This Dame Cooks A Collection of Recipes from Alaska to the South Pacific and Caribbean

Just look at this beautiful fruit from Rincon, Puerto Rico.  The mango in the background weighs more than a pound and the avocados to the right of the mango weigh about 8 or 9 oz. The lemons and limes give you some idea of how big that mango and avocado are.  The mango isn’t quite ripe for jam or smoothies but its green enough for 6 jars of chutney.  The avocados are buttery soft, not too far from the taste of a Haas avocado, and definitely worth every bite full.  They are perfect for eating fresh in a salad or with lime right out of the shell right now but since I have so many more avocados these are going into the freezer doused with lime juice.  They will make creamy guacamole, dips and sandwich spreads for Christmas parties.   More mangoes are coming for the jam pot and freezer.  Gonna love making island mango smoothies, crumbles and cobblers this winter.

Guavas have just come into season and their bitter sweet skins will go into the jam pot along with some ripe mango. Guava skins are 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick and tasty when stewed in a light syrup.  Guava puree and strawberries with a kiss of rosemary is my next jam creation.  More about guava in a coming up post.

Be sure to drop by again for more recipes with fresh local produce from Rincon, Puerto Rico. 

Week numero uno has come and gone along with the shopping and cooking but as promised in my post Can A Single Person Eat at Home for $100 a Month? I’m going tell you what I cooked and ate during the week.

Remember, I started with a fairly well stocked pantry and freezer so I needed to buy only a few pantry replacements, namely dried beans, split peas, oil and can of salmon.   I spent a total of $66.86 this week and will only need to spend about $10.00 each week for the next 3 weeks for milk, greens and fruit.   My neighbor gave me 4 huge, ripe avocados last week, 2 of which made a superb guacamole for the Nachos Grande I served to my card club on Thursday.  That comprised my free acquisitions for the week.  Those freebies add a lot of value to your diet so if you happen upon an over-turned truck of watermelons on the highway be sure to grab one or two.

Food preferences are very individual but for the most part I’ll eat anything except rutabagas.  As far as beverages go, I drink a lot of water but I do enjoy wine and mixed cocktails when my budget allows.  It’s very hot in the tropics so I drink water, at least 2 quarts a day.  It is essential to replacing the fluids lost in perspiring. My only daily indulgence is 2 cups of cafe au lait and a glass of my homemade ginger beer on a really hot afternoon. Drinking commercial pop daily is not healthy for your budget or your body.  Save the pop for a treat.

Monday:

Breakfast – Toast (No-Knead Potato Bread) and butter; coffee with cream and sugar

Lunch – Chile (homemade with 2 links of Sweet Italian sausage and dried red beans topped with cheddar cheese);  homemade corn bread;   Homemade ginger beer

 Note:  Soak 1 lb of red beans overnight and cook  for 2 hours. Freeze 1 cup of cooked beans for rice and beans, freeze 3 cups for refried beans, make chile with the remaining beans.  Freeze leftover chile for card party on Thursday.  Freeze leftover corn bread.

Dinner – Spinach salad with tomato, onion, zucchini, black olives, vinaigrette;  Roasted chicken and sweet potato (1 thigh and drumstick)

Note:  Carve the chicken breasts into slices and shredd meat off remaining thigh and drumstick, reserve remaining carcas for chicken stock.

Snack – Chocolate Sorbet

Tuesday:

Breakfast – Coffee, cream and sugar

Mid morning snack – Mango smoothie (freeby mangoes frozen when in season, yogurt, honey, orange juice)

Lunch – Avocado and tomato sandwich with yogurt cheese

Dinner – Salmon patties with garlic aioli; spinach salad with tomato, spring onions and mango vinaigrette

Wednesday:

Breakfast – Homemade Banana Muffin with butter; coffee, cream and sugar                                                                                                                           Note:  Made 6 Texas sized muffins and froze 5.

Lunch – Chicken noodle soup; toasted cheese sandwich made with potato bread                                                                                                       Note: Homemade stock made from carcas of Monday night’s chicken, add shredded chicken from thigh and drumstick.  This made 4 servings of chicken noodle soup;  froze the leftover soup.

Dinner – Stewed tomatoes and okra with bacon over rice;  Homemade Corn bread (frozen on Monday) and butter                                                  Note: Saved the leftover rice for pork fried rice and made 1 jar of pickled okra with the remaining fresh okra not used.

Snack – Chocolate Chip cookies and coffee

Thursday:

Breakfast – Yogurt, mango and honey;  toast and butter; coffee, cream and sugar

Lunch:  Nachos Grande for Card Club;  Iced Tea with Lemongrass and honey

Dinner:  Card Club leftovers including Chile,  Avocado and Olive Dip, tortilla chips, salsa, yogurt cheese and cheddar cheese

Friday:

Breakfast – 2 Pancakes and syrup, coffee, cream and sugar

Lunch – Avocado BLT on potato bread;   Homemade ginger beer

Dinner – Tilapia with Mojo Isleño sauce, cole slaw

Cocktail – orange juice and rum

Saturday:

Breakfast – Orange juice, Banana Muffin and coffee with cream and sugar

Lunch – Chicken (2 breast slices from chicken frozen on Monday) and avocado sandwich on Potato Bread

