Make-Up Under 15 Minutes After Cooking His Favourite Meal Group Project Part B

As a Caribbean cook, I can honestly say that a lot of women in my field spend most of their time in the kitchen and neglect the time to dolls up; which is quite understandable. After facing the heat for hours, who really has the time to put on makeup and dress up in their Sunday best? Also, I like to describe myself as a “naturalista chic”, make up is not really my thing, but when I was invited by vintage fashionista Stacy Lyons and Cosmetologist Cindy Edwards to learn the simple art of fashion and make up in just about… thirty minutes I was willing to give it a try. I despise the idea of putting on too much make up, let alone taking hours to “cake up” my face. But as the end of year is approaching and there are lots of social events to attend, finally learning how to apply some simple and basic cosmetics will not harm. In turn I shared with these girls one of my “go to” dishes: smoked herring, coconut dumplings and cassava.

First we started with the food and I was in my element with this.

For Dumplings and Cassava:

Ingredients

1 cup finely grated dried coconut
2-3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar (optional)
1-1½ cups water
1 lb Cassava (peeled)

For Smoked Herring:
Ingredients
½ lb. Smoked Herring
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small onion, chopped finely
¾ lb. tomatoes, chopped
½ tsp Chadon beni
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp. chive, chopped
½ tsp. thyme, chopped (Spanish or fine leaf)
1 pot spoon olive/Vegetable/Canola Oil
1 small grated carrot
1 small hot pepper, finely chopped (optional)

Visit blog for step by step instructions on how to make this fabulous meal:

http://caribbeanflavours.blogspot.com/2015/12/carlas-coconut-dumplings-and-cassava.html

Vintage wardrobe

Stacy was our group member that volunteered to be our model.  She wore a classic cherry patterned wiggle dress with black kitten heels, pearl studs a string of pearls necklace, a classic Citizen’s watch and a red big pocket apron. It took Stacy all of 5 minutes to put on that ensemble…now that’s my kind of time!  And she certainly looked vintage. Feel free to check out Stacy’s blog page for tips on vintage fashion: http://fordaloveofvintage.blogspot.com

Make-Up

Cindy was able to make Stacy look authentic by applying some vintage make unto the canvas that was her face. This included the cat eye, a “fake mole”, rouge blush and a beautiful matte, ruby red lipstick that captured the makeup of the 1950s. To recreate this look check out Cindy’s YouTube page at https://youtu.be/TJBslqUaj14. Cindy then gave Stacy a Lucille Ball up-do which was the frosting on the cake as she was the quintessential vintage woman.

Hope you enjoyed this blog feel free to post your comments in the box below

Guyanese Pepper Pot

Guyanese Pepperpot, how can I describe this dish?  This is just mouth watering for all meat lovers.  Just imagine having all your favourite meat, slowly cooked in one pot and served.  What could be better than this?

I remember my first time tasting this dish some years back and went to the grocery, bought the ingredients and begged my Guyanese friend to make more.  I was also fortunate enough to watch my colleague's husband cook it and went on a recipe hunt to learn how to do so.  This dish is truly amazing and one that you must try if visiting Guyana.  I found this recipe on www.caribbeanpot.com and I gave it a try.  It came out really good so I decided to share it.  Make sure to try out this recipe and add it to your list of Caribbean recipes you learned to make.  Happy Cooking!

Note: Now we are in the Christmas season, I am sure this is one that will be on any Guyanese table. 

You’ll Need…
4 lbs of meat- (beef and goat)
1 cup cassareep
2 cinnamon sticks
2 inch piece orange peel
4 cloves garlic
4 wiri wiri peppers
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
8-12 cups water
4 springs thyme
6 cloves (optional)
2 small onions
*tablespoon veg oil

Note: You have the option to cook meal with one meat or with a combination.  I prefer using a combination, the choice is really yours.

Have your butcher cut the meats into the same size pieces and try your best to trim off as much fat as you can.

