June was the month for food of the Carribean. Let me tell you, we needed that spice to warm up the freezing temperature in the home Cooking Club was held in! Overall, the recipes were quite good. I loved steaming my fish in banana leaves, it felt so authentic. The only thing I would change would be to use Kaffir lime leaves instead of lime peel next time.
Here are the recipes:
Jillian - Jamaican Patties *see recipes below
Rosemary - Carribean Salad (Gets my vote for the prettiest dish ever in cooking club)
Dana - Grilled Jerk Chicken and Rum Punch *see recipes below
Danielle - Tilapia Steamed in Banana Leaf and Tostones
Melanie -Broiled Pineapple with Macadamia Crunch
Jamaican Meat Patties
Recipe adapted from Emeril Lagasse, 2001
For the pastry:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups multigrain flour
2 teaspoons dried turmeric
2 teaspoons salt
8 tablespoons vegetable shortening
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold water
For the filling: 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or butter 1 large onion, finely chopped (1 1/2 cups chopped) 6 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger 1 pound ground beef 1/4 teaspoon saffron3/4 teaspoon ground cumin 3/4 teaspoon ground allspice (I used nutmeg...thought I had allspice but I didn't) 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom 1 tablespoon scotch bonnet pepper sauce (didn't have an actual pepper at Zehrs) 2 sprigs fresh thyme, finely chopped 3 scallions, finely chopped 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley 1 pound ripe tomatoes, peeled and finely chopped 1 1/2 teaspoons salt Freshly ground black pepper 3/4 cup water or beef stock 3 tablespoons Jamaican rum
To assemble the patties: Flour for rolling out the dough 2 egg yolks, beaten with 1 teaspoon of rum
For the pastry: Sift the flour, turmeric, and salt into a large bowl. Using your fingers, two knives, or a pastry blender, cut in the shortening and butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Working quickly, add only enough water to form a firm dough. Do not overwork pastry. Form dough into a disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 1/2 hours or overnight.
In a large skillet, heat the oil until hot but not smoking. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for 1 minute. Add the ground beef, turmeric, cumin, allspice, cardamom, hot peppers, and thyme and cook until the beef is browned and spices are fragrant, about 10 minutes. Add the scallions, parsley, tomatoes, and stock and simmer for about 25 minutes, until the flavors have come together and almost all of the liquid has evaporated. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper, remove from the heat and stir in the rum. Set aside to cool before assembling the patties.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out pastry and cut into circles about 6 to 7 inches in diameter. Spoon a scant 1/4 cup of the cooled filling onto the center of one side of each circle, and lightly brush the edges of the circle with a little of the beaten egg yolk mixture. Fold the other half of the pastry over so that the edges meet, and use a fork to crimp the edges together. Lightly brush the top of each patty with a little of the beaten egg yolk mixture. Place the patties on parchment-lined baking sheets and bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.
Dana's Jerk Sauce
4 c ketchup
1c light soy
1c white vinegar
1c brown sugar
1 small red onion, minced
6 T red chili paste
6 cloves garlic, minced
9 T ginger, minced
2 T Jerk seasoning
9 oz. dark rum
Combine all ingredients except the rum and cook over a low heat, stirring constantly. Simmer for 10 min, but do not boil. Add rum and stir. Bring back to a simmer for 5 min.
Dana's Rum Punch
(This one will knock your socks off!)
3 c water
1 pint melted passion fruit sorbet
12 oz can thawed frozen orange juice
1 1/2 c white rum
3/4 c golden rum
3/4 c coconut rum
1/4 c Grenadine
3 T freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 t ground nutmeg
Mix together in a pitcher. Add ice and serve.
