Happy Father's Day

The morning started with our 7 year old running into my bedroom at 7 am!! I thought she was eager to give her daddy the countless cards she made for him, but no, that was not the case.

In her tiny hand was my borrowed jewelery box with her tooth in it and on her face was a very confused, forlorn face...My jaw dropped. My heart skipped a beat or two..Maybe it stopped beating altogether...I went cold. My life flashed in front of me. I have once again failed as a parent..the tooth fairy fell asleep and forgot to take the tooth and leave money...How could she?

I followed her into her bedroom eager to help her figure this "puzzle" out...After one minute of looking here, there and everywhere I found a $10 bill stuck between the bed frame and the mattress...Yes, you can call me Mrs. David Blaine....Situation solved. Temporarily. Read on. "But mummy, why the tooth fairy didn't take my tooth?"..What the heck do I say now? I responded as intelligently as I could under pressure..."Ahmmm....Maybe she was really busy (or sleepy and tired ppl), I will mail it to her." And I scurried out of the room, very afraid of any additional questions, which I probably did not have an answer for. I breathed a sigh of relief. This was much better than the time her older sister lost a tooth, put it under her pillow and never mentioned a word to us.......

Thankfully, the rest of the day went smoothly...Breakfast in the backyard. All their daddy's favorites...canned salmon cooked with onion and tomatoes, egg with tomatoes and bacon, fried bake, toasted bagel with lox and cream cheese.....chai tea....berries and peach fruit salad.....

Fried bake on the right.....sooo yummy....

Hot homemade waffles (courtesy of my wonderful neighbor) smothered with frozen strawberry smoothie.....sprinkled with fresh berries...to pretend it's healthy....I can't tell you whether this was the main course, dessert or side..it's all a blur..so absolutely delicious..

The Dah(the daddy) requested a "Trinidadian' late lunch of Trini stewed chicken, red beans and rice with boiled ripe plantain......and a salad...

...and so ends a wonderful day for the pampered dad......personally I am glad it's over!..this father's day business is hard work....is mother's day here yet????...........ok, I'll be nice.......

Hope everyone had a Happy Father's day........and a special HFD to my daddy in heaven.....Everything I do, I do it for you. xoxoxoxo



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While I contemplate what my next recipe post will be.......

....and while we get ready to say au revoir to beautiful, rainy, cool Spring and along with it hopefully the challenges, disappointments and broken dreams....I share with you a poem and a few of my favorite Spring shots...... :-)

Lines Written In Early Spring by William Wordsworth

I heard a thousand blended notes,
While in a grove I sate reclined,
In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts
Bring sad thoughts to the mind.

To her fair works did Nature link
The human soul that through me ran;
And much it grieved my heart to think
What man has made of man.

Through primrose tufts, in that green bower,
The periwinkle trailed its wreaths;
And 'tis my faith that every flower
Enjoys the air it breathes.

The birds around me hopped and played,
Their thoughts I cannot measure:--
But the least motion which they made
It seemed a thrill of pleasure.

The budding twigs spread out their fan,
To catch the breezy air;
And I must think, do all I can,
That there was pleasure there.

If this belief from heaven be sent,
If such be Nature's holy plan,
Have I not reason to lament
What man has made of man?

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I love you BERRY BERRY much cobbler....

I know I get excited about desserts and this is no exception. This berry cobbler made me speechless. I sat down at my desk and tried for several minutes to put the taste into words but this is all that came to mind...Soft-ooey-gooey blueberry-blackberry-raspberry-strawberry-cakey-chewy goodness.  I apologize..describing what I eat using intelligible words is not one of my fortes…Honestly speaking, each bite offers a different experience, a burst of flavors; some sweet, some tangy, some a combination, all depending the individual fruit/cake combination you happen to bite into. 

This is really a great recipe to use the abundance of berries now in season and it is just too simple. I don’t think I will ever find a simpler, more scrumptious recipe for berry cobbler to share with you. The result will make your taste buds dance with your body following suit soon after. Just knowing that it is an antioxidant powerhouse is even more reason to shake your booty.

