooms are found growing everywhere in the Toledo region of Belize and like to grow on old logs.  They are actually an esteemed Mayan mushroom which is traditionally cooked in the “Caldo” or Chicken Soup.  These mushrooms are chewy in texture so they need a longer cooking time (about 30 to 60 minutes) in a stew or soup.  Today, I deep-fried these mushrooms as an addition to the chili dish.  My Chili Con Carne had lots of green peppercorns (as well as chili) to add to the overall spiciness.

Other spices I added to the Chili Con Carne Munchkin Style were: cinnamon, allspice, clove and cumin.  My version had kidney beans and I served it with pasta twirls.  How is that for total lack of authenticity?!  I am sure some people would shudder at the thought of my gross deviation!

Chili Con Carne with Pasta Twirls and Wild Split Gill Mushrooms.
Chili Con Carne with Pasta Twirls and Wild Split Gill Mushrooms.

Needless to say it was very, very spicy and very flavoursome.  The deep-fried split gill mushrooms added a crunchy texture to the dish.

This time, I will not furnish you with my recipe as I am aware that there is a plethora of authentic chili con carne recipes out there for everyone to choose from.

Gnome has written about Split Gill Mushrooms, click on the link if you want to read more!

Belize, Food, Mushrooms

Friday Lunch.

Munchkin.Eating.Bun

As promised, this is a picture of lunch.  I cooked the Paddy Straw Mushrooms with Spicy Pork Ginger Cakes.  This was served with Chaya Fritters and Grapefruit.

Spicy Pork Ginger Cakes with Paddy Straw Mushrooms. Served with Chaya Fritters and Grapefruit.
Spicy Pork Ginger Cakes with Paddy Straw Mushrooms. Served with Chaya Fritters and Grapefruit.

Chaya (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius) is also called Tree Spinach and is a great source of vitamins and minerals.  It is easy to grow and does not require much maintenance.  It tastes great too…like a spinach!

Ok, Laterz…

 

Belize, Food, Mushrooms

Auspicious Find of Paddy Straw Mushrooms.

Munchkin.Eating.Bun.Smile

Today, started off bright and sunny so I took the opportunity to do a routine weeding of our vegetable beds.  However, I was very pleasantly surprised to find some edible, delectable wild mushrooms (trying not to over-use the Y-word when describing tasty food!).  These are Paddy Straw Mushrooms which are more commonly seen in Asian cuisine; they are best harvested when they resemble round eggs.  They can still be eaten once they have opened out but they are not so flavoursome.

Opened out Paddy Straw Mushroom.
Opened out Paddy Straw Mushroom.

 

Paddy Straw Mushrooms.
Paddy Straw Mushrooms.

It is quite a surprise to find this type of mushroom growing wild at this time of the year since it tends to come out at higher temperatures of about 38C.  Right now, the temperature is getting as low as 20C so this is definitely an auspicious find!

Anyway, the important question is: how will I cook it?  Let’s see, I will of course furnish you with a picture of the meal of the day at some point!

Gnome likes mushrooms a lot; if you are interested, see his article on Paddy Straw Mushrooms.

 

Belize, Farming, Food

New Yummies on our Farm.

Munchkin.Eating.Bun.Smile

Today I did not know what to write about so Gnome suggested that I walk around our farm and take pictures of new yummies to harvest.

Big Bunch of Bananas.
Big Bunch of Bananas.

When these bananas are ready for harvest, we will probably do many different things with them since it is a huge bunch.  Deep-fried thinly sliced green bananas are a must!  I will also sun-dry some of the bananas, grind them up and make flour out of it.  We will, of course, enjoy some of the bananas ripe.

Sapodilla Fruit.
Sapodilla Fruit.

Sapodilla fruit have a soft flesh similar to a peach but not as smooth in texture.  There is a strong cinnammon-like flavour and they are very sweet.  Gnome has called first dibs to make sapodilla wine and we will probably eat the rest as fruit.  When they are sun-dried, they make a very good substitute for dates.  Incidentally, sapodilla trees were once cultivated in Belize for its sap which was used for the original chewing gum (or chicle).  Our trees are still too young to be tapped but watch this space in a few years for a post on home-made chewing gum!

Green Peppercorns.
Green Peppercorns.

I am waiting for the green peppercorns to turn red (have been waiting 2 months and still no colour change).  Once they change colour then they can be harvested and then processed into white pepper.  I am getting impatient so I am actually starting to pick some green peppers to add to my meals.  They are really hot at this stage.  The green peppercorns can be harvested at this time and dried into black peppercorns.

I am so pleased with the produce on our farm; it changes from week to week and I love thinking of all the exciting yummy things I can do with all this food.

Belize, Food

Cooking Chicken in Ginger Ale.

Munchkin.Eating.BunYes, this one is about eating again…I am having a good run of yummies!  This time, I am cooking chicken in ginger ale (beer).  In Belize, ginger ale is bottled in a ubiquitous glass Fanta bottle and is available in all supermarkets.  I have not seen any other ginger ale brands in Toledo but you might be able to get an imported brand up in Belize City.  The best thing is to make home-made ginger ale for this recipe but that will be a post for another day.

Ginger Ale Chicken with Rice and Greens.
Ginger Ale Chicken with Rice and Greens.

This is a really simple recipe and it tastes yummy; the chicken gently caramelises in simmering ginger ale and you eventually get a lovely thick sauce which is spicy and sweet.  Addition of lemon sauce and extra ginger to the marinade gives a tang and a tingle to the whole experience.

Look at my Ginger Ale Chicken Recipe!

Belize, Food

Peanut Brittle Beef Cakes.

Munchkin.Eating.Bun

This recipe is great because it incoporates peanut candy bars bought in Belize.  I have seen these everywhere in the country and they can be bought at any local super-market.  They are so versatile because you can break the bars up into smaller pieces and put them in your home-cooked meals.

Peanut.Packet

As well as being a good source of protein, it also adds crunch and texture to food.  Moreover, the sugar in the bar caramelises once it is cooked adding more taste to the whole meal.

This is another recipe for the frustrated local ex-pat who tells me over and over again that there is nothing to cook in Belize!   For the overseas reader, probably any peanut brittle/candy bar can be used in this recipe.

This is yummy mixed in with minced beef and formed into little cakes;

See my Peanut Brittle Beef Cakes Served with Lentils.