Brown Fish Stew

Ingredients:
2 lbs. large fish (snapper, etc)
1 onion (sliced)
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. flour
water or stock (to thicken)
salt & pepper (to taste)
oil for frying

Instructions:
Prepare the fish cutting it crosswise in 1" thick slices. Fry it lightly. Make brown sauce by frying onions in butter and adding flour slowly until brown. Add enough water or stock to thicken, add salt and pepper to taste. Place the fish in a deep frying pan and pour the brown sauce over the fish. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes, turning the fish once. Serve hot alone, over peas & rice, white rice or pasta.

Oxtail Stew

Oxtail Stew

Ingredients:

4 lbs. oxtails

4 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. sugar (brown or white)

2 large onions (chopped)

4 garlic cloves (chopped

2 tomatoes (chopped)

2 beef bouillon (crushed)

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

2 tsp. hot-pepper sauce (see recipe list)

6 sprigs of thyme

Water to cover (about 5 cups)

3 carrots (peeled & cut)

4 scallions (chopped)

*1 ½ tbsp. cornstarch (mixed with 3 tbsp. water)

Instructions:

Wash oxtails well. Heat oil and add sugar, stir until sugar is melted and caramelized. Add onions and garlic and slightly sauté. Add oxtails and brown for about 10 minutes, stirring continuously. Add tomatoes, beef bouillon, cinnamon, hot-pepper sauce, and continue to sauté for about 5-10 minutes, stirring continuously. Add water to cover and bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer for about 1 hour until meat is tender. Add carrots, scallions and thyme and simmer for 15 minutes. Mix cornstarch with 3 tbsp. water to a smooth paste and add to stew to thicken. Stir constantly until stew in thickened (about 5 minutes). Serve hot over white rice or with peas & rice (cook-up rice). 

Sweet Mango Wine Drink

Ingredients:

6 large green mangoes (peeled & grated)

3 lbs. sugar

6 pints water

A few cloves

Instructions:

Wash mangoes, peel thinly and grate flesh. Sweeten water with sugar in a jar and add the grated mango. Sprinkle cloves into mixture, seal bottle and leave for at least 10 days. Strain with cheesecloth and bottle, serve cold & enjoy.

Shrimp Cakes

Ingredients:

4 oz. small peeled shrimp (canned or fresh) *shrimp can be chopped if desired

½ tsp. baking soda

1 small onion (finely chopped)

½ cup flour

¼ tsp. paprika

½ tsp. garlic powder

½ cup milk

1 tbsp. butter

1 egg (beaten)

Salt & pepper (to taste)

1 tsp. hot pepper sauce (see recipe list) – or hot sauce

2 tsp. butter or margarine

Oil for deep frying

*Serves 6

Instructions:

In a hot pan, fry shrimp with margarine for a few minutes (just until pink). Place shrimp in a bowl and add: baking soda, onions, flour, paprika, garlic powder, milk, butter, egg, salt & pepper, hot pepper sauce and make a thick batter. Heat oil, scoop out batter with a tablespoon and drop into hot oil and deep fry until light brown. Take out and drain on paper towels.

Sorrel Drink

Sorrel Drink

Ingredients:

4 cups dried sorrel

1-2 cups sugar (sweeten to your taste)

12 cups water

10 cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

Thick slice of ginger

Instructions:

Place dried sorrel in a large pot and add water, sugar to taste, cloves, cinnamon sticks and ginger. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Cover pot and allow to cool for several hours. Strain (twice if needed), bottle and refrigerate. Serve with ice. *Add a splash of rum if you wish.

Baked Green Banana Pudding

Ingredients:

1 cup coconut milk

6 green bananas (grated)

2 tbsp. raisins

1 cup brown sugar

 ½ tsp. nutmeg

2 tbsp. flour

¼ tsp. salt

2 eggs

1 oz. margarine

2 tbsp. shredded coconut

½ tsp. vanilla essence

Instructions:

Add ½ cup coconut milk to grated bananas. Crush and beat until smooth. Add all other ingredients and blend well together. Pour into greased dish. Bake for 40 minutes in moderate oven (350 degrees). Decorate when cooled with grated coconut. 

