Virgin Islands Johnny Cake/Fried Johnny Cakes

Virgin Islands is a group of islands which is situated in northern part of Lesser Antilles and form the border between the Caribbean sea and Altantic Ocean. Virgin islands falls under three different politicial jurisdictions: British Virgin islands, United States Virgin Islands and Spain or Puerto Rican Virgin islands. Today am taking you all virtually to St.Croix, which is an island and a district of United States Virgin islands and this island is quite popular for its Fried Johnny cakes. Johnny cakes are a must in every local Crucian restaurants and these cakes is a flatbread which are quite sweet, filling and just prefect to enjoy simply without any filling or spreads. These cakes tastes extremely delicious when they are served warm with a slice of cheese and salt fish in the middle. Paired with fried fish, chicken or any other local island delicacies, one can have a satifying meal. Johnny cake which is made in St Croix is an unleavened fried bread prepared with flour,baking powder,sugar and butter. Though Johnny cakes of St. Croix are fried ones, some people also bake them. You can also subsitute the cornmeal instead of flour.

Trinidad Aloo Pie/Trini Potato Pie

When i was searching something new to cook from Caribbean cuisine, i landed to this blog and i got hooked to this fantastic potato pie. Though Doubles, an another Trini dish prepared with spiced chickpeas and flatbread as sandwiches are well known as street foods in Trinidad, these potato pies are also sold as another popular street food. Sold as street snack food, these potato pie have their own place in street vendors cart. Stuffed with boiled potatoes flavored with culantro leaves, cumin, chopped onions, these aloo pie are ready to munch with your favourite drink. One can finish even their lunch or dinner with two aloo pie, yes they are quite filling and delicious as well. In most of the restaurants in Trinidad, this aloo pie is filled with spiced chickpeas as per your request or else served along with mango or tamarind chutney.

Le Bokit/Guadeloupean Fried Bread Sandwich/Bokit

Wikipedia says that 'Bokit is a Guadeloupean sandwich fried in a saucepan with hot sunflower oil'. It is essentially composed of flour, water, salt and bicarbonate or yeast.This typical Guadeloupean food started to develop in the mid-19th century after the abolition of slavery. At this time, the poorest workers could not even buy some of the basic products such as bread. As they were good observers, they had the idea to adapt and produce a bread by themselves, without yeast at this time, and cooked in a saucepan with hot oil that they used to call "kettle bread" because of the vapor going out of it. Bokit was inspired by the "johnny cake" which is a kind of fried bread that the New England colonies may have borrowed from the Indians. Over the exchanges between the Caribbean colonies during the 18th century, this fried bread became the djoncake in Dominica and Barbados. People on French island heard djonkit or dannkit, it has been given the final name of "Bokit" in Guadeloupe, and has become a typical Guadeloupean speciality.

Aruban Pan Bati

Aruba is one of the Lesser Antilles islands located in the Southern Caribbean Sea. The island is located miles off the coast of Venezuela and on clear days it is possible to see Venezuela from the south-eastern side of the island.The Lesser Antilles are several islands extending in an arc from Puerto Rico to the north-eastern coast of South America. Some of the islands that are part of the Lesser Antilles are the Virgin Islands, Saint Martin, Guadeloupe, Grenada, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Curacao and Bonaire. You may wonder why am talking about this Antilles islands, yes we are going to surf through Caribbean cuisine. Am running this week's blogging marathon with this interesting theme. Today am taking you all virtually to Aruba with this Pan Bati.

Jamaican Cornmeal Porridge

Jamaican cornmeal porridge is such a delightful and healthy porridge prepared with yellow cornemal, sweetened condensed milk,vanilla essence spiced with cinnamon powder and nutmeg powder..This is the most common porridge in Jamaica and the old jamaican people call this porridge as pop or cog..It seems Jamaican people believes that this porridge is known as a sort of cleanser because the cornmeal is supposed to be rough enough to mildly pass through the digestive system..Dunno whether its true, anyhow this cornmeal porridge tastes fantastic when they are served warm and my DH relished each and every spoon of this delicious creamy cornmeal porridge..