In a large/deep pot, heat the oil and add the pieces of meats (wash and drain first) and try to brown a little. Then add all the other ingredients (except the water) and give it a good stir. Next up add the water (make sure everything is covered) and bring to a boil.

You have the option to keep the peppers whole to get the flavor and not too much peppery (you can remove them before serving and try your best not to break them open).

As it comes to a boil you’ll need to skim (and discard) the sort of scum at the top of the pot and during the 3 hr braising process, you’ll want to do the same for any oily fats you see on the surface. Now that it’s boiling, reduce to a very gentle simmer, cover the pot and let it go for 3 hrs. Yes, you can use a pressure cooker to help with the lengthy cooking time, but to be quite honest.. you’ll loose some of that lovely flavor you ONLY get with slow cooking.

After 3 hours the liquid would have reduced by about 3/4, so it will be intense in both color and flavor, for what I believe is one of the most tasty Caribbean gravy you’ll ever enjoy. Guyanese pepperpot is something cooked a couple days before Christmas and remains on the stove, gently heated every time you need to get some.

Breadfruit and Arrowroot

A TASTE OF 'VINCY'

 The Breadfruit

"For many people, the breadfruit is seen as a symbol of St. Vincent, tied to the nation's culture and heritage. Its uniquely shaped leaf can be seen engraved into flower pots along the bayfront of Kingstown. The breadfruit itself forms part of the country’s national dish of roasted breadfruit and fried jack fish." www.discoversvg.com

History of the Breadfruit
"On January 23, 1793 Captain William Bligh anchored the HMS Providence off Kingstown and completed his ambition of bringing breadfruit plants here from Tahiti. His first attempt resulted in the infamous mutiny on the Bounty. After being adrift for 47 days in the Pacific, Captain Bligh returned and, it is said, one of the trees now growing in Kingstown’s Botanical Gardens is a descendant of one of his original breadfruit plants. Breadfruits were used as an economical source of food during slavery. Read about the Breadfruit Festival held annually in August." www.discoversvg.com

Arrowroot

"Arrowroot is a traditional Amerindian crop.  It is a starchy tuber that, when harvested, is washed, pulped, drained and dried to produce a powder that is used as a replacement for flour in bread making, as well as an ingredient in puddings, biscuits, cakes and sauces. Interestingly, it was said that arrowroot was also used to draw toxins from flesh wounds made by the poison arrows used by indigenous people.
St. Vincent is one of the few places in the world where this ancient and traditional crop is still cultivated for both domestic and overseas consumption. Visitors to the Owia area of St. Vincent's north east may see arrowroot crops growing on the lush green hillsides." www.discoversvg.com

Ducuna - St. Vincent and the Grenadines

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Flavours

What is Ducuna?  Why does it look like Conkies (Barbados) and Paime (Trinidad and Tobago)?

Ducuna is very popular in St. Vincent and Antigua.  It is made with sweet potato, coconut, spices and tannia, wrapped and boiled in banana leaves. It is also steamed in banana leaves and has a finished look like paime, pastelles or conkies.  Ducuna as I know it was made by the older persons while growing up.  Today, you don't see much people making it especially the younger ones.

I always love making Ducuna and my colleagues enjoy this treat.  Sweet potato is very expensive in Trinidad to purchase so I don't get to make Ducuna very often but when I do, we enjoy every bite of this delicious treat.  Ducuna can be served alone or with other dishes such as saltfish.  I prefer eating ducuna by itself as a treat.  The worse part for me in making Ducuna is the grating of the coconut.  Like I have said in my previous posts, this was always a disaster although now in my adult life I have learned to master how to grate it.  It takes too much time.  For Ducuna; however, you have to grate the coconut over using a magic bullet or blender because you don't want water getting in the mixture.

So here goes it, I found a recipe online and thought it might help anyone who wanted to learn how to make it.  I tried out the recipe as well and it was great.  If you're someone into spices like I am, you can add a little extra cinnamon or nutmeg to the mixture.