Hot Cross Buns

Ingredients:

1 package dry yeast

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. spice

1 tsp. ginger

1 lb. flour

2 oz. sugar

2 oz. margarine

1 cup warm milk

2 oz. raisins

1 oz. mixed peel

*Glaze (see recipe below)

Instructions:

Dilute yeast in a little lukewarm milk, leave for 5-10 minutes. Sift dry ingredients together (salt, spice, ginger and four). Rub margarine into flour mixture. Add warm milk to yeast mixture and gradually mix into flour mixture. Knead flour mixture and sprinkle in raisins. Knead again and put to rise until double in size. Knead once more and shape into bun loaves or rolls . Put to rise for about 15-20minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Before baking, cut 2 gnashes at right angles to form a cross. Bake for about 25 minutes until golden brown and fill the corss gnashes with Glaze icing after baking.

Glaze Icing:

8 oz. icing sugar

2 tbsp. warm water

1 tbsp. vanilla or almond essence

Instructions:

Roll lumps out of sugar. Sieve in a bowl and place over boiling water hot water. Add warm water gradually. Beat until icing is smooth and warm. Remove from heat. Add essence gradually. The icing should coat the back of a spoon. Cool and use on cakes, rolls and buns.

Holiday Cake

Ingredients:

8 oz. butter

8 oz. sugar

4 eggs

8 oz. flour

½ tsp. baking powder

1 lb. mixed dried fruit

2 oz. nuts (finely chopped)

Grated lemon rind (from 1 lemon)

4 oz. mixed peel

¼ tsp. salt

½ oz. peanut halves or (sliced almonds)

Instructions:

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line an 8 inch cake pan with greased wax paper.  

Cream butter and sugar until creamy; add eggs one at a time (beating thoroughly after each addition). Sieve flour with baking powder. Lightly fold in the flour a little at a time. Add fruit, nuts and rind with the last bit of four. Pour mixture into 8 inch cake pan that has already been lined with greased wax paper. Sprinkle nuts on top of cake mixture and bake for about 1 ½ hours.

Okra & Cornmeal (Cou-Cou)

Ingredients:

12 okras (sliced into rings)

6 cups water (more if necessary)

Salt (to taste)

2 cups cornmeal (sifted)

1 tbsp. butter

Instructions:

Wash okras and cut off stems. Slice into rings and boil with half the water and salt for about 10 minutes. Add the rest of the water and salt to the sifted cornmeal and mix well. Remove saucepan from heat and stir in the cornmeal mixture, stirring ingredients with a wooden spatula over medium heat. When mixture becomes stiff smooth and breaks away from the saucepan cleanly at the bottom then it’s finished. Put into a dish immediately and spread liberally with butter. 

CHICKEN WITH ORANGE SAUCE

Chicken with Orange Sauce

Ingredients:

21/2- 3 lbs. chicken (cut in pieces)

¼ cup flour

½ tsp. salt

¼ cup margarine or shortening

Hot water (approx.: ½ cup)

Orange sauce:

½ cup orange juice

1 ½ cup chicken broth

2 tbsp. cornstarch

2 tbsp. sherry

½ tsp. ginger

½ tsp. grated orange rind

Coat chicken pieces with salt, pepper and flour. Melt margarine or shortening in frying pan and brown chicken pieces. Add hot water, cover and cook slowly (low heat) until chicken is tender (about 25-30 minutes). Serve with orange sauce.

Orange sauce: In a saucepan, bring the orange juice and chicken broth to a boil. Add sherry, orange rind and ginger. Dilute the cornstarch in a little water and stir into sauce until smooth and thickened. Drizzle over chicken and serve.