1/4cup Yellow cornmeal
1+1/2cup Water
1/4tsp Salt
1/2cup Sweetened condensed milk
1/4tsp Nutmeg powder
1/4tsp Cinnamon powder
1tsp Vanilla extract

Mix the cornmeal with half a cup of water, meanwhile bring a cup of water to boil, stir the already prepared cornmeal mixture and salt, cook everything until the cornmeal gets well cooked..Add the condensed milk, vanilla essence, give a stir..

Serve warm topped with cinnamon and nutmeg powder!! enjoy!!

Trinidad Sada Roti

Most popular breakfast among Trinidad people is this sada roti, its a plain roti made with white flour and baking powder, coz of its simplicity this roti is made almost everyday for breakfast and serve with Tomato Choka or with eggplant choka..Its a delicious, soft and easy roti prepared with simple ingredients and its one of the most commonly consumed roti in Trinidad and Tobago,where there are shops selling with different curry filling with curried beef, shrimp, chicken or goat also non meat filling with mixed vegetables or potatoes, this roti is so versatile as they can be very well suits for breakfast,lunch or for dinner..I was quite happy trying out this sada roti for our dinner with my tomato choka, both together tastes marvellous..While searching through google, there were many various ingredients are used to make out these sada rotis, but traditionally these rotis are prepared with plain white flour and baking powder with salt and water, while some goes for wheat flour and cornmeal..finally i prepared this soft sada roti by combining wheat flour and plain flour..We enjoyed having this Trinidad's sada roti and we loved it..

3cups All purpose flour
1cup Wheat flour
4tsp Baking powder
Salt
Water
1tsp Oil

Mix together the flours ,salt with baking powder well, knead the flour mix with water as soft and smooth dough..pour the oil in your palms and rub the dough, keep aside for 30minutes closed with wet cloth, divide into 4equal balls and let them sit again for 30minutes...using a rolling pin, roll each balls into a thick disc, heat a tawa in medium flame, put the roti over the hot tawa and cook on both sides until they turns brown..also toast the edges of the roti until they get cooked..

Serve with Tomato Choka!!

Caribbean Tomato Choka

Chokas are simple rustic preparations of vegetables, used as a side dish or filling for breakfast, often served with flatbread or sada roti, prepared in hot pan just like our parathas...These dishes originated with the Indian immigrants in Trinidad and Guyana and among the Trinis its now quite a delicacy, can be prepared very easily though they are not difficult recipes. All these dishes can be refrigerated and reheated very well. Chokas can be very much prepared with eggplants, tomatoes or either with peppers..I tried out the easy and quick chokhas with tomatoes which is grilled and spiced with pounded garlic and hotpeppers tossed with olive oil and serve with finely chopped onions and with some fresh herbs..

3nos Tomatoes
2nos Garlic cloves
1no Hot peppers (i used thai red peppers)
1tbsp Olive oil
1tsp Basil leaves (chopped)
Salt
1/4no Onion (chopped finely)

Grill the tomatoes for 20minutes in overn turn them twice in between...peel the tomatoes and smash them, meanwhile pound the garlic and pepper as fine paste, add this paste to the mashed tomato, followed by chopped onions,olive oil, chopped basil leaves,salt and mix everything well..

Serve with any flat bread or sada roti (stay tuned will be posting soon)..

Caribbean Caramelised Bananas

Caribbean Cuisine, a completely new for me..never tried anything until few months back...Once Meeta announced Monthly Mingle - Caribbean Cooking i went on through many sites regarding this kinda amazing cuisine..finally i got really confused wat to prepare, coz of many delicious dishes i have came acrossed...initially i want to prepared completely Caribbean lunch, but once i came across this Caribbean caramelised bananas in a french cookbook, i got hooked to these yummy dessert which is really very easy also very tasty..its really a divine as they r served with ice creams...we enjoyed every spoon of this delicious dessert.. this dessert hardly needs 15 minutes to prepare..

4nos Bananas
2tbsp Butter
1/2tsp Cinnamon powder
1tsp Lemon juice
1/2cup Packed brown sugar

Cut the bananas as two lengthwise...in a bowl add butter, cinnamon powder, lemon juice, brown sugar n mix everything well...Preheat the oven for 650F..brush the bananas with this butter mixture..Bake the bananas for 15 minutes...

Serve this caramelised bananas with vanilla icecream!!