Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & Punch

Barfi (Indian Milk Fudge)

2011-10-26T19:26:00.000-07:00

Divali (Diwali) is one of the most eagerly anticipated holidays of my country. Yesterday my son came home from his Catholic School with his painted clay deya (a small, clay, lamp) eager to light it right away. Great was his disappointment when I explained that he needed to wait until the the next day. Divali is a Hindu festival but in Trinidad and Tobago it is embraced and enjoyed by

Breadfruit Oil Down

2011-09-25T15:15:00.000-07:00

Oil down (Oil dong) is a traditional Caribbean way of cooking starchy vegetables in a coconut milk reduction. Jamaicans call it run down. In Trinidad the most popular oil down ingredient is breadfruit which technically is a fruit but for cooking purposes it is treated like a vegetable. Because the breadfruit is sweet and buttery the accompanying meat tends to be a bit of something briny like

Ma'amoul - Date and Walnut Filled Cookies

2011-08-27T10:50:00.000-07:00

Somewhere out there, someone's Tita (grandmother) is tut tutting and shaking their head in dismay at my sorry looking ma'amoul. Traditionally these cookies are made with an intricate pattern that makes them look quite regal. You'll be tempted to serve them on nothing but your best china I'm sure. Clearly mine are barely tupperware worthy. Fortunately, what they lack in looks, they make up

Chocolate Truffle Ice-Cream

2011-08-08T19:26:00.000-07:00

I go weak in the knees for magazines with images of hot, sexy, totally delicious food. Forget the carefully crafted recipe lead-ins that proclaim the sweet, sour or even piquant flavours of a particular dish; it’s the food photographs which sell it to me every time. A perfect example would be June’s issue of bon appétit which proclaims that this chocolate ice-cream is so rich, it doesn’t

Avocado Tostadas

2011-08-01T19:02:00.000-07:00

It's been raining avocados. Last week a man we barely know gifted us with a huge bag of these pears. Unfortunately he ran off before I could marry him. Most unfortunate agreed my husband. Almost everyday for the last month someone (bless 'em) has given us an avocado and I've been eating slices of buttery pears daily. A thick, crusty, hops bread with a smash of avocado in between is considered

Sweet and Sour Thai Shrimp

2011-07-23T19:37:00.000-07:00

This is a quick stir-fry recipe which takes on the character of a stew with a satisfying broth at the end. As long as you chop all your vegetables the night before it only takes 10 minutes to cook the following day. This is nothing like a Chinese sweet and sour recipe. The aromatic kaffir leaves and coconut milk give this dish an authentic Thai flavour. That said, Kaffir leaves are a

Handmade and Home Grown (and another Giveaway!)

2011-07-13T13:53:00.000-07:00

Entrepreneur Stefan Grosberg puts a Trinidadian spin on an Italian classic with his Shadon beni (chardon béni) pesto. I love that he uses local flavours in new and extraordinary ways. Even better the farm to table approach of growing herbs which go into his amazing line of pestos is why I am here at 6:00 am on a Sunday morning tramping through his beautiful garden with my camera.

Lightroom 3 Giveaway Winner

2011-07-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

A hearty thank you to everyone who participated in the Lightroom 3 Giveaway. The randomly selected winner is SG Congratulations. Please reply to the email that I sent you with your mailing address. For the rest of you I already have another giveaway in the works, so check back soon!

Adobe Lightroom 3 - Giveaway

2011-06-17T20:25:00.000-07:00

I just read an article which claims that that “mommy brain” might actually be an improvement on the pre-mommy brain. In other words two pregnancies have actually made me smarter. Give me a minute while my brain processes that...... ...*clank* ...........*clank* ....*clank* ......... ... ........... ... (sounds of rusty cogs slowly turning) If that's true why then do I forget my

Goat's Milk Yogurt with Rose Syrup and Lychees

2011-06-05T09:58:00.000-07:00

Hello gorgeous. Any day that starts with something that is more like a dessert than breakfast makes me extremely happy. This indulgent combination of yoghurt, rose syrup and lychees was the brain child of Daily Cookie. I tasted her yoghurt and just I could not get it out of my mind. My version uses goat's milk but you can make yoghurt with almost any kind of milk. You can use whole milk, skim,

Caribbean Vegan

2011-05-24T19:36:00.000-07:00

©Jacky Gotin Taymer Mason believes strongly in the ethics and the benefits of adopting a plant-based diet. I don’t. Seriously if it’s not threatened or endangered at no time would I ever consider completely eliminating animal products from my diet. Sorry. So, why then would I be interested in owning a copy of Taymer’s book Caribbean Vegan? Well Taymer ( such a cool name:-) and I do have

A Green Eggs and Ham moment...Anchovies and Pissaladière

2011-05-07T21:10:00.000-07:00

I know right. Last week surely you thought I was nuts to stand in front of a stove for an hour sweating onions. Here I am this week extolling the flavour of fish and onions on pizza. Pissaladière is a wonderful pizza-like dish from the south of France. I don't caramelize onions often, once maybe twice a year but when I do I go all out and do a huge batch. So yeah it was a lot of work but it

