Gnome:

A day for setting things up.  The change-log for the site today would be:

• Wrote up and set up hierarchy for pages.
• Tried to get pictures sorted out…not quite yet.
• Get into the habit of posting things; wrote first post.
• Sorted out domain name.
• Uploaded more pictures for Munchkin.
• Added some of the links.

Not ready yet to include the day…did make a batch of soap, incidentally but will get to such things in the future.

Munchkin:

We made a batch of chocolate artisan soap together; gnome did all the mixing whilst I assisted with the weighing of chocolate powder and cut-up soap pieces.  This type of soap is what I call a “Soap Story” which includes odds and ends of old soap, cut up into pieces, which is mixed into a back-ground of opaque (in this case, chocolate) soap.  Each soap we make has a “story” or a “description” as you will see later in more detailed blogs and so the visual appearance of these soaps end up as “soaps within soaps” or metaphorically speaking: “stories within stories”.

If my shop were working…this is where I would send you.

I weeded the vegetable beds today and also took the opportunity to gather the greens for eating today.  See below, a huge basin of green leaves which are weighed exclusively for this blog: 420g ie. close to a pound in uncooked greens.  Earlier, I marinated chicken breast with soya sauce, yellow ginger, cumin and salt in preparation for an “indian-style” fried chicken on a bed of steamed greens.  No carbohydrates tonight.

 

The greens which I picked today is a vegetable known as “Avuvo” in Nigeria.  The seeds were given to me a couple of years ago by a lady who wanted to start a pilot project on growing Nigerian vegetables in Belize with a view to an export market in the US.  I had been given a plethora of seeds, perhaps about a dozen including vegetable greens, many types of egg plants and hot chillies.  Since then, only two plants have survived: one is the Avuvo and the other is a domesticated type of Purslane.  I will write more about purslane another time.  Avuvo tastes like a spinach and produces a spiked “teasel-like” flower; it grows prolifically like a weed and takes over everything!  That’s why I love it so much because it requires very little maintenance and the leaves remain pristine as no bugs seem to eat it. Contrast this with the callaloo here in Belize which is usually riddled with holes.

Below is a picture of our Meal of The Day:

Contrary to popular opinion there is an art to cooking fried chicken even although it is seen as major junk-food in this country.  The chicken is removed from the marinade and dusted with white flour.  Have a heavy cast iron skillet ready with vegetable oil filled up to 3 millimeters depth; put the flame on a medium to high heat and brown each side of the chicken.  Then, turn down to the lowest flame and cook chicken for 10 minutes (may take less or more time depending on thickness of breast).  About 2 minutes prior to this, flip the chicken over so that it is evenly browned on both sides.  Drain on paper towels before serving.  Steam the greens for 1-2 minutes and arrange on plate with the fried chicken.  This goes well with a glass of mead (we make this too!!!).

If you wanted the recipe…I would send you here.

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