Ducuna

Ingredients:

Banana leaves
2 cups of sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper (or black pepper)
1/2 cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 cup of grated tannia
1-1/2 cups of grated coconut
4-1/2 cups of grated sweet potatoes

Directions:

1. Put the tannias and the potatoes into a mixing bowl.
2. Add the sugar along with the other ingredients, mix well.
3. Next fold about half cup mixture in the steamed banana leaves cut into squares.
4. Finally, tie and steam the Ducana on a rack over boiling water in a large pot.
5. Boil until its firm and cooked.

Visit www.facebook.com/creolecaribbeanflavours for additional recipes from all over the Caribbean.

Recipe adapted from: http://www.discoversvg.com

Vincy Callaloo Soup

Vincy Callaloo Soup

Did you know that callaloo soup is a big meal in St. Vincent and the smaller islands?

This is by far my favorite soup. It is also one that we serve a lot in St. Vincent at functions, weddings and lots of other events.  In weddings, they serve it with very small dumplings and pieces of other provision with tripe.  For us, having callaloo soup is a must.  I don't think I know of anyone that dislikes this soup.

For those that are curious why we call it soup in St. Vincent and not just callaloo like in Trinidad, it is because we cook it with provisions and dumplings and it is served as a meal.  For e.g. I like my callaloo soup with white  sweet yams, eddoes, dasheen, salt meat (beef is great), dumplings (coconut or any other, check out my blog post on coconut dumplings), sweet potatoes and of course one of my favorites, cassava.  You also have the option to blend the callaloo bush first before cooking it or steaming it in a little bit of water first.  Another important step in cooking callaloo soup is adding coconut milk to give it a best flavor.  The dumplings are added last when cooking this soup.  

Another point to note about callaloo soup is that it is very healthy and very high in iron.  It is a very healthy meal and is best served hot.  What I found is that callaloo tastes better when it is stale.  I mean in other words if you eat it the next day after reheating, it tastes a lot better.  That's just my opinion anyway.  

Make sure to try out making callaloo soup, I am sure you and your family will love it.  Make sure to try it next time as well if you're in St. Vincent at an event and they're serving it or even if is sold on the streets by the vendors.

 Ingredients:

2 bundles callaloo (approximately 12 ozs.)
12 ozs. Beef (seasoned) salted meat
12 cups water
1 lb. tannia
1 tsp. garlic (minced)
½ cup chopped onion
1 tbsp. salt
½ cup chive
½ tsp. all purpose seasoning
¼ tsp. pepper
2 potatoes (white or sweet)
2 cups coconut milk (see below)
1 tbsp. butter (optional)dumplings other vegetables may be used.

N.B: You can also add other provisions such as Yam, Eddoes, Dasheen, Cassava to the recipe.
You can use crab, salt meat, beef, chicken to make this soup.

Method:

1. If using salt meat, cut up and soak for ¾ to 1 hour.
2. Boil with fresh meat for ½ hour.
3. Cut up dasheen leaves and wash thoroughly, then add to beef. Bring to the boil. Note if you are using blended callaloo, add beef to it and bring to a boil.
4. Add the other ingredients, adjust seasoning.
5. Cook until everything is soft.
6. Add dumplings 10 minutes before removing fire.

Coconut Milk Method- Soak dried grated coconut in hot water. Allow to stand until cool. Strain in fine sieve and squeeze out milk.

Recipe compliments: http://www.discoversvg.com/index.php/de/about-svg/a-taste-of-vincy

Carla's Coconut Dumplings and Cassava with Smoked Herring (Vincy & Trini Style combined) Group Project Part A

Coconut dumplings have been a long time part of the smaller islands kitchen.  Islands such as Grenada, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Guyana and Tobago make this treat on a regular basis.  A friend of mine from Guyana told me that they use the coconut juice to make the dumplings, whereas in the other islands, we use the actual coconut to knead the flour.  I was never really a dumpling lover but coconut dumplings always had a different effect on me.

