Sorrel Punch for the Holy Days

Our sorrel is a type of flowering Hibiscus. You may know it as the popular Red Zinger tea.

Pick the flower before it opens, remove the petals from the round seed pod...

Steep in hot water overnight, strain, sweeten add ice & enjoy!

ZLF's Cocoa-Coconut-Cassava Cakes with Guava Jam

Cocoa-Coconut-Cassava Cakes with Guava Jam

Vegan, Raw (if dehydrated, not baked or fried)
Lactose & Gluten-Free


Makes 6-8 cakes

1 c Cocoa Stick, grated or 100% Cocoa Powder
2 c Coconut, freshly grated (or 1.5 c dried unsweetened Coconut flakes, re-hydrated in 1 c water or Coconut Milk)
2 c Cassava Farine (Manioc Flour)
1 c Brown Sugar (Turbinado) or sweetener of your choice... if liquid then add more Casava Farine (Manioc Flour)
3 c Coconut Milk (fresh made)

Put all ingredients in a bash (that's a calabash or glass, ceramic, clay bowl)
Mix all ingredients into a dense uniform mass with a clean hand (mixture will stick to fingers)
Add more Cassava Farine (Manioc Flour) if mixture feels too "wet"
Form mixture into ball (lick your fingers & wash your hands, of course!)

Cover & let set about 15 min
OR until Cassava Farine has absorbed most of
the moisture (& oil) of the freshly grated coconut

Pinch off a "golf ball" size piece
Roll into ball
Flatten in palm of hand to the thickness you desire (ie: thick for a dense chewy texture or thin for a dry cracker-like texture)
Place on parchment paper on cookie sheet or solar/electric dehydrator screen
OR bake at 350 F 20 mins until dry
OR shallow fry in 1/4 c coconut oil until crispy

Bake in oven 350 F until crispy outside (or to your desired degree of "done-ness")
OR place in solar/electric dehydrator

Guava Jam (called "Guava Cheese" in the islands)

Rich in Vitamin C, especially the skins

1 kg ripe (soft) Guavas
Brown Sugar
(the amount of Brown Sugar is equal to the amount of Guava pulp
minus 1 cup ie: 4 c Brown Sugar for 5 cups Guava pulp)

Cut Guavas into quarters and reserve seeds
Blend Guava quarters to a smooth pulp

Put reserved seeds in sieve
Place sieve over a bowl

Add small amount of water
Rub & push seeds into seive to extract pulp

Measure quantity of pulp

Measure Brown Sugar

Put Guava pulp & Brown Sugar in heavy-bottom pan

Simmer over medium fire
Stir frequently until Guava Cheese pulls away from side of pan

Turn Guava Cheese out into container (glass or ceramic)

Let cool (mixture will continue to solidify)

Enjoy

Carib Pizza

Welcome to...

... located on the beach in Anse L'Ivrogne (pronounced Sevoige in Kweyol)

Our "restaurant" on the beach...

... and Roky da beach dawg, pwesen!

Guests arrived this morning to hike the Gros Piton from the beach trailhead
and want to have a meal when they return in about 4 hrs.

Carib Pizza

MIX equal parts 2 c Whole Wheat Flour, 2 c White Wheat Flour & 2 c Casava Farine

(or oats or cornmeal or a combination)

ADD 1 spoonful of Brown Sugar

ADD 1 spoonful of Yeast (2 pkgs)

ADD ½ spoonful Salt

Mix in enough water (3 c or more)

KNEAD in more flour to make a moist dough

(cassava (oats or cornmeal) will absorb the moisture)

LET RISE 1 hr

PUNCH DOWN

DIVIDE in 4 parts

KNEAD in more flour if too sticky

SHAPE into rounds as thick or thin as you like

LET RISE ½ hr

We use a local-sourced & hand-made clay dish & cover

(works like a “pizza oven”) 

over a hot fire to first “bake” the pizza crust

PRE-HEAT clay dish

LAY pizza rounds on banana leaf

(to keep the crust from sticking & burning)

TURN pizza rounds frequently to bake through

Pizza Crust is done when tapped & sounds hollow

Assorted toppings harvested from our organic Zion Lion Farm

- Onions, Scallions, Bell Peppers, Scotch Bonnet Seasoning Peppers (hot),

Tropical Basil, Ti’Tym -

AND Tomatoes sliced thin

Lightly saute - in two spoonfuls of Coconut Oil -

the Onions, Scallions, Bell Peppers, Scotch Bonnet Seasoning Peppers (hot), Tropical Basil, Ti’Tym

First layer thinly sliced tomatoes

then the lightly sauteed vegetables

then your choice of cheese, sliced thin

Sprinkle a handful of chopped herbs

on top of pizza crust

Place pizza on fresh Banana Leaf in clay dish

Cover and Bake until cheese melts...

