What do you eat when you are sick?

I have been out for a few days because I wasn't feeling 100%. Of course you know there are a million home remedies for whatever ails you. But my question to you is this what do you eat when you are sick.

Chicken Noodle Soup inevitably makes the top of the list. The brothy kind (just made up that word). Not the traditional Jamaican Chicken Noodle Soup that has lots of "food", yam, coco, dumpling, corn and much more but I digress.

Then you have toast, crackers all the "bland" foods that will not irritate the stomach wall. I must say though that toast and crackers are my go to foods. LOL. I used to eat almost one loaf of bread each day when I was in university. I do love bread. I still love bread, but I can't eat it like I used to. Again I digress.

Then you have the "teas", peppermint, ginger, cerassie (supposed to clean you out but it is so bitter). An endless amount can be found in Jamaica. I personally like peppermint. There is just something about it that is very comforting and soothing.

Anyways, make sure you take care of yourself. But if on the off chance you do get sick, what are some of the foods you eat when you're sick?

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

Coconut Drops, Cut cake, Chip Chip

Someone ordered some Coconut drops for the weekend. I'm not sure if you know what that is, but it is coconut cooked with sugar and ginger. It is one of those nostalgic treats I had as a child growing up in Jamaica. My mom used to always make a batch for our relatives here in the US when we came to visit. 

My dad would cut the banana leaf to put the drops on the leaf to cool. Nowadays you will probably have to use non stick aluminium foil. Those were fun times. My mom makes some of the best drops around. I don't think she has made any in a while. I will have to ask her.

Below is a recipe from my cookbook - Jamaica's Forgotten Treats on how to make coconut drops. Enjoy!



Ingredients
1 tbsp ginger
2 cups brown sugar
2 medium-sized dried coconuts chopped to yield 3 cups of coconut
3 cups water
Non-Stick aluminum foil

Directions
1.Break open the coconuts (taste to ensure coconut is fresh).
2.Remove the coconut from the shell.
3.Cut the coconut into small pieces (approx. ⅛of inch)
4.In a large uncovered pot mix ginger, sugar, coconuts and water.
5.Bring to a rapid boil and reduce the flame to medium high.
6.Allow the mixture to cook until it thickens. Reduce the flame to low. Use a large spoon to continuously stir the mixture to prevent it from burning or sticking to the pot.
7.Cook the mixture until the sugar caramelizes. When the sugar begins to solidify at the bottom of the cooking pot and it is difficult to turn the mixture with the spoon, reduce the flame to the lowest setting.
8.Use a tablespoon to scoop clumps of the mixture onto the Non-Stick aluminum foil.
9.Allow to cool.
10.Yields about 12 coconut drops.
Always remember to take life one day at a time.

Jam vs Jelly

My favorite Jam or Jelly is Guava Jam or Guava Jelly. Oddly enough I don't like the fruit, but I love the by products.

Guava Jelly starts with fresh guavas, which are grown wild in several rural areas in Jamaica. Picked fresh from the trees, the guavas are processed with cane sugar and pectin. Jelly is usually a clear bright product. Jelly contains no fruit, although if you were to buy a specialty jelly it may have pieces in the jelly.

Guava Jam is made from crushed or chopped fguava cooked with sugar, and often pectin and lemon juice. Jam can be a puree of fruit or have a soft pulp, but it does not contain chunks of fruit.

What is your favorite jam or jelly?

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

A treat from my Mom

One good turn deserves another. So I sent treats for my mother in Jamaica and she sent me something in return. I got Chicken Noodle Soup, Pumona Biscuits aka Regal, Banana Chips and so much more. Sounds crazy, but these are the best treats ever. Delicious.

I got some much needed supplies for my baking. Benjamin's Red Food Coloring for my Red Velvet Cakes, Jamaican White Rum for my fruits for Christmas... I start from now to soak them. : )

I don't know if you ever get to an age when you don't enjoy treats from home - wherever home maybe. You know that one thing that your mom makes or your dad. It's just that familiar feel. Brings you back to a special place in your past.

What are some of your favorites that your mom, dad or grandparent used to make?

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

Comfort Food

What is comfort food? One would say any food that you eat that makes you comfortable right. The kind of food you eat to pick you up, to put you in a good mood. It has the power to transform your mind and take your mind off whatever it is that is bothering you and for those couple of minutes your mind goes somewhere else.

For some people that is chocolate, for some that's cake. What is your comfort food? What is it that takes you to a different place. I find that my Death by Chocolate Chocolate Cake, is my take me to another place. I only make it for my kids on request. It is deadly : )

Anyways, whatever your escape always remember moderation. There is no issue so great that it can't be resolved.

Bye for now. Have a great weekend.

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

Treat for my mom

My mom called me from Jamaica and asked me to make some Rock Buns for her. She wanted 2 dozen. So I am making it and will be sending it with a family member so she can enjoy.

It's funny how things are in the past you asked your parents for special treats. Now that I am older my parents are asking me to make special treats for them. I guess its true what they say, your parents take care of you when you are young, we take care of them when they are old.

Just thinking out loud. Hope you all a great day.

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

Food Choices - Eat in Moderation

Everyday there is a new study out stating what you should eat and what you should not. Do you get so confused sometimes because from one season to the next things change.

I say once you have things in moderation then you should be ok. If for medical reasons you have been taken off of one food then by all means don't eat it. I find that sometimes when you take certain foods out of your diet, say you decide no carbs for a month, the minute the month is over you go right back to where you started. The body needs these things.  

