This is my second take on an agbalumo carrot cake. Because of the zobo pineapple upside down cake, this came to mind. I used macerated agbalumo – flesh tossed in sugar and left to sit overnight till the sugar has drawn out a lot of the liquid and somewhat ‘dehydrated’ the fruit. I loved the look of the end result, flipped out (many thanks to the round of parchment paper which I set at the bottom) – a thick, caramelized base of agbalumo, with soft, moist carrot cake underneath. Originally, I’d hoped to make a flower pattern but by God,...
Zobo Jelly With Tigernut Panna Cotta| The New Nigerian Kitchen
I’ve been exploring making jellies with Nigerian fruits, flowers and nuts. My first attempt – a tiger nut pudding was beautiful, if soft set. It triggered a desire to make a panna cotta of tiger nuts, helped along by gelatine. Then came the agbalumo jelly which while great had a funny texture thanks to agar-agar. Last week, I braved it and made a zobo jelly which set so beautifully and a panna cotta which did the ‘wiggle’ – announcing the very best texture of soft, silky and jellied. Interestingly, my tigernut panna cotta ended up two layered – with a...
Nigerian Fruit Salad 2.0 | The New Nigerian Kitchen
Desserts & Presentation – two ways in which we should progress Nigerian cuisine :). This week, I will focus on Nigerian desserts. And yes, I dare say we have a class of them, if budding. Truth is, dessert for a long time was fruit salad (with milk), ice cream and cake. Enter The New Nigerian Kitchen. And the knowledge that there is so much more the Nigerian kitchen has to offer, both with the old, but also the new. I find Instagram a great place for inspiration. And when I saw this on @beautifulcuisine’s page, I knew I had to...
Quick & Easy: Weeknight Dinner of Sausage & Carrot Cannelloni
This recipe was inspired by @recipetins’s Baked Spinach & Ricotta Rotolo. That morning, I saw it on Instagram on my way to work – I couldn’t stop thinking, dreaming, wishing. As soon as I got home that Friday night, I brought out my pack of Cannelloni and some Sugo which I almost always have in the deep freezer. {Sugo recipe Nice and easy Bechamel} I made a quick Bechamel and rustled up a sausage-carrot saute and then sat down to assemble. First things first, the inspiration. Inspiration @recipetins’s Baked Spinach & Ricotta Rotolo as seen on Instagram. My Hack/ Method Cook...
Around The World In Peculiar Star Apple Names…
..Or how the star apple and it’s monikers got their names, from star apple to milky breasts to ‘vagina’ fruit … Star Apple For the pattern you see when you cut a cross section through the fruit, due to the arrangement of the seeds which cluster into a five point star. One of the most common names in many parts of the world. (Purple) Vagina Fruit I can see why :|. Known as this in parts of Asia. Milky breasts, VuSua Vietnam has given us this and ha ha ha :), it is easy to see why. Most star apples...
In Season: March
Fresh Cashews, pitanga cherries, mulberries, carrots, agbalumo, mangoes…these are a few things in seasons Cashews/ Cashew Apple Woo hoo, sooooooooooo happy to get my hands on some. Which I plan to juice, bake and do a host of other things. We shall see. Mulberries At least in the North of Nigeria, they’re in season. I got a batch which was already turning. I can’t wait for agriculture in Nigeria to get to the state where post-harvest losses and transportation account for wayyyyy less than the 50% waste currently ‘mentioned’. {Recipes with Mulberries} Pitanga Cherries These make me happy. Unfortunately, they...
Around The World in 12 Star Apples: From Agbalumo to Cainito, Lagos to Jamaica
The idea that we are as much the same as we are different is what slays me about food, what binds my heart to the cause of eating, feasting, of discovery. That though we are set apart by seas and oceans, by mountains and plains, valleys, plateaus, essentially we are the same – we eat the same sorts of food, we crave the same sorts of flavours and we have similar foods & fruit. So, the map shows places where star apples and relatives are found. Not surprising, tropical, equatorial regions are home to most of them, from West Africa to South...
Three Uses for Agbalumo Skin: Gum, Pectin & Bitters
Did you know that Chicle, the milky juice or latex found in Agbalumo and other relatives was for a long time, the foundation of all chewing gums? Chewing gum Yes, if you are able to get past the bitterness, chewing the latex-rich skin and sap will yield great delights. So yes, chicle and things cf. Chiclets. Pectin ‘The skin which constitutes about 33% of the entire fruit could be a source of pectin which is used as gelling agent, thickener and as a stabilizer in most food and drug industries [3], thus a means of managing waste.’ Thank you . I’m going...
Fura De Nono Pots with Fresh Turmeric & Coconut
I loved learning how to make Fura and couldn’t wait to combine it with white chocolate and bananas. Nono is made from fresh milk soured with a bit of curdled milk, similar to using yogurt as a starter in a fresh batch. Fermentation happens over a day or two; Fura is made from millet, cooked with spices and formed into balls This pots are about texture and assembly, and of course, fresh turmeric. I combine fresh fruit, chocolate, dried fruit (raisins, dates), nuts, spice and more to create a filling, flavourful ‘breakfast’ or dessert. All you need are three posts and...