This recipe made 3 rum bottles worth of mauby. They were done within 24 hours! Learn more! • Mauby – An Overview • Mauby Bark: Three Things You May Not Know TRINIDAD MAUBY INGREDIENTS 12 cups water 4 pieces mauby bark (you can add a few more if desired) 1 small sprig aniseed 1 piece cinnamon 3 cups sugar (or to taste) 1 – 3 tablespoons Angostura bitters (to taste) METHOD 1. Place... 

I originally made this recipe way back in 2007 for Weekend Herb Blogging (hosted this time around by its founder Kalyn). I loved how the lemon zest really spotlighted the flavour of basil – an herb that we used to grow at home. As soon as we get another plant I will update this post again to reflect a new pic Funny what a difference new cameras and experience have made in my shots, but it’s... 

My mother first made this recipe in 2008 and it was a hit! Plantain is rarely showcased this formally on dinner tables and it really is a shame. In this case, lengths of ripe plantain are oven-baked with orange juice and zest. The result is creamy, with a slightly caramelized exterior. My personal suggestions with this recipe are to 1) make sure the plantain is adequately ripe i.e. that the skin... 

Tapenades are one of my entertaining ‘secret weapons’. Blend a few ingredients, add a drizzle of olive oil, some salt and pepper and people think you have been slaving for hours This one for Green Olive tapenade is one of my favourites. Because there are so few ingredients it becomes even more important that you make them of the highest quality that you can afford. I find that the flavour... 

Made on a rainy night, this spicy vegan peanut soup was a cinch to throw together. The flavours of peanut and ginger combine to create a spicy, sweet and silky texture and the crisp, cool crunch of the bean sprouts prevents the overall flavour profile from ever becoming cloying. This is a rather non-traditional (in this part of the world) take on comfort food. Although I used supermarket beansprouts... 

Last month I was invited to participate in the blogging collective “Kwanzaa Culinarians“. Linking writers throughout the African diaspora it includes such heavyweights as Chef Bryant Terry, as well as known foodies like Sanura of “My Life Runs On Food“, Courtney of “Coco Cooks” and Chrystal & Amir of “The Duo Dishes“. Needless to say, I took it... 

I see plenty of recipes for accra in West Indian Cookbooks but often they bear little resemblance to Trinidad Accra. My Jamaican mother tells me that what she knows as accra is a saltfish fritter, flat, fried brown. Here in Trinidad however accra is a puffy fried dough ball, made of a highly seasoned dough into which shredded saltfish has been mixed. I’ve had it at weddings, gatherings, and... 

MMMM pawpaw. Growing up it was probably near the bottom rung of my favoured fruits. It wasn’t sweet enough, the seeds wigged me out, and the texture was just too bleh. In an effort to get me interested my mother would serve it to me drizzled in honey. This attempt worked more times than not, and as I got older my palate started to enjoy and appreciate this fruit, with or without adornment. It... 

This entry is part 4 of 4 in the series Top Trini Condiments This post was originally written for a 2007 installment of “Waiter There’s Something in my…”! The theme was sauces. Originally I had thought of coming up with a pasta sauce as I haven’t made pasta in a while, however over the past week we have been flooded with mangoes (from friends and neighbours). The influx... 

. From Epicentre.com: Ginger is one of those ingredients that can be many things to many people. Not only is it used in cuisines around the world, but it also comes in a variety of forms fresh, pickled, dried, and crystallized among them . People who bake may immediately call to mind the ground ginger they use in gingerbread or the jewel-like crystallized ginger they add to holiday cookies and cakes.... 

Since 2009 I have actively incorporated more raw and vegan dishes into my regular diet and have found the benefits to be multifold. For one my body hasn’t succumbed to flus the way it regularly did in the past and I have found that many autoimmune responses that I had in the past to stress have become a lot more manageable. With many of my favourite fruits and vegetables currently back in season,... 

This post was originally published on October 13, 2006. It has been updated twice since then. Bake is a popular breakfast bread here in Trinidad. Hearty by nature, its heavy crumb keeps you feeling satisfied for hours. Especially when taken with a savory topping. My version here, raises the fiber content through a healthy dose of wholewheat flour. Be sure to pay attention to the resting time and... 

Salads in Trinidad are traditionally a disheartening affair that leaves you wondering why the cook/establishment even bothered. Two wilted lettuce leaves, a force-ripe watery slice of tomato, and some slivers of cucumber served either unadorned, or swimming in some vague mystery oil with specks of pepper flecked throughout. All that’s missing is a headstone for your plate. Most people down it... 

This Basil Lemonade recipe was originally made for Stephanie’s 43rd edition of Blog Party! One of the things that I love about adding basil to beverages is the muted herbal flavour that it imparts. This lemonade is no exception. It softens the acidity of the lemon/lime juice, and also mellows out the overt sweetness. Be sure to blend the basil leaves and lime juice completely before adding... 

This salad is a nostalgic favourite of mine. It was the only form of vegetables that my Aunt provided on a regular basis when I (and many of her godchildren) would spend part of the school holidays by her. From young I enjoyed the contrast in textures between the smooth creamy mayonnaise, and crunchy carrots… and the occasional burst of sweetness that the raisins provided? Heaven! So imagine... 

I have a confession to make. I have grown up utterly hating ‘provisions’. You know what I’m talking about. Yams, eddoes, dasheen… I always had a fondness for cassava so that was granted a pardon, but the others? I wanted nothing to do with them. The antipathy began from childhood and stretched without interruption into my adult years. Memories of fist sized cubes of starch... 

As a Caribbean girl I am always amazed by how little we know about our neighbours, and how little they know about us in turn. Surprisingly overarching stereotypes and negative assumptions continue to exist in an age where increased travel and interaction should have broadened understanding. This is bad enough when we share a common language, but when we don’t, the divide becomes even wider. Earlier... 

This entry is part 4 of 4 in the series Your Wedding, Your Way Sandwiches and soup go together so well that I had to mention them in this series. If you are having an evening wedding, sandwiches can form part of your appetizer course (cut as quarters). However, for a breakfast or lunch reception they can share the stage with your soup course, forming a light entrée all on their own (cut as halves).... 

This colorful and aromatic form of fried rice makes an exciting alternative to plain rice or Asian fried rices. The addition of ras-al-hanout makes it highly aromatic, and caramelized onion slices add just the right hint of sweetness. There’s nothing like having access to fresh home-grown ingredients. Case in point, our bayleaf tree (see left). Bayleaf is one of those flavours that I find hard... 

This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series Top Trini Condiments No Trini condiment series would be complete without a recipe for garlic sauce. Garlic sauce is one of those local favourites that can be found everywhere from beachside stands, to popular ‘grill’ joints as well as streetside food vendors. Indeed many street vendors have distinguished themselves solely on having ‘ah bess...