I remember as a child growing up this was a must have when my father and his brothers are cooking their special one pot.  Going on a river or beach lime, there was always someone sitting with a grater, grating coconut away.  When the men cooked this dumpling, they made them big like cart wheels and very tight.  Sometimes when eating these dumplings, you have to focus on the chewing as to not choke.  Most times I could have only eaten one because these things were so huge that they filled you up instantly.

My fear with doing the coconut dumplings when I was younger was grating off my fingers.  The Lord knew I disliked it when my grandmother asked me to grate dried coconut. After grating the coconut, half my fingers would be gone as well.  My father heard me one day complaining about grating coconut and showed me the strategy as to how to not get my fingers in the way while grating.  I have mastered the skill but still not a fan of grating it.  Thanks to the invention of magic bullet or a blender, no longer do you have to grate coconut.  However, I find that grinding the coconut always give the recipe that authentic traditional feel. The second part of handling coconut I hated was trying to get the dry coconut out of the shell.  To date, I am still unable to accomplish this task.  The dried coconut always bounce around every time I attempt to hit it.  I don't think I should attempt it anymore because I might end up hurting myself with the cutlass.  Thanks to the grocery stores, I can walk in and buy a coconut without having a coconut battle.

Since I introduced coconut dumplings and smoke herring at my work place, it became an instant hit.  It is a big request from my colleagues.  There were many staff there that didn't know about coconut dumplings so tasting it for the first time left me with great reviews.  I have been asked over and over to show them how to make it.  So here is a recipe I am hoping would work.  I tried to use pictures for illustration purposes as I find it easier to explain something when there is a visual.   The pictures taken were my group project as well on how to make these delicious dumplings.

Coconut Dumplings and Cassava with Smoked Herring

For Dumplings and Cassava:

Ingredients

 1 cup finely grated dried coconut

2-3 cups flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar (optional)

1-1½ cups water

1 lb Cassava (peeled)

Directions:

1.   Put the flour into a bowl. Add the grated coconut, 1/2 tsp salt and sugar.

2.   Form a well in the center and add the water.  Mix together until a soft but firm dough is formed. You may need to add more flour or water to get the correct consistency.

   3.   Let rest for 10-20 minutes.

4.   Put pot of water to hot to boil Cassava and add salt to taste. Then, peel and wash Cassava properly.

5.   Boil Cassava until it is cooked.

6.   Form dumplings into the desired shape.

7.   Cook in a large pot of boiling water for approximately  20 minutes or until the dumplings float to the surface.

8.   Remove  dumplings and cassava from water and serve.  Cut dumplings into smaller pieces or serve as is.

For Smoked Herring:

Ingredients

½ lb. Smoked Herring

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 small onion, chopped finely

¾ lb. tomatoes, chopped

½ tsp Chadon beni

1 tsp lime juice

1 tsp. chive, chopped

½ tsp. thyme, chopped (Spanish or fine leaf)

1 pot spoon olive/Vegetable/Canola Oil

1 small grated carrots

1 small hot pepper, finely chopped (optional)

Method

Step 1: Boil the smoke herring for about 10 minutes to remove some of the salt.

Step 2: Drain, remove skin if it is not yet removed; wash and squeeze the excess water from the smoke herring and break into small pieces.

Step 3: Saute the onion, garlic and seasonings. Then add the tomatoes and carrots and cook until slightly brown.

Step 4:  Add the flaked smoke herring, all remaining ingredients, lime juice and hot pepper and allow it to cook for about 10 minutes. Add more salt and water if desired.

Step 5: Serve cool with dumplings, cassava, fry bake etc.

Note: You can also use stewed meat or saltfish if you are allergic to fish or not a big fan of smoked herring.
Serve warm/hot and enjoy!  Remember to leave your comments and feedback.  Thanks for viewing!