I say all of that to say "everything in moderation". Take care and live your best life ever.

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

Jamaican Coconut Toto

Yesterday I was in the mood for Coconut Toto. As I was talking to my friend on the phone she said, I haven't eaten that in a while. I tried making it, but is never comes out right it is just tough.

Firstly, I pointed her to my cookbook - JAMAICA'S FORGOTTEN TREATS that has a wonderful recipe, available at www.renaeescakes.com. Then I gave her a few pointers on getting a good toto.

Toto is a Jamaican dessert that is a cross between a cake and a bun flavored with coconut flakes. It varies in texture, color and flavor depending on who is making it. Toto has been around since slavery days. They are many different ways to bake toto, but following the recipe in my cookbook, here is the tip.


Add the milk a tablespoon at a time. Mix together to get a stiff dough. You need just enough to combine the mixture. Grease bowl and spread evenly in dish. 

  

Hope this helps. Let me know how it turns out.

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

 

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's favorite food

As we celebrate the birth of a great man. I can't help but wonder what are some of the things he liked to eat that would sustain him on his many trips as he promoted equality for all.

One of the things I found out was Dr. Martin Luther King likes Pecan Pie. Below is a recipe for that dessert that is not for the diet conscious. Maybe you can try this recipe today or for the next MLK Day.

Ingredients

• 1 sheet refrigerated piecrust (half a 15-ounce package)
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 1/3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups toasted pecan halves
• Freshly whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Unroll the piecrust and place in a 9-inch pie plate. Fold the overhang under and crimp the edge with a fork or your fingers. Bake the crust until light golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool completely on a rack. (Leave the oven on.)

Whisk the corn syrup, brown sugar, salt, butter and vanilla in a medium bowl. Lightly beat the eggs in a small bowl, then whisk into the corn syrup mixture.

Finely chop 1/2 cup pecans and spread evenly over the piecrust. Roughly chop another

1/2 cup pecans and mix into the corn syrup mixture, then pour the filling into the crust. Arrange the remaining 1 cup pecans on top in a decorative pattern.

Bake the pie until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Cool completely on a rack. Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

It's Sunday - Relax and Rejuvenate

Good Morning,

Today is a day when we go to church and then have traditional Sunday dinner of rice and peas and chicken whether baked or fried, a nice salad and some fruit punch.

I enjoy Sundays its a day of visiting with family and friends. You rehash the past week and prepare for the new one. Whatever you do today, enjoy your day and I will see you tomorrow.

Let me know how your weekend went.

Always remember to take life one day at a time.

What's for Breakfast?

When I was growing up, breakfast was a big deal. We always had a delicious breakfast with a hot cup of "tea". Tea could be chocolate, or peppermint tea of if you are an adult coffee. This would be accompanied by freshly squeezed oranges. My dad used to juice the oranges every morning. Mind you he didn't have the fancy juicer it was all manual. God Bless HIM. Breakfast was anything from liver and banana, ackee and saltfish and roast breadfruit, callaloo and fried dumplings. Any of those combinations.

Now that I am a mom it is still a big deal. I prepare breakfast for my boys. From Oatmeal Mondays LOL to fried green plantains with eggs and sausages, baked beans, fried dumplings. This is served with hot chocolate or peppermint tea and a glass of orange juice.

I guess traditions don't go away or die. They are just reborn in another form. The foundation is still there.

Let me know what are some of your favorite breakfast items whether then or now.

Baking Soda vs Baking Powder

A friend of mine asked me what the difference was between baking soda and baking powder and I thought to myself other people might be wondering.

Firstly they are both leavening agents. This means we use them when baking to make our cakes, cookies and such rise.

BAKING SODA

Baking Soda of Choice

Baking Soda is bicarbonate of soda. When it is combined with an acidic ingredient like buttermilk or vinegar like in a Red Velvet cake the resulting chemical reaction produces bubbles of carbon dioxide that expand under oven temperatures, causing baked goods to rise.

Note: The reaction begins immediately upon mixing the ingredients, so you need to bake recipes which call for baking soda immediately, or else they will not rise.

BAKING POWDER

Baking Powder of Choice

Baking powder has some baking soda and acid in there, which when combined with a liquid create the same reaction as baking soda. There are several different types of baking powder namely single acting and double acting. I use the double acting, reason being the single acting baking powder reacts with moisture so you have to bake the product immediately after mixing (similar to baking soda). Whereas the double acting can stand for a while before baking.

This is good for me when I am baking alot of cake from the same recipe using my small oven : )

You can use baking powder as a substitute for baking soda but you can't use baking soda when you have to use baking powder.

Hope this helps.

Consistency

It's been difficult for me to keep up with this blog, but my "new resolution" as of today is to be more concsistent. You know each week gives you an opportunity to have a "new week" resolution. Why leave it for the beginning of the year? You and I know that sometimes by week 3 as life begins to set in we have already fallen off the resolution wagon. But let me encourage you to use each week as your opportunity to rejuvenate yourself and start all over again.

Stay tuned as I resolve to be more consistent. Thanks for tuning and let me know what are your thoughts are.

Happy New Year 2012

The new year brings a freshenss with it, that allows you one more time to get it right. Thank God for this opportunity. We look forward to sharing many things with you this year and please feel free to leave a message for us.


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