Tag Archives: Peach Palm

Farm Food…

September 19, 2018 Munchkin

Hello! We have had about 10 days straight of dry, sunny weather and we have been working our little butts off! Today, we are sooo tired that we have decided to take the day off. This is how we look at the end of the day: Oh, so knackered, just want to sleep…

Please note that the Cat has not been physically working and looks like this all the time!!

Anyway, I have managed to wrestle back control over the trees in the yard and the pond area. They have been cleaned up, mulched and fertilised and now on a maintenance schedule. The next battle is the orchard at the back which was overgrown for two years because of machinery failure. Now that Gnome has brought the grass/bush back down, I have been piling up all the debris and branches. A big thank-you to Panda for helping out with this bit! This was the orchard…very bushy. Now, it has really opened up. The orchard mostly consisted of sapodilla trees but from cleaning up, it looks like we may have lost about 6 out of 20 of the trees. We will probably replace with a variety of fruit trees including golden plum, mango and rambutan. This is a picture of “before”…don’t have “after” yet…

Meanwhile, Gnome has been preparing the veranda for electricity and plumbing. We are moving the sink out of the house (not enough space) with a view to moving the kitchen out too (not enough space!). To add to all these plans within plans, we have decided (work in process and will take a couple of years to establish) to have two cooking areas. We will have a cooking area on the veranda with dedicated charcoal stoves…mostly set up for Gnome for Italian slow-cooking, wine-making and whatever he feels like cooking up. At some stage, I will have an outside Munchkin kitchen with a fire/coal pit so I will do most of the cooking over coals. There will be a dedicated sheltered sitting area outside for this and a little kitchen-bunker made from used tyres. 🙂 That’s the plan…

Anyway, the farm keeps on producing and each season brings something different to the kitchen table. We have a blackberry bearing right now; very difficult to harvest because the tree is so tall so I have to wait for the berries to fall to the ground. I tried thrashing the branches about with a big stick but I got too tired. If I can collect enough, I will get Gnome to make some wine:

It is also the season for peach-palm. The geese love these and actually wait underneath the palms for the fruit to fall and when this happens, this sets off a rugby-type game that they play. It’s fun to watch amidst the goosie shrieks and carrying-on. Run Goosie Run!!

We are eating them too. I cut them in half, remove the centre seed and boil them for about 45 minutes. Since, I do this in large batches, the cooked fruit is stored in the freezer ready for stews and soups.

Oh and the malabar spinach looks very healthy and has taken over a whole bed:

Aubergines (eggplants) are starting to produce; Pantry Cat is also looking after the vegetables…he keeps the iguanas away during the day…good boy, remember to wake up if you hear any stealthy crunch-crunch noises!!

Belize, Farming, Fermentation, Food, Our Products

Just A Thank-You.

February 21, 2016 Munchkin

Munchkin.More.Eating If you follow our posts, you may have realised by now that we enjoy the creativity and inventiveness of harvesting and processing our own food. Peach Palm Miso was borne out of a fusion of an Asian preservation technique with a farm grown ingredient. I would like to give a special Thank-you to Julian Obererlacher of Itz’ana, Placencia for his resourcefulness in using our Peach Palm Miso as an ingredient in his menu.

Another Thanks to Enrico Cordenons for providing us with the Itz’ana Menu as follows:

WEDNESDAY 17 FEBRUARY, 2016

Sweet/spicy soup of Belizean vegetables with masa

King Estate Pinot Gris 2013 (USA – Oregon)

Poblano pepper stuffed with arugula, lentils, Caves Branch ricotta and parmesan

Zolo Malbec 2014 (Argentina – Agrelo Valley)

Snook, Casa Mascia Peach palm miso glaze, coco yam puree, grilled zucchini Itz’ana garden chinese greens

Crimson Fetzer Pinot Noir 2012 (USA – Napa Valley)

Banana loaf, chocolate, peanut cream, belizean rum caramel, purple basil

Mayan hot chocolate or Local Rum (Belize Punta Gorda/Placencia)

It is inspiring to see a preference and a confident boldness in using local ingredients.

We have Peach Palm Miso for sale within the country. Please check out The Apothecary for more information.

Belize, Food, Our Products

Fried Cassava With Peach Palm Miso Dip.

November 24, 2015 Munchkin

Munchkin.Training

Mmmmm…deep fried cassava is one of our favourites…it is really hearty and warming for colder days in Belize.

And since we are moving into winter time in Belize when the temperature can drop down to 18C (64F), this dish is perfect.

To prepare the cassava, peel and wash:

Boil the cassava in a stockpot. You will know when they are ready when they start to split length-wise. Drain the roots and once they have cooled down, slice them into 1/2 inch circular pieces. Heat up oil (I use a wok) until smoking. Fry about 10 pieces at a time, until golden brown, and drain on kitchen towel.

To make Peach Palm Miso Dip combine the following :

2 tbsp Soya Sauce

2 tbsp Honey

1 tsp Peach Palm Miso (or Shiro Miso)

Enjoy!! We deliver Peach Palm Miso in Punta Gorda on Wednesdays. Contact us by email or Facebook if you are interested and we can drop it off for you.

