Salt Fish, Breadfruit, and Sorrel.

Frying a hot pan of salt fish.

Salt fish and breadfruit is a local dish that’s terrific for the taste buds. Add some tangy hot sauce and a cold glass of sorrel tea and you have a winning combination.

Breadfruit, which is native to the western Pacific islands and the Malay peninsula, is a staple food similar to potatoes. It’s comprised of 70% water, 25% carbohydrates, and has an average amount of Vitamin C.

Sorrel is enriched with Vitamins A and C and is commonly found in French cuisine.

The leafy green plant (which is related to the rhubarb) also contains calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, and potassium. Sorrel is increasingly popular among the health-conscious crowd and fairly easy to make.

Pot full of sorrel.

I must advise you that sorrel is particularly rare in the states and difficult to find in your local supermarket. Now if you live in a place like Seattle, I’m sure you’ll be just fine obtaining a bag of sorrel from the specialty food stores religiously stocked with high-priced organic offerings.

Try Whole Foods Market.

I pulled this classic recipe from a web site strewn with spelling errors and such. The blaggards.

No worries. I did a fair amount of editing.

How to Make Sorrel Tea

Ingredients:

1 gallon of water
2 cloves
1 large fresh ginger root (optional)
8 ounces of dry sorrel
Brown sugar (to taste)

Instructions:

1. Grate the ginger using a standard grater. Do not blend or chop the fresh ginger.

2. Place the grated ginger in the pot with 1 gallon of water. Bring to a boil under medium heat.

3. Place 8 ounces of dried sorrel into the boiling water for approximately 30 seconds.

4. Immediately remove and let the contents cool for approximately 6 hours or until the water returns to room temperature. This allows the sorrel to draw.

Note: You have the option of letting the sorrel sit in the water overnight. The longer the sorrel is allowed to draw, the stronger it becomes.

5. Strain the contents using a fine strainer. This process removes sorrel particles. Sweeten to taste with brown sugar and chill before serving.

This recipe yields about 6 to 8 servings.

(Some individuals opt not to use ginger in their sorrel and others have the option of adding a dash of rum before chilling.)

I say add the rum! 😀

Plenty good plate.

Papaya Tree.

About a year ago, my cousin Janice planted a young papaya tree out in the front. Here’s a picture of that same tree bearing fruit. Hope you like this Ja!

Janice Doncillo's papaya tree.

Taking Off to the Market.

I have plans to head into town by myself today. Guess you could call it shopping, but not necessarily buying stuff that I need. I think I may have semi-consciously given away my Armani sunglasses to Rizaldy on the return from Bequia.

[Background info: Rizaldy is a friend of Ate Jhoanape and works at the bakery.]

Bummer. I really liked those glasses too. Time for new ones.

The Kingstown Cemetery.

Yesterday, I walked past this cemetery.

It felt more historical than haunting. Some of the graves are over a hundred years old.

I helped JirahMae with her spelling words for 15 minutes; hope she does well on her test today. She attends a private Catholic school in Kingstown. I’ll make sure to take a picture of the building when I head down and prowl the streets.

Plans, plans, plans.

Wow, watching the news about the U.S. economy is a total downer. Switching off the tube and time to eat!

Making Atis.

Breakfast in October.

This tasted great.

There’s always plenty of fruit and fried eggs in the morning. I like the “steak-striped” toast and extra crispy bacon, cucumber sandwiches.

Watermelon everyday. Can’t beat that.

Spent most of the day trying to upload videos and pictures. I’m still far behind. Hope to catch up today. Oh yeah…

…this looked fun.

The Goods.

 

A delightful assortment of goodies.

From one island to another. Filipino baked goodies in the Grenadines. If you’re nearby or simply want to inquire about the products here at the bakery, feel free to contact the owners, Randy and Jhoanape Kennedy through the following methods.

Phone: 1-784-457-2377

Email: vincentbakery@gmail.com

Fax: 1-784-457-9566

You can also contact Randy’s Super Market as well. I’ll have the addresses posted soon. Just remember, both locations are on the main island in Kingstown.

Phone: 1-784-456-2994

Email: randyssupermarket@yahoo.com

Fax: 1-784-457-9566

Happy Hunting!

A delightful assortment of goodies.

Rolls of German choco.

Squash bread (coated and plain).

Golden brown.

Mini-cinnamon rolls.

Sugared ensaymada.

Star pastries.

Atis cluster.

Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Vincentian Independence.

Photograph courtesy of Searchlight Newspaper.

Happy 30th Anniversary, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines! The Vincentian Prime Minister, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, spoke to the nation via television at Victoria Park promising $200 [EC] allowances for every student and millions set aside to promote nursing, education, and other incentives.

But before I make this post purely about politics, I’ll promise you this – a recipe (or two) is in order.

Funstuff, eh? Expect one in the next few days.

Baked.

Glorious.

Busier than Ever.

The bakery was insanely busy. This just confirms what has been said since I first stepped foot into the building: another oven is desperately needed.

Speaking from first hand experience, this bread is superb compared to the store-bought Wonder wannabe-brands back at home in the states. Heh, heh, the “States”. I like how that rolls off my tongue.

The bread is like butter, hot out of the oven. No joke.

A Dozen Dolphins.

Did I mention that I saw a pod of dolphins swimming in the ocean yesterday? There must have been a dozen of them tossing around. Too bad I didn’t pull out my camera in time. Reminded plenty of a Blerp discussion that I posted not too long ago about the dolphin massacre in Japan.

Now that I’ve killed your appetite…
🙂

Brunch.

Juice.

Welcome to Bequia.

Beautiful island is an understatement. We took the ferry to Bequia this morning; the trip was 45 minutes each way and so worth it. Bequia was everything you’ve seen on those sexy travel ads, commercials, and magazines tempting customers with solitary beaches, palm trees, and leisurely yacht activities.

Here’s a preview of the scenery. You can find the rest of the collection back here.

Bequia 04.

Bequia 03.

Bequia 02.

Bequia 01.