Category: Spices

Dessert For One or Many … Baked Banana’s and Brown Sugar

Have you ever craved just a quick, but rich homemade dessert. Or are stumped with company coming and really don’t want to labour in the kitchen? Do you love Banana’s , brown sugar, and butter? Then this one is for you! I came home from work wanting a dessert. But it was just me and I didn’t need lots of cakes , pie, or cookies laying around. My new thing is googling key ingredient terms. I entered banana and brown sugar and saw this. I tweaked it and reduce to one serving. I also used my Mexican Piloncillo instead of regular brown sugar. I just shaved it with knife. Click on the recipe for 4( mine used more sugar and butter per serving). But essentially preheat your oven to 375. Take a ceramic tart dish. Melt 1- 2 tablespoons of butter. Pour some butter on bottom of dish. Arrange length wise cut banana pieces. Cover with 1 whole brown shredded Piloncillo. Pour remaining butter on.Sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake for 15 minutes until the sugar is bubbling.

I loved this. It would be even better with a dollop of slightly sweet whip cream or ice cream.

Pumpkin and Coconut ‘Samosas’…WTSIM #20


I’m going to use the term Samosa here figuratively. But Samosas are what inspired me to make this for my first ever entry into Waiter There Is Something In My… The theme is Gourds.

Let me give you a little background into my entering…

Jeanne over at Cook Sister, is this months host and event founder, and I have had the immense pleasure of meeting both here and her husband while they are in Chicago. Certain Someone and I invited them over for the famous Harold’s fried Chicken. I was quite impressed as they finished of their entire orders!Lets just say she’s eating her way through Chicago.Later in the week I met up with her for a quick lunch at Macy’s( formerly the historic Marshall Fields) for a quick lunch at Rick Bayless’ Frontera Express. While ordering we noticed Marcus Samuelsson has a upscale burger stand next to Frontera. It seems every foreigner I mention Marcus to is not really that familiar. He seems to be more famous here! Go figure. Anyway while chomping and talking away , guess who walks by! Marcus. I could have swooned. Jeanne saw him go behind the counter so it was him for sure.What a treat. I really enjoyed meeting Jeanne and was amazed at what we had in common. She is a treasure. Excuse the photo but I look like porker. It was the Harold’s.
So with Certain Someone gone this week, and a little unexpected lull from a hectic work week, I concocted this savory , somewhat spicy pumpkin “samosa”. I know samosas are traditionally triangular and fried , but I decided to use convenient puff pastry. Rather than potatoes, I used pumpkin as my gourd cooked down with curry, coconut milk, red lentils, and spinach.After I came up with the idea, I did a quick google search and saw some recipes along the same idea. Also I remember seeing this combo and found it intriguing.The filling I made was abundant and I have a lot leftover as only a few teaspoons are needed. I imagine I can eat it up with rice as leftovers.Or serve alongside some chicken later on. It will not go to waste. So without much ado…

Pumpkin and Coconut Samosas

1 sheet frozen puff pastry makes 6 or 2 sheets makes 12
4 cups peeled /cubed pumpkin or 1/2 a small one
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon mustard seed
1 teaspoon curry( add more if that is your taste)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 whole chopped onion
Sea salt * I have a special French sea salt blend with curry , mint, cumin, and chilies added so I adjusted based on this.
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup red lentils
1 cup fresh spinach
1 can coconut milk

Take frozen puff pastry out to thaw. While thawing cook your filling .In a large skillet heat vegetable oil.On medium heat, add mustard seeds and cook until they pop. Add onion and brown stirring occasionally. Add pumpkin, and all dry spices except sugar. Cook until pumpkin and onion start to get tender and slightly caramelize. Stir occasionally. Add coconut milk and sugar. Turn down heat and let mixture simmer. Toss in spinach after 10 minutes. The pumpkin should be tender. Cook until spinach wilts.Take a immersion blender and slightly break up the pumpkin to a mashed consistency leaving some chunks and spinach leaves intact. Throw in the lentils and let simmer another 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Unroll the puff pastry and cut 1 sheet into 6 even squares. Fill each square with a bit of filling and seal edges. Bake for 10 -15 minutes or until golden.

Mauby Kick!!!!

Not much cooking this week. However my prizes I have won are starting to roll in and Ive been busy exploring. Bren
sent me my prize based on some questions I answered on Trinidad Tobago. I got some Mauby,Geera,curry, and Amchar Masala.Bren has a terrific recipe on her blog featuring curried plantains in coconut milk. I want to try that sometime soon.Shes awesome and spicy like the spices she sent! In the meanwhile I was curious about Mauby. The pack was a spice pack of Mauby bark, anise seeds, cinnamon, etc. I researched on the web and saw varying recipes. I wanted something more than just boil with water , add sugar. So I emailed Cynthia, the Queen Bee of Caribbean cooking and asked for her recipe.Its a family recipe that goes way back. I didn’t have the whole nutmeg but followed her recipe in principle and theory in regards to brewing and fermenting. I had my first taste this morning as its a 48 hour process. On first sip its sweet, almost tea like.Then a slightly bitter after taste. It grows on you and you find yourself sipping more. Very refreshing. The jury is out on its health benefits. Some say it lowers high blood pressure .And some wild theories are that causes impotence!A study showed blood pressure reduced if mixed with coconut water.Each island had there own version and the recipe gets tweaked to ones preference.Some people even add vanilla or mix with alcohol.The sugar content can be adjusted to your tastes. All I know is I like it and want to get some more Mauby bark and play.It is an acquired taste and I urge you to try it if you ever have an opportunity!