Find your Caramelized Onion Zen

2011-04-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

Caramelized onions are bliss. Making them is not. It takes one long torturous hour. Do not be tempted to turn your heat up to high. Your onions will burn. Do not walk away from the stove to put a load of laundry, or feed he fish, or wash the dishes. Don’t daydream. An hour is a blessed eternal long time to stand in front of the stove. So get a stool and sit. Dig your heels in; find your

Lemony Sweet Potato 'Fries'

2011-04-16T15:06:00.000-07:00

These aren't actually fried but baked and yet they are everything that you just love about fries - only healthier and without the side of guilt. Freshly baked with a sprinkle of salt clinging to their still hot sides you won't be able to restrain yourself. Because the idea of peeling and slicing potatoes for a large family is about as exciting to me as watching paint dry, my first attempt at

Sea Glass Jello

2011-03-15T19:37:00.000-07:00

Eat your vegetables. They are good for you. Jello and condensed milk? Most likely not a best nutritional choice but it will make you feel like a kid again AND it has restorative powers. Yesiree Why just this past weekend this sea glass jello was the remedy for a skinned knee. It helped stop a bout of crying over a lost toy and alleluia if it didn't chase away a serious case of Monday blahs

Saga Boy Mojitos

2011-03-08T10:37:00.000-08:00

Free up yourself! Let your hair down forget about work for two days. It's okay the boss won't mind. If you have the good fortune to live in a country that places high value on the festival known as Carnival then you no doubt already know that this is the last hurrah before the austere and solemn occasion of Lenten prayer and fasting. The debauchery though questionable is entirely

Chili Corn Pie

2011-02-18T20:04:00.000-08:00

Dear Saturday, Don’t take it personally but you kind of suck as a day. On Friday we are all like TGIF euphoric at the anticipation of escaping from work for two whole days. Whoot! My day off is finally here and I find is that there is an alarming pile of dishes in the kitchen sink, 3 baskets of laundry, 2 hungry man cubs clamouring for food, a living room full of un-put away toys and to do

Love is a Loaf of Bread

2011-02-13T14:14:00.000-08:00

Looking for love? Bread is totally where it’s at. Hear me out. Chocolate, candy and flowers are all very romantic expressions if you're a gal. However believe me when I tell you that men love these things, not so much. My advice. A loaf of home-baked bread is where it’s at. I defy you to find me a man who can resist a just out of the oven slice of warm, buttered bread. He might want to

From Architect to Chocolatier

2011-01-30T17:22:00.000-08:00

Chocolate connoisseurs may well be aware of the superior quality of chocolate from the Caribbean yet it is the Swiss, the Belgians, the French and the Italians who are credited with refining it into fine flavoured chocolate bars and bonbons. That is because most of the chocolate produced in the region is shipped abroad to be crafted into luxury chocolates - until now. Meet Trinidadian Isabel

Nifty Nutmeg Chicken-From Grenada with love

2011-01-23T10:07:00.000-08:00

Most people think of the seed when they think of nutmeg but did you know that lots can be done with the yellow, fleshy, outer fruit that covers the 'nut' of the nutmeg? Image used with with kind permission of Jon Clarke De La Granade Industries is a company in Grenada that uses the fruit of this famous seed to make Morne Délice syrup, jams, jellies and even a liqueur. In 2009, guess which

An aside and lots of dots

2011-01-17T06:22:00.000-08:00

Over the last two months this blog has been on a mini hiatus of sorts. Do not worry, I've been busy in the kitchen as always but life at times spills over and overwhelms. Something had to give and that something was this blog. So here it is already the 3rd week of the new year. It's a bit late to be dusting off the cobwebs, looking back and reflecting on the past year. Still I can't help it. I

Golden Apple Tarts - pomme de cythère

2010-12-20T10:25:00.000-08:00

At one time apples were synonymous with Christmas in Trinidad. As a child I eagerly anticipated the crate of apples which my father ordered from Ibrahims and Co. on Charlotte street. It was a yearly Christmas tradition. Nowadays I think it's a pity that our fascination with all things foreign has been to the detriment of the fruits grown locally. Apple pies and turnovers are abundant in

Looking for Life's Easy Button

2010-12-05T16:36:00.000-08:00

This blog has been quiet recently on account of work and some family drama... but mainly work. Lately everything has been happening all at the same time and I find myself exhausted and looking for life's easy button. I promise I'll let you know when I find it, until then here is a fabulous recipe for gluten-free muffins. It doesn't look like much so what's so great about this muffin? Well

Birthdays and beyond - A cake for all occaisions

2010-11-15T14:35:00.000-08:00

Carrot cake is one of those classic homemade cakes that never seems to go out of style. Here is my adaptation of my father's favourite recipe for carrot cake which I made for his birthday. Happy Birthday Dad. Carrot Cake 2 cups flour 2 tsp baking powder 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp ground cinnamon 1 1/2 cups sugar 1 cup vegetable oil 4 eggs 2 tsp Angostura orange bitters or orange zest 2

The Wednesday Meal

2010-10-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

Late breakfasts, lazy Sunday lunches and posh desserts are the stuff of dreamy, relaxed weekends. Weekdays are a whole other story. Sure, it’s nice to have a fabulous repertoire of sensational epicurean delights to wow your family. But of what use is haute cuisine when you find yourself completely exhausted with only microwave time to get dinner on the table? Enter the Wednesday meal. You know