South African Smoked Potatoes

We Caribbean folk love to season our food.  Traditionally through the generations we've been trained up in the way we should go about doing this.  Unfortunately a lot of those ways are unhealthy and harmful to these gorgeous temples we've been given.  Instead of passing on a strong heritage of health and healing, we end up unknowingly passing down disease and illness, with bad eating habits and poor food choices. 

But Yadi, healthy food is SO expensive!  Not all healthy options are high in price.  Take Trader Joe's, for instance.  This grocery store has made a commitment to quality and health that others just haven't made.  You will not find a single high fructose corn syrup, artificial color/flavoring, MSG, chemical laden ingredient in anything they sell.  That's huge! It doesn't mean that everything sold is good for you, labels still need to be read, but it's a great start.  On top of that commitment, Trader Joe's prices are unbeatable.  You will not break the bank in this grocery store for quality.  Quantity?  That's another story ;)




So now that you know where to shop, I'll let you in on a little seasoning secret.  Those of you who know about South African Smoke KNOW, it's crack. Oh how I wish this was a scratch and sniff picture.  Take a little whiff and your senses are awakened to a whole new world.  What can I put it on, Yadi?  EVERYTHING.  Seriously.  OK, maybe not like fruit or ice cream, but I wouldn't rule it out.  Anything savory can only be enhanced by the stuff in this amazing little bottle.  I don't know how they do it, the seasoning only has 4 ingredients: paprika flakes, sea salt, garlic, basil.  That's it.  If you think you can imagine what it tastes like from that list, you are wrong.  Drop what you're doing and rush to your nearest Trader Joe's to pick up a bottle.  I told you, it's crack.*

South African Smoked Potatoes

organic white and sweet potatoes, boiled and chopped (ration 3 to 1 white to sweet)
red onion, thinly sliced
grapeseed oil for cooking
south african smoke seasoning

Heat a skillet with grapeseed oil.  You can use any oil, but I've found that grapeseed holds heat the best and doesn't burn your pans like others can.  Toss in your pre-boiled, chopped potatoes and thinly sliced onions.  Now grind that south african smoke until the entire top portion is filled with goodness and sprinkle it over your potatoes as you mix everything around in your pan for even heating.  Once you've done that, grind some more and do it again.  Then repeat. I O.D on this stuff.
 
I serve these savory, slightly sweet potatoes with homemade vegan pancakes, or I'll eat them on their own. Sometimes I throw in some vegan sausage for some extra added protein.  So good! Enjoy, and let me know what life altering seasonings you've come across! 

*I don't get any kickback from TJs for promoting them or their products.

The Skinny on Maple Syrup

I'm always on the lookout for fun educational field trips we can take as a family.  New Jersey Family is one of my absolute favorite sites for local events.  Every week I get an email with family-friendly activities taking place near us.  Their website also features lots of awesome articles, How-Tos, and giveaways.  I actually just won a Cuisinart electric hand mixer last week by commenting on my favorite thing to bake...vegan carrot cake, of course!  I just realized I haven't posted the recipe for that one.  Wow, you've been missing out!

Anyway, on Saturday I found a great little local event called the Annual Maple Sugar Fest which took place at the Great Swamp Nature Center in Chatham.  There were taste tests, crafts, nature walks, and games.  They even had a wigwam the kiddos could enter as an example of how the Native Americans in our area who harvested tree sap used to live.  We learned so much about maple syrup that I wanted to share with all of you some of the interesting tidbits:

• Maple syrup requires such a specific climate that northeast US and Canada is the only place in the world where it can be harvested.
• Maple syrup is made from maple tree sap which looks and tastes just like water.  It is cooked down to evaporate the water, leaving the browned syrup behind.  
• The way they retrieve the sap has stayed just about the same for hundreds of years.  A small hole is drilled into the tree about an inch past the bark.  For small farms, a bucket is placed to catch the sap.  Larger farms connect hoses to bring all the sap into a factory.
• In super cold winters (like the one we've been having in 2014), the sap freezes inside the tree and very little will be harvested.
• The different grades and shades of maple syrup have to do with when in the season it was harvested.  
• Grade A Light Amber (Fancy grade) is harvested early in the season, contains the most sugar content, and is the most expensive.
• Grade A Medium and Dark Amber are the most common forms of syrup found in grocery stores, harvested mid-season.
• Grade B is harvested at the end of the season (late March), is darkest in color, has the least amount of sugar content, but most amount of "maple" flavor - which makes it great for cooking.
• Commercial maple syrup (think Aunt Jemima and the like) have zero actual maple syrup content, made mostly from high fructose corn syrup, caramel coloring, and other artifical flavors/colors.  
• Pure maple syrup is costly in comparison to commercial syrup because it takes about 5 1/5 days for the average tree to produce about 40 gallons of sap, which is what it takes for one gallon of syrup.
• Because maple syrup comes from very old trees, there is no need for pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, etc - which makes it inherently organic.  It also has a slew of vitamins and minerals like calcium, potassium, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, iron, B2 (riboflavin), B5 (pantothenic acid), niacin, and folic acid.

Whew!  Fascinating, no?   We love maple syrup in our home.  I use it as a sugar substitute in some recipes, and of course over homemade vegan pancakes!  What do you use maple syrup for?  What is your favorite grade?

Habichuelas Guisadas (Stewed beans) - the Remake!

Today I have a scrumptious dish for you that is sure to awaken your nostalgic Caribbean taste buds. Earlier I gave you the recipe for Spanish rice and beans, but sometimes you want those beans saucy and drenched over the top of your rice like an accompaniment. I've taken those traditional habichuelas and added some hearty veggies so they can be eaten as a full meal without feeling like you're missing a thing. The slightly embarrassing part of this recipe is that I've used canned beans. I remember my mom cooking those dried beans from the morning until the evening...and no doubt the taste difference is noticeable. One of these days I will try my hand at "all-day beans" for sure.

Maybe in the crockpot.  

Habichuelas Guisadas
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup sofrito
1/4 cup tomato sauce
2 tbsp Sazon
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
3 cups low sodium veggie broth
2 cans pinto or kidney beans (15 oz. cans)
3 potatoes, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp green pimento olives, chopped
sea salt and black pepper to taste

Note: You can use store bought Sazon and sofrito, but beware they are laden with harmful chemicals like MSG and artificial coloring/flavoring.  With a little prep, you can make it all yourself fresh and it stores for up to 3 months.  Click the links for recipes ;)

In a medium sized sauce pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 4-5 minutes, until it starts to caramelize. Add the sofrito and Sazon seasoning. Saute for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add the tomato sauce, oregano, cumin and a pinch of black pepper. Saute for 1 minute. Add the veggie broth and beans, potatoes, carrots, and olives. Bring the mixture to a boil. Once the mixture comes to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer.  Cook for 25-30 minutes, to allow the flavors to meld and the potato/carrots to cook. Check for seasoning, and add sea salt if desired. Serve over white or yellow rice - or the way I like it...steamed brown rice!

This dish is absolutely delish! Feel free to add some extra cilantro, or as we call it in Puerto Rico - recao. This is the base of your sofrito so there is already some in there, but some like it more pronounced. If you'd like your beans less hearty and more traditional, cut down significantly on the amount of veggies.