Do you trust your oven? A lot of times I get questions from readers criticizing how a recipe came out and demanding that I change the instructions or details It always somewhat amuses me that clearly -I’m- the one to blame if -their- attempt comes out wrong One simple suggestion that I make, and I make it from my own experience, is to always keep a thermometer in your oven.
“But what I need a thermometer for? The recipe says x degrees and I put the …

I hate.. hate… HATE when a recipe gets the best of me. It’s a control thing, I freely admit it. But after 3 valiant attempts I must grudgingly, and rather apologetically confess that this deceptively simple dessert beat me bad.
The first time I attempted it, the dough was an utter disaster. Via several google searches I learnt that this problem seems to be a common one for bakers in hot, humid climates. Well, anyone who’s been in Trinidad over the last 2 weeks knows exactly how HOT it has …

Carib Brewery, Eastern Main Road, Champs Fleurs

Ask any Trinidadian to complete the following phrase. A beer is a … and you’ll instantly hear a loud uproarious ‘Carib’.
For over 50 years the Carib Brewery has been producing Carib beer to the delight of Trinis both at home and abroad. I know that for myself seeing a Carib sign in a pub or a bar abroad was enough to make me scream, grab a camera and patronise the establishment
Carib doesn’t only produce beer however, they also are behind the …

Every now and again I get criticized by a reader for using ’shortcuts’ in my recipes. Whether it’s a frozen this or a grated that, I’m bound to hear from someone who thinks that unless I grew it, picked it and shelled it myself, I’m really nothing but a lazy bum. Well criticism noted and embraced! I -am- a lazy bum (in my downtime), and I love the conveniences that modern supermarkets and entrepreneurs have provided. I’m also happy to share them with other readers who because of their own …

Banana ‘trees’, Lady Young Road, Morvant
“Time, time, time, see whats become of me
While I looked around
For my possibilities” – A Hazy Shade of Winter, Simon & Garfunkel
I had the best intentions where blogging has been concerned, but like Simon & Garfunkel intimated time has a funny way of moving steadfastly on while we are preoccupied with our own visions. In my case, that vision has had me putting in long and longer hours, all away from the kitchen. I’ve been unable to cook or even finish my millions of draft …

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 Food & Wine “In the Belly of the Blog” where he stated that the major of food blogs amount to little more than dull meanderings about cheese sandwiches.
Having never really had grilled cheese sandwiches outside of my own home, I found her argument interesting, …

Heading home, Churchill-Roosevelt Highway, 2007

Some simple and quick recipes that I’ve enjoyed and hope you will as well. I myself, won’t be cooking this Valentine’s as J and I are heading out to dine. I will however have camera in tow, as where there is food, there is a blog

Valentine’s Day 2009 – A Menu
• Fresh Green Bean Salad
• Kung Pao Chicken
• Mango Cake

Can I just say how glad I am to be back in the swing of things where posting is concerned? Life has settled into something resembling a routine which allows me to realistically integrate my posts into my daily life. As many of my longtime readers know however for much of last year this wasn’t the case, and this blog gathered more than its share of dust for weeks at a time. Although it may have appeared as though nothing was going on, I was still cooking and …

The San Juan Croisee

From The Rough Guide to Trinidad & Tobago:
The westernmost of a succession of communities that sprawl along the length of the Eastern Main Road, brash, commercial San Juan (pronounced sah-wah) avoids being a Port of Spain satellite by the skin of its teeth. The town’s focal point is the “croisee” (pronounced kwaysay), a bustling junction marked by the Scotiabank clock tower, which was named when French Creole was the main local vernacular – “croisee” translates as “crossroads”. It’s a scene of agreeable, organized pandemonium; doubles …