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CaribBar: Carambola Iced Tea | Drink
Ingredients:- 1 Carambola (sliced crossways)
- 2 tbsp fresh Lemon Juice
- 18 grams of Ceylon Orange Pekoe tea
- 1/3 cup Fresh Mint
- 2 tbsp. Sugar
- 1 3/4 Boiling Water
- Place carambola slices on a baking tray and drizzle with half the lemon juice. Cover with cold water and place in the freezer for 6 hours or until frozen.
- Combine tea leaves, mint and sugar in a large heatproof bowl and pour over the boiling water. Set aside for 15 minutes to brew.
- Strain tea through a fine sieve into a large jug and add remaining lemon juice. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool.
- Pour tea into tall glasses.
- Remove carambola ice from the freezer and break into pieces, with one carambola slice in each piece. Place a few pieces in each glass and serve.
CaribCook: Curry Mango
Photo: Eating In Translation
I fell in love with this amazing Caribbean dish at the age of 8. My Aunt Karen shared her Guyanese version of curry mango with me after picking some green mangoes from our backyard. In an effort to save good fruit for a later date islanders tend to pick fruit while it’s still green to avoid hungry birds and bats. We set aside a stash for ripening and used the remainder for a delicious pot of curry mango. Curry mango may be eaten by itself, although its mostly served alongside chicken, fish, or beef with rice.
- 5 mangoes (half-ripe)
- 5 leaves of cilantro (chadon beni)
- 1 hot pepper (habanero, chili, etc.)
- 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
- 3 tbsp curry
- 2 tbsp water (for curry)
- 1 tsp saffron powder
- 1 tsp cumin (geera powder)
- 2 tbsp salt
- 2 tbsp oil
- sugar (to taste)
- black pepper (to taste)
Directions:
1.Cut up the mango and remove the inner lining that holds the seed and the seed itself.
2. Add salt and boil the mangoes.
3. Drain and set aside.
4. Mix the curry, saffron, cumin, black pepper, and water together.
5. Saute the garlic and hot pepper in a pot.
6. Add sugar to the mangoes that have been set aside.
7. Add mangoes to the sauteed pot of garlic and hot pepper.
8. Then pour curry mix into pot distributing evenly.
9. Add a little water and sprinkle the cilantro in.
10. Cook for about 5 -7 minutes to allow the curry to infiltrate and the water to evaporate. The mango should have a pasty consistency when cool. Season to taste and serve.
I sometimes add more pepper or sugar according to how sweet or sour the mangoes are. The dish should be semi-sweet with a spicy taste.
– @JozBiz
CaribBar: Island Bushwacker Cocktail
Photo: RumShopRyan.com
Ingredients:
- ½ oz Cruzan Dark Rum
- ½ oz of Frangelico
- ½ oz Amaretto
- ½ oz Crème de Cocoa
- ½ oz Kahlua
- ½ oz Bailey’s Irish Crème
- Ice
- Whipped cream
- Grated nutmeg
Directions:
Blend all ingredients with ice cubes until smooth and creamy. Top with whipped cream and grated nutmeg. Serve immediately.
Source: StCroix-Beaches.com
CaribCook: Flanboyant Eats with Bren – A Healthy Pollo Asado
Bren Herrera
POLLO ASADO
Ingredients:
◦ 3 whole chicken breasts
◦ 1/2 large sliced red or Spanish onion
◦ 4 smashed garlic cloves
◦ 1/2 cup mojo criollo *
◦ 1tbsp oregano
◦ 2 tsp cumin
◦ 2 tsp salt
◦ 1/4 lemon wedge
◦ 3/4 cup vegetable oil
Preparation:
In large pot, season chicken with garlic and onion, salt, oregano, cumin. Pinch chicken with fork to allow seasoning to sit well. Add 1/4 cup of mojo to chicken, stir and let marinate for one hour to 90 minutes.
In same pot, lightly fry chicken breast in vegetable oil until both sides have browned, for 6-7 minutes. Add remainder of mojo and squeeze lemon wedge. Bring heat down to medium-low, cover and let cook for another 30 minutes. If you find your chicken too dry, you can add 1/2 cup of dry white cooking wine. Steam from pot will create the excess mojo sauce.
*Mojo is a liquid seasoning made using citrus fruits, dried seasoning like cumin, oregano, basil, and garlic. It is commonly used in Latin cooking to marinate chicken, pork and beef. The mojo I used was store bought. Goya makes a really good one; pick it up in your International section of your grocery store!
For additional cooking advice from Bren Herrera, visit Flanboyanteats.com
Yvette’s Cookbook: St. Martin’s Traditional & Modern Cuisine Published
Yvette Hyman(Saltwater Collection file photo)
St. Martin, Caribbean — From Yvette’s Kitchen To Your Table – A Treasury of St. Martin’s Traditional & Contemporary Cuisine by Yvette Hyman has been released here by House of Nehesi Publishers (HNP) .
Author Yvette Hyman, with husband Felix, also founded the popular Yvette’s Restaurant in her native district of French Quarter, St. Martin.
The new hardcover book is made up of 13 chapters, including Appetizers, Soups, Poultry, Fish and Shellfish, Meat, Salads, Dumplings, Rice and Fungi, Breads, and Desserts, said Jacqueline Sample, the book’s editor.
Among the book’s 312 colorful pages, classic favorites such as souse, Johnny cake, Conch Yvette’s, lamb stew, coconut tart, guavaberry and soursop drink are just a few of the over 200 recipes à la Yvette to be found in this Treasury of St. Martin’s Traditional & Contemporary Cuisine, said Sample.
“This cookbook is an important and outstanding acknowledgement of Chef Yvette Hyman’s committed service to the culinary development of St. Martin,” said Gloria Ferris-Bell, a leading nutritionist.
The publication of From Yvette’s Kitchen is a “national and Caribbean happening for St. Martin” as well, said HNP publisher Lasana M. Sekou.
The 37-sq. mi. island of St. Martin, with over 350 restaurants from around the world, is known as the “culinary capital of the Caribbean,” according to award-winning Canadian travel writer Melanie Reffes travelintelligence .
The posthumous title has been in the making since 1989. As HNP’s projects director Sekou had approached Hyman over 20 years ago about publishing her recipes as a unique book of St. Martin’s cuisine and an aspect of cultural heritage, said Sample.
Sample served as HNP’s main editor on the manuscript since 1992 when Yvette gave the publisher her collection of recipes. Sample met with Yvette several times to discuss and test recipes before the popular chef passed away in 1999.
Between 2007 and 2009, Sample met with Yvette’s widower Chef Felix Hyman and daughter and cooking instructor Jewel Daal to discuss and detail recipes.
The book’s beautiful design by Angelo and Gina Rombley include photographs of actual dishes and drinks, both traditional and those developed by Yvette, said Sample.
CaribVue 