This is so good I had to share it with my neighbors. I made this as much as three times in one week.  My family gets really excited and left overs mysteriously disappear. I love it when the aroma sneaks up to their bedrooms….and within seconds they are racing down the stairs…What are you making mummy????!!!! I feel no guilt giving this to my kids…none whatsoever.....Once I walked into the living room and found my 7 yr old with the pie dish on her lap....kids!!! I occasionally serve berry cobbler for their after dinner dessert and their dad packs them a small serving for snack time at school.  A more interesting and certainly more exciting alternate to the fresh fruits they normally take for snack.

 

Two weekends ago I doubled the recipe for a day-after wedding celebration and last Saturday we tripled it for our neighborhood BBQ. The berry cobbler disappeared in record time and everyone complained why I made it so small. On both occasions there were a lot of disappointed adults (and kids) who were scrambling for the left overs. I am beginning to notice that people get really, really, really excited when they hear I make dessert. 

 

To summarize, this berry cobbler is simple, scrumptious and healthy...You really have to try it!!!

Ingredients

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup milk

2 cups berries (not sweetened or thickened)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract(optional)

1/2 tsp cinnamon(optional)

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 350 F. Put butter in an 8-inch square or 9-inch round pan; set in oven to melt.

2. Whisk flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Add milk; whisk until just incorporated into dry ingredients. When butter has melted, remove pan from oven. Pour batter into pan, then arrange fruit over batter. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Bake until batter browns, 40-50 minutes. Cool slightly and serve.

Choosing Berries

Look for ripe, colorful and firm berries with no sign of mold or mushy spots. Berries can also be found in the frozen section of the grocery store. Once they thaw, they will not be as firm as freshly picked berries, but they are still delicious and good for you.  

Assemble and measure ingredients...go ahead eat some berries to make sure they are ok.....I used blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and sliced strawberries....use whatever is available in your supermarket...very rarely I find all four types of berries at the same time.....sometimes I even add slices of very ripe mango for a change of flavor....

Now is also a good time to preheat the oven....350

Puzzle--find the missing ingredient in the pic below...oh, don't forget to thoroughly wash the fruits removing stems..strawberries should be sliced...

Place 1/2 stick butter in your dish or pan...yes, that's all you need....repeat after me....butter makes it better...butter makes it better....

Place the butter in the dish in the oven to melt....don't forget to close the oven door...!

Health tip---the ingredients in butter should be limited to sweet cream and salt...nothing else...no preservatives or additives....

Place ingredients in bowl, whisk to combine....

Add milk and whisk it some more...

Pour batter over melted butter...say that six times quickly...

Arrange fruit on top of batter...then sprinkle with 1 tablespoon brown sugar...

.....and you are done with the prep work.....too easy I told ya!!

Remove from the oven after 40-50 minutes...i.e when top is brown...

Take a spoon and start eating immediately from the pie dish...but if you are normal (unlike me) wait until it is cooled, whip yourself up some fresh whip cream and serve over berry cobbler...

 Enjoy and I hope to hear from you soon!!

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A day at Chaguanas Market, Trinidad

To me, the market in any country is usually the most exciting place to visit because it is a cultural museum and tells so much about the country and its people. During my most recent visit to Trinidad, going to the market was on the top of my to do list and I wasn't leaving until I accomplished that goal. A place where I go to experience the friendliness, hustle and bustle of my fellow Trinidadians, chat with the vendors and listen to their stories, marvel at all the products, fruits and veggies that aren't easily available in New York, eat a "doubles" or "snow cone" and taste and buy pure honey--my liquid gold---to name a few things. Everything and anything can be found in the market. A wondrous culmination of the wealth and diversity of the land and its people. 

As promised, here are a few pictures from my most exciting day at Chaguanas Market in Trinidad, mostly pictures of fruits and vegetables for now. More pictures will be uploaded as time permits. [A few other non-market pics found their way in here, enjoy those also.]

Were you able to identify all of the pictures in this slide? :-)

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