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!
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!
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!
Hello Everyone. It has been pouring down all day and we are surrounded by big puddles of water. It is dull, miserable and grey and so I naturally gravitated to the kitchen to make some comfort food. I made mochi balls with lotus paste. They definitely hit the spot…at least for the 15 minutes in which we were devouring them. Anyway, these are not the “Witches’ Eggs.”
Lotus Paste Mochi Balls.
These are the Witches’ Eggs:
Stinkhorn Eggs.
These are the stinkhorn mushrooms in their immature form. If you want to harvest these, you need to go to a spot where you have seen this type of mushroom, get down on your hands and knees and look and feel for these round protrusions above the soil. I found eight of them today and this is a picture of a the mushroom cut in half:
Stinkhorn Mushroom Egg Sliced.
These Witches’ Eggs are edible although I can’t find any recipe on the internet. A lot of information comes from other blogs where people have voiced their disgust over the gelatinous quality of this mushroom. Apparently, this fungus is cultivated by the Chinese and I was surprised to read that it is actually the mature form which they eat. They are dried and then re-hydrated for soups. Apparently, it is a highly esteemed ingredient in Chinese cooking and considered a delicacy. With the promise of delectability, I am definitely getting out there in my rubber boots to collect this for my soup.
Stinkhorn Mushroom.
I have known about the edibility of the witches’ eggs for a long time since we used to collect them in Scotland. At that time, we were really spoiled for choice with chanterelles, boletes and all manner of freshly foraged mushrooms that I didn’t really make much of an attempt to cook these ones up. Since I am now in Belize and mushroom foraging is less diverse, I have decided to give this mushroom another chance. I will be cooking it tonight so will post up my recipe tomorrow.
The protein content of these mushrooms in the egg form is comparable to that found in meat. Mmmm…something for the vegetarians to consider.
Also, this mushroom contains anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties.
Oh, and this one is very interesting…according to a 2001 publication in the International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms, the smell of the fresh fungus can trigger spontaneous orgasms in human females. Definitely another reason to get the rubber boots out and go mushroom foraging?!
Happy Chinese New Year!! And what a perfect excuse to sequester myself in the kitchen today to cook really good food and pig out! It is indeed a masterful accomplishment to keep fine food flowing from the kitchen to the dining table and also, keep on eating for the whole day! Gnome was very happy and sat down to watch the Sean Connery “James Bond” marathon and now he has just started on the Roger Moore series.
Yummy Food Pictures:
Deep Fried Prawns with Farm Fresh Vegetables.Lotus Paste Mochi Balls.Minced Pork and Ginger Pies.
And, we are waiting for the Grand Finale; The Meal to end all Meals!! Cantonese Gibnut! Gibnut is a type of rodent which is related to the guinea pig; however, it is much larger (15 to 20lbs) so more to eat. I call it Cantonese-style because I have used Chinese Five Spice powder and star anise to flavour the meat. It smells just like Char Sui.
Cantonese Gibnut preparation pictures:
Searing Gibnut Leg.
I scrubbed the foot thoroughly because as most Asians will understand, this is a prized part. If you don’t have a “foot fetish” you may not understand why I am so excited about the foot.
Gibnut Ready to Cook.
I am slow cooking this in the oven for 6 hours. It will be ready very soon. More pictures tomorrow!
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!
