Author: Sarina

Causa a la Chiclayana – Potatoes with Fish & Vegetables (recipe)

From April 17-19 2009 Trinidad will host the Fifth Summit of the Americas. In recognition of this event, I am cooking my way through the dishes of the member countries. Enjoy! 🙂 My first stop on my culinary tour of the member states that will 

Blueberry Crumb Cake

It’s 3a.m. and I need to be up at 6 so I’ll keep this shorter than usual 🙂 Coffee cake is not a fave of mine, so this wasn’t a great hit for me. Everyone else loved it though and that mattered more to me 

French Yogurt Cake with Marmalade Glaze

Why oh why couldn’t I have kept it simple? A quick and easy French pound cake, baked in a loaf tin and brushed with a marmalade glaze. Practically no room for error, right? That was until my eye caught the ‘Variations’ listed on the adjoining 

Sarina’s Rum and Raisin Hamantaschen (recipe)

Mmm hamantaschen. In this part of the hemisphere, hamantaschen is probably the most recognizable symbol of Purim. These three-cornered pastries are usually stuffed with jams and sweet pastes of various flavours. My favourite base recipe comes from Joan Nathan’s Jewish Cooking in America,however my own 

Haman’s Ears/Orejas de Haman

This Sephardic Purim treat is rarely mentioned in Purim recipe lineups, overshadowed in familiarity by its Western European counterpart Hamantaschen. It’s a shame though, because this dessert is light, and deliciously addictive. Strips of dough are fried and sprinkled with confectioners sugar. I personally like 

Raw Soursop Icecream (recipe)

As my ‘raw’ adventures continue I find myself viewing the fruits and vegetables in supermarkets and roadside stalls with an almost reborn eye. This ice cream came about as a glut of soursops came into my line of sight and instantaneously caught my imagination. Soursop 

East Indian Chickpea Salad (recipe)

This is a recipe whose origins have become lost to the sands of time (and disorganization), however it is fast, nutritious and never fails to please. It’s a regular part of my Purim menu because of the prominent role that chickpeas play in that festival. 

Hummus (recipe)

Hummus is a never-fail crowd pleaser and so deceptively easy to prepare! I love to offer hummus as a starter at Purim because chickpeas figure so prominently in the Purim story. This recipe comes from one of my favourite cookbooks The Sephardic Table: The Vibrant 

Butternut Squash Bisque (recipe)

I’m a huge fan of soups, especially thick creamy soups, so this butternut squash bisque was right up my alley. It’s sweet and savoury, all in one, and so so smooth. As with most soups I find that slow cooking the vegetable components until they 

Basil Lemonade (recipe)

As promised, here is the Basil Lemonade recipe that I made for Stephanie’s 43rd edition of Blog Party! One of the things that I love about adding basil to beverages is the muted herbal flavour that it imparts. This lemonade is no exception. It softens 

Chocolate Armagnac Cake: A Study in Creative Insurbodination!

Chocolate Armagnac Cake: A Study in Creative Insurbodination!

It’s with bittersweet reluctance that I bid February goodbye. Never has one month seen me cook and consume SO MUCH CHOCOLATE! Although my tastebuds do not approve of the inevitable shift that leaving the ‘month of love’ will bring, I can only think that my 

Easy Hot Spiced Mexican Chocolate (recipe)

Easy Hot Spiced Mexican Chocolate (recipe)

Chocolat (2000): Nominated for 5 Academy Awards(R) including Best Picture, Best Actress (Juliette Binoche — THE ENGLISH PATIENT), and Best Supporting Actress (Judi Dench — SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE), CHOCOLAT is the beautiful and captivating comedy from the acclaimed director of THE CIDER HOUSE RULES! Nobody 

Chocolate Valentino & Raw Vanilla Softserve (recipes)

Chocolate Valentino & Raw Vanilla Softserve (recipes)

Look at that cake! So perfect for this month’s Daring Bakers Challenge! Chocolatey, gooey, with a thin, crackly brownie-like crust… so light but rich, it melts on your tongue… and.. not a drop of flour in sight! *record scratch* … Yup, you heard me! A 

Thinking About Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Thinking About Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

The first time I gave grilled cheese sandwiches serious thought as a culinary rallying force was when I initially came across Kalyn Denny’s South-Beach centered blog ‘Kalyn’s Kitchen’ some time in 2006. In it she posted a passionate response to columnist Pete Well’s article in