Dinner – Pork Fried Rice  (last 2 scallopini of pork used and rice from Wednesday ) with veggies (celery, carrot, Anaheim pepper);  pot of Oolong Tea

Snack – Almond Panna Cotta

Sunday:

Breakfast – Pancakes, eggs and bacon; orange juice;  coffee, cream and sugar

Lunch – Spinach quiche

Early Dinner – Chicken and Rice with Jalapeno Casserole; Texas Pea Salad

Dessert – Almond Panna Cotta and chocolate chip cookies; coffee

Be sure to check back next week for Week #2 Menus – Cooking for One on $100/Month.  If you’re single, how much do you spend a month for food?  Go take my poll at my previous post  Can A Single Person Eat at Home for $100 a Month?  If you’d like a detailed list of the groceries purchased, please leave a comment and I’ll follow up with a post.

Okra isn’t just a Southern vegetable it’s a Caribbean staple as well.  Throughout the Caribbean okra is incorporated into many dishes with African roots.  One in particular from the West Indians of the Virgin Islands is called Fungi, cornmeal cooked in chicken stock with okra and butter.  Its very dense, more like a dumpling that’s served with fish and oxtail dishes.

This recipe was inspired by The Neeleys at Foodnetwork.  I’ve tweaked the recipe with celery and green bell pepper since both go so well with tomatoes.  By all means, add chile or red pepper flakes for a kick and herbs such as fresh oregano or dill.  Serve it as a side dish or on its own over rice.  This is simple, quick and easy cooking when you don’t want a heavy meal or don’t feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups rice
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 4 slices bacon
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped fine
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
• 1/2 pound fresh or frozen okra, sliced into half-inch rounds
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 or 2 sprigs fresh oregano or dill weed (optional)

Method:

1. Cook rice in chicken stock for 20 minutes or until done.  Use rice cooker if desired.
2. Fry bacon until crisp in a large saute pan.  Remove from skillet and crumble when cooled.
3. To the bacon drippings add onion, celery and bell peppers.  Cook over medium high heat until fragrant and softened.
4. Add tomatoes and okra, reduce heat to medium and let stew for 20 minutes.  Add herbs, salt and pepper, and half of the bacon.
5. Fluff rice with a fork.  Serve stew over rice, garnish with remaining bacon.

For a quicky dinner try this pasta casserole with Italian sausage, zucchini and yellow summer squash, roasted red peppers and cream of celery soup.  Sprinkle some grated parmesan on the top and bake until the cheese has melted.

This recipe is so versatile…with a few substitutions you can easily make it your own.   Serve with a salad, crusty bread and a glass of wine.

Ingredients:

• Pasta for 4 servings, elbow, bow-ties or your favorite, reserve 1/4 cup pasta water
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1/2 lb. Italian sausage, spicy or mild, casings removed
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 1 cup zucchini, chopped
• 1 cup summer squash, chopped
• 1/2 roasted red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 sprig oregano
• 1 can cream of celery soup diluted with 1/4 cup of pasta water
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Method:

1. Cook pasta in salted water according to package instructions or at least 7 minutes depending upon type of pasta.
2. In a large skillet, crumble sausage and cook over medium high heat for 3 minutes.
3. Add onions, salt and pepper and cook until onions are transparent and fragrant about 8 minutes.
4. Add zucchini and summer squash, cook for another 5 minutes.
5. Add roasted red pepper, pepper flakes and oregano, stir.
6. Combine condensed soup with pasta water and stir into skillet.
7. Drain pasta and add to skillet.  Stir to combine all ingredients.  Pour into lightly greased casserole dish.
8. Smooth the top and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
9. Bake at 375° F.  for 20-25 minutes or until cheese melts and casserole is warmed through.

Notes:

1. Instead of pasta, spoon skillet ingredients over stove-top stuffing or cooked rice.
2. Use Jimmy Dean Sausage with lots of spice
3. Use cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup instead of cream of celery soup
4. Use macaroni and cream of cheddar cheese soup.
5. Use ground turkey or chicken instead of pork sausage
6. Use patty-pan squash instead of summer squash

The original recipe for this bread is from No-Knead Bread Blog.  I’ve baked about 9 loaves now and have tweaked the recipe to yield a slightly crispy yet tender crust with a tender crumb that slices beautifully when cooled.  Any bread hot from the oven and slathered with butter is a treat and this one is no exception.  The potato flakes really raise the bar on tenderness and flavor.  Do give this recipe a try.  It’s a keeper!

Ingredients:

• 2-1/2 cups tepid water
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp yeast
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup instant potato flakes

Method:

Pour water into a 2 quart casserole (oven-proof with a cover) or non-stick stock pot. Add yeast and let bloom.

Add salt, flour and potato flakes.  Stir with a wooden spoon until combined. The dough will look rough.  Cover and let proof 10-13 hours or at least overnight.

Stir down dough with a wooden spoon and pour into a lightly greased 5″X9″ loaf pan.

Let rise until double or slightly above the rim of the pan. Dust with a bit of flour.

Bake in a preheated 350° F. oven for 50 minutes or until internal temperature is 200° F.

Remove from pan to cooling rack.