I also cooled off with the coffee I won from Marye recently. If you haven’t had a chance to check out her numerous blogs on , do so. She’s an amazing woman who can do just about anything in my opinion and never lets much shake her faith. We can all learn from someone like that. My first brew was a chilled ice coffee drink with a splash of Chambord. Delish!So you see not a lot of cooking this week, just brewing and sipping!

And on a final note, Mary from Shazam In The Kitchen sent me this lovely prize. She says I’m glamorous and exciting. If she only knew things aren’t always how they seem but it is an interesting and blessed life! I feel you are all creative and fascinating or else I wouldn’t spend much of my down time following you. So consider this passed on to all of you.

Toasted Pecan Chipolte Pesto….A Taste of the Mediterranean Event

OK, so this is not so Mediterranean. Antonio is hosting a monthly event devoted to all things of a Mediterranean influence. And he has some great prizes. This months theme was to create a Pesto. The only rules were that it have ground nuts,oil, and cheese. Now this is affordable event for me. With the change of seasons a lot of Bloggers are taking breaks or focusing on lighter foods. If you have noticed I have been a canning binge. I can still cook , but don’t have to eat it all at once. Along this line,condiments fascinate me. So with my pantry ingredients I created this powerful, fragrant pesto that’s burst with flavor!I can also store it the fridge for a few weeks, but by that time it will be gone.I served my pesto up with a simple pan fried chicken breast light;y seasoned, as the pesto would would be the focus. Boy was it good.I’m not a huge nut fan, but I have come to love pecans used in crusts for savory dishes.When you examine the benefits of this nut you can see why Glamah is in love. Vitamin E and anti oxidants! I could double this as facial mask(you can tell I have been in the Cosmetics industry too long).And the big fat cloves of garlic used are known as a antibiotic . So here it is quick and simple.

Toasted Pecan Chipolte Pesto

 

3 oz pecans halves( half a 6 oz bag)
3 large cloves of garlic
1 dried chipolte pepper
4 tablespoons Reggiano cheese
Sea Salt
Extra Virgin Olive Oil ( about 1/4-1/2 cup depending on texture)

 

Lightly toast your pecans in a dry saucepan. Because of the high oil content , toss frequently and do not burn.In a spice grinder , grind the chipolte pepper.Add pecans and pulse . Do not turn to a butter. Add Chipoltes and pecan mixture to your blender of food processor. Add cheese and salt to taste. Pour in olive oil gradually and blend, occasionally scrapping down sides, until all is incorporated.Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks.
A few side notes…

 

Marie over at Proud Italian Cook asked me for my watermelon martini recipe. I made a lot of these last summer for a family party. Due to large size of guests it was the perfect drink as I could pre make my ‘watermelon juice’. The trick is to strain it so your shaker doesn’t get all clogged up. I also used frozen bits to keep it cold. As I have a freezer bag of watermelon this week( also makes great smoothies people!) I came up with this for Marie.This is based for 1 drink.
2 parts frozen or non frozen watermelon
1 part citrus flavored vodka
1 part pomegranate juice( optional or lemon juice if you use regular vodka)
1 part triple sec or Cointreau.
Blend all the ingredients in a blender. Pour in Shaker to strain as you pour into chilled martini glasses.
And last but not least…

Swati of Sugar Craft India gave me this award. I admit I’m horrible with the award and meme thing. I know I have let some go unanswered ,but I truly appreciated it. I’m more of a voyeur than doer. If you haven’t seen Swati’s blog check her out. Shes amazing and I wish Certain Someone would suggest we fly to India to visit this amazing woman so I can take some classes from the Sugar Craft Master!Please honey? Anyway Swati says I make her day and I just want all of you to know you make Mine!So consider this award passed on to all of you fun, bright , creative people.

Royal Foodie Joust…Mango Ketchup/Catsup

So little time ,so many events, and have to watch all that calorie consumption.When Michelle at Thursday Night Smack Down won last months Joust and got to pick the ingredients, she chose Mango,Cardamom, and Brown Sugar. She said.. “i want to see everyone’s mad pastry skillz.”She then relented and stressed culinary skills. Most people naturally think of sweets. Condiments I’m sure were a thought as well. As much as I love a mango salsa, I was going to turn it up a notch. Michele brings out my competitive spirit as is a joy to read!Always leaves me with a grin.The choice for me was a Mango Tarte Tatin or this, Ketchup. I don’t need a lot of left over pastry laying around, but Ketchup is the worlds favorite condiment.Who knew all this about a sauce. I decided to put a Asian spin on this.I hope you like it spicy hot, , tangy and sweet!

 

Coco’s Mango Ketchup
4 mango’s
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
1/2 tablespoon ground ginger
2 -3 pieces of Star Anise
2-3 dried Thai Chili Peppers
3 cloves
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white vinegar
2 tablespoons curry
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon garlic minced

 

Equipment needed: Blender, spice/coffee grinder
Remove flesh from Mango’s. I used a melon baller to scoop out flesh once mangoes were cut in half.Put in Blender.Place Star Anise, Cloves, Cardamom,Thai Chili Peppers,Ginger, curry and salt in grinder. Grind until a fine powder. Add to Blender. Add Brown Sugar, Vinegar, salt, and garlic. Blend until pureed. Add to sauce pan and bring to boil. Cover pan immediately.( Mixture is thick and will start to bubble). Simmer on lowered heat for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Mixture may caramelize on the bottom. Take off heat and add back to a clean blender. Mix once more to puree. Pour in containers and bottle. To last longer you can take additional canning measures to preserve, otherwise refrigerate and try to consume within the week or so. Its enough to fill a bottle.

 

Imagine what you can add this to! Grilled Chicken, turkey,sandwiches, meatballs, shrimp, fish, burgers,veggie burger, turkey burgers,fish sticks,onion rings,etc…………
So bring your mad skillz to the event . Jen’s away getting married so Ben’s the Crown Prince this month.