Caramelized Fry jacks

Not quite the fry jacks in Belize, but I tried... Next time I suggest that the sugar sprinkled on after they are fried.

3 c flour

1 1/2 tbsp baking powder

2 tsp sugar + sugar to cover tortilla

1 tsp salt

water

2 tbsp coconut oil  + coconut oil for frying

Mix together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder well

add oil and mix well

add water until ingredients are wet but dough still sticks together and doesn't stick to you hands

knead until dough gets kind of elastic

pat out into a tortilla

cut in half

heat oil until almost smoking

cover tortilla with sugar (after doing it.. it's better if you do this step after frying)

place in oil until puffs up and is golden

yum yum!

In belize they make them without sugar and serve with refried beans and eggs.  They seem to puff better than mine. It's a work in progress!

Sweet pepper Quiche

Another Guatemalan trial with not many ingredients.

Ingredients:

7 packs of club crackers

1 stick butter

2 red sweet pepers

6 eggs

1 cup cream

salt

crunch up the saltine crackers with butter and water around the outside of the pan

Put pepper and onion in crust

Mix eggs, salt, pepper, and cream

pour over veggies

bake at 350 degrees until golden on top about 45 mins.

pepper

Pad Thai Guatemalan Style

It's really not Guatemalan style, it's just we didn't have any ingredients really. So I made it just with what we had and it actually tasted good.

Ingredients:

3 c cooked rice

2 garlic cloves

1 onion chopped

1 c chopped broccoli

2 carrots chopped

2 tbs ketchup

1/4 c soy sauce

2 tbsp mustard

3 tbsp peanut butter

1 tbsp vinegar

1 tsp hot sauce

parmesan as decoration

saute veggies until slightly softer but still crunchy.

Mix wet ingredients together

put cooked rice in pan

put in sauce

cook until everything looks mixed thoroughly

serve

Chuchitos

While I was in Santa Maria de Jesus, Guatemala, I helped make these with a Mayan family for the campesinos that were going to come and hopefully join a coffee cooperative. It was so much fun. Hard to understand. They went between speaking Kaqchikel and Spanish which I know only slightly. They gave me a traditional Mayan apron. It was so great!

Makes 140

Ingredients:

10 lbs Masa 

salt to taste

pepper to taste

8 Red sweet peppers 

6 tomatoes

4 green chilies

msg (yikes.. don't use that)

2 packets chicken bouillon

140 corn husks

140 pieces  of pork/chicken/carne

boil ground sweet peppers, tomatoes, green chilies, msg, chicken bouillon, salt, and pepper. Mix about 1/4 of Masa in boiled mixture

pat left over masa into tortillas

scoop tomato mixture onto tortilla, and make tortilla look like a taco

place in corn husk and wrap like the picture.

boil chuchitos for about 3-4 hours

Also good if you take it out of the corn husk and grill.

yumm... but don't eat local pork in Guatemala. pork = crazy rash and giardia... fun times!

Guiness Pancakes w/ caramelized bananas and cream

Inspired from Dan Divelbiss. (Definitely the ultimate Bachelor food) He normally makes it with boxed pancakes, but I would haven't any of that. So this was my attempt at making box Guiness Pancakes...

3 c. flour
1/2 c sugar
2 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
2 1/2 cans of Guiness
butter to grease pan
100% cream
2 bananas thinly sliced

Pancakes:
Combined flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir together completely. Add eggs and stir together. Add Guiness until it creates a thick soupy texture.

Heat pan and put butter in pan. Pour about 1/2 a cup of mixture onto the pan. Once the batter stops bubbling, flip pancake and heat through.

To make caramelized bananas:
Thinly slice bananas. Heat pan with about 1/2 stick butter. Place bananas in pan and put about 3 tbsp sugar. Mix together in pan. Stir occasionally until it turns into a golden brown mush.

Then drizzle cream on top.
Enjoy!

Lychee

Fruit found in Antigua market. The top picture you can see the actual edible part in Dan's mouth, and the hairy red part is like a peel found on his plate.
It kind of tastes like a grape without its peel, but a little more gelatinous. Good fruit!

Pattaya (Dragon Fruit)

Crazy fruit found in Panajachel while we were getting ready to go back to San Marcos, Guatemala. It tastes kind of like a kiwi. Yummm... yummm

Tortilla Espanola (Spanish Omelete)

When I first experienced this dish I was in Annecy, France. One of my friends, Sylvan, from Spain prepared this dish for one of our "family dinners" with the Salomon interns. Then again in Belize , another one of my friends, Joanna, prepared this dish for me while I was down in Punta Gorda, Belize for a meeting with OVA (Organic Vanilla Association). So now, in Guatemala, I prepared this dish for Les, Dan Dake, and Dan Divelbiss before a long night of Scrabble. Practicing my Spanish and bargaining skills, we bought all of the ingredients from a large open market in Antigua. Be sure to wash all vegetables from Guatemala before eating.

Please realize this recipe was made up and not measured. So the ingredients are estimations of what I really used. And I'm living in a bachelor pad where they have no spices or utensils for cooking...

8 huevos (eggs)
4 medium papas (potatoes) peeled and thinly sliced
1 1/2 cebollas (onions) diced. I chose yellow, but any color is fine.
2 large cloves ajo (garlic) diced finely
1 tsp sal (salt)
1/2 tsp azucar (sugar)
1/2 tsp Maya-ik picante sauce (hot sauce)
1/4 lb quesa (fondu cheese) shaved
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
green chilies (for garnish)

Heat pan with 1/2 tbsp olive oil.
Stir fry onions, sugar, 1/2 salt and garlic until onions are slightly golden.
Set aside.
Scramble eggs and rest of salt.
Put 1/2 tsp oil in pan and heat.
stir fry potatoes and hot sauce until potatoes are soft and browning on the sides.
Mix onion mixture, potatoes, and cheese (leave some cheese out to place on top) with egg mixture
Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in pan
Pour egg mixture into pan
As the egg starts to set use a spoon or spatula and pull edge slightly off of pan so the raw egg and fill in that open space.
After egg is fairly well set but middle is still gooey, use spatula and free egg from the pan. Be careful not to let omelet break
Place large plate on top of pan. Make sure the plate covers entire pan.
Using a hot pad (warning it will be really hot!!! trickiest part of recipe) flip omelet onto plate. Gently slide omelet back into the pan (this is to let the top part of the omelet to cook through).
When the omelet is cooked through again flip omelet back onto serving plate.
Sprinkle left over cheese on top and garnish with peppers.
Enjoy