... slice & enjoy...

... Life is Good!

Welcome to our "Caribbean Cooking Workshop" 

located on the beach in Anse l'Ivrogne (pronounced Sevoigne in Kweyol).

Follow along as we make some typically delicious Looshan meals

over a home-made coal fire in our open-air kitchen.

Here are two Carib Coal Pots & a Burri (turned over).

These strong symbols of our Traditions & Culture

have been used by our people from time and still today!

Food cooked over live coals & in hand-made clay pots

from Mother Nature tastes so good!

Today we will prepare

Coconut Tofu Curry with Fried Green Plantains

First, wash our hands with fresh spring water

carried from the Rainforest Mineral Springs.

Here are some of the ingredients cleaned & ready to dice...

Coconut, Pumpkin (in the calabash), Green Beans, Carrot, Scallions, 

Ti'Tym (big fuzzy leaves taste like fresh Oregano) AND...

... Green Plantains or Cooking Bananas.

Next we will make coconut milk.

Hold the coconut up to your ear & shake it.

If you hear water sloshing around inside then you have a fresh coconut. 

Hold the coconut firmly in your hand over a calabash (or bowl) to catch the water.

Tap hard around the coconut's "equator" with

the dull side of an old cutlass (machete or a heavy knife).

All the while turning the coconut around in your hand.

The coconut will split into two pieces and the water will fall out.

Taste the water or a piece of the coconut meat.

It should taste sweet, not sour (fermented).

To grate the coconut we use an old cutlass

whose sharp tip has been serrated with a hacksaw.

Sit on the cutlass, as a counter-weight, to keep it from moving around.

Hold the half coconut with both hands and scrape the coconut meat

against the serrated edge in a circular motion.

 Hold the half coconut with both hands and scrape the coconut meat

against the serrated edge in a circular motion.

You can, also, carefully wedge the tip of a sharp knife

between the shell & coconut meat and pop out large chunks.

Put the pieces of coconut in a food processor & grate.

Cover the grated coconut meat with fresh spring water.

Use less water for a "creamier" coconut milk. 

Squeeze handfuls of coconut meat to extract the coconut oil.

The more you squeeze the "tastier" the coconut milk.

Let the coconut milk sit while preparing the Fried Green Plantains.

Pick several Green Plantains or Cooking Bananas.

Notice that both ends of a Plaintain are long & pointed.

Score the plantain lengthwise with the tip of a sharp knife.

Tap hard along the score with the knife handle. This breaks the skin's "vacuum".

Cut off the end of the plantain.

Wedge your thumb under the skin and, following the score to the end, peel the skin off.

You may, or may not, have to re-score on another side to completely peel the plantain. 

Slice the plantain lengthwise or cut across for round pieces.

Fry plantains until crispy golden.

Try not to eat too many.

Next, evenly slice the bar of tofu.

Chop two garlic cloves.

Sprinkle the chopped garlic cloves over the sliced tofu.

Sprinkle three or four pinches of Curry Powder and one or two pinches of Sea Salt over the tofu slices.

Use the same hot oil from the Fried Green Plantains...

... to fry the tofu slices a crispy golden brown.

Set aside.

Next, dice half a brown onion and four garlic cloves.

Shallow fry the onion & garlic in about 1/4 c coconut oil.

Until golden brown.

Add the vegetables to the onion & garlic.

Keep stirring the vegetables around the pan.

Take a strainer and the grated coconut & milk.

Strain the milk over the pot of vegetables.

Pressing the coconut meat against the strainer...

... to get every delicious drop.

Arrange the tofu slices on top of the vegetables in the pot.

Cover and let simmer about 15 minutes.

Now is a good time...

... to relax and enjoy...

... a glass or two of fresh spring water.

Before serving yourself...

... a bash full of goodness!

Give Thanks!