We can also send it to you via Tropic Air within Belize. Check out The Apothecary for prices.

Belize, Food

Our Very Own Instant Cuppa Cassava Ramen.

November 22, 2015 Munchkin

Together.Eating.Fire.Pot

A couple of weeks ago we harvested fresh cassava from the farm to make “Cuppa Cassava” which is our own home-made version of an instant noodle meal. As described in an earlier post, we prepared the root by peeling, cutting into pieces and steaming. After that, we put the cooked vegetable through a meat grinder in order to homogenize it and obtain a “noodle-look.” Then it was placed in the sun to dry for three days.

We made an “instant” quick meal by adding boiled water (about 1+1/2 cups) to a handful of dehydrated cassava noodles; we covered this and allowed the vegetable to soften and cook for 10 minutes. At 7 minutes, a teaspoon of miso (our famous Peach Palm Miso) and a 1/4 cup of finely chopped green spinach were added to the mixture. And Hey Presto…Cuppa Casava Ramen was ready to eat!

The cassava noodles had a chewy, firm texture with a bite. We both agreed that this was a good preservation method and this was definitely worth having in the pantry as “farm-made fast food.”

Belize, Fermentation, Food, Our Products

Peach Palm Miso: The Basics.

November 17, 2015 Munchkin

Munchkin.More.Eating

We have had a great response with our Peach Palm Miso. A Big Thank-you to all the people who bought it last week. Their support is much appreciated. We even sent one packet on Tropic Air to Placencia. So, yes we can send this food product to anyone within the country via Tropic Air. It is a fermented product so does not need special refrigeration. Once you receive it, it should be refrigerated or stored in cool, dry place. It is best consumed within 6 months but can be kept indefinitely…like all fermented products it actually gets more flavoursome with time.

To start with basics, to make a simple miso soup, dissolve one teaspoon of peach palm miso in hot water and simply enjoy! Miso is a healthy pro-biotic food which can aid digestion and helps maintain healthy digestive flora. Moreover, our miso, is made with peach palm and white rice koji only so it is completely gluten-free.

Miso.Soup.

Anyone interested in purchasing Peach Palm Miso, please contact us by email or Facebook. We can deliver within Punta Gorda on Wednesdays (tomorrow) or send by Tropic Air to the destination of your choice within Belize. Check out The Apothecary for prices.

Belize, Food, Our Products, Plants

Fresh Produce From Casa Mascia!

November 10, 2015 Munchkin

Together.Horses

Hello Everyone. We have fresh produce from our farm to sell and will be in Punta Gorda tomorrow (and every Wednesday) to sell our stuff. Email or Facebook us if you are interested and we can drop it off for you in town tomorrow.

We have the Peach Palm Miso for sale. This product is made in the same traditional way as normal miso but we have used Peach Palm (Pejibaye) instead of soya bean.

This is a gluten-free, vegan natural flavouring for soups, sauces and marinades. Simply use this as an alternative to a bouillon cube. You only need to use a teaspoon at a time so one bag goes a long way. Check out The Apothecary for prices.

We will also have our coconut cream for sale which can be used for curries, stews, coconut rice and smoothies.

Belize, Farming, Fermentation, Food

Peach Palm Miso Tasting.

October 26, 2015 Munchkin

About two months ago, we had so much peach palm (pejibaye) that we had to think of different preservation methods for it.

We cooked the fruit and the put it through the meat grinder with rice koji to make peach palm miso.

We placed it all in a bucket and put it away for a couple of months:

Just the other day, we opened up the bucket for a tasting:

We both concluded that it was a very nice amber-orange colour. The taste was fruity, hearty and pleasantly sweet.

Gnome: Very good, surprisingly good.

Munchkin: Fruity!! Can double-up as a condiment with french fries!

Peach Palm Miso is a definite winner and the taste will get even better with time.

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!

Amusing, Belize, Farming, Food, Plants

Working Hard!!

August 17, 2015 Munchkin

Ha-ha…this is a real picture of us at last!! We have been messing around with the computer to see if we can use it to take pictures for the posts. I am sure you would recognise us now if you saw us on the street!!

Phew!! We have been working hard on the farm! Gnome has procured his big stick for knocking down coconuts and so we are back to processing them again.

We are back to making coconut water and coconut cream for the local market. Also, we grate coconut for Cotton Tree Chocolate for their coconut bars.

I really do need to get a camera because I have so many exciting things to show you. I have been preparing bamboo shoots:

I want to show you step by step how to prepare, cook and preserve bamboo shoots. It is really quite simple but it just requires time and dedication.

Also, we have had huge bunches of peach palm. So much food on the farm, it’s coming out of our ears!! And the dogs are getting fat. Gnome says that we need a couple of pigs and a gaggle of geese to eat all the food!!

As always, still eating yummy food…

Have a good night everyone!!

Casa Mascia Apothecary