vegan spinach or collard callaloo

Callaloo is a soup. Or is it a sauce? Thin, or thick? It’s as thick as you want it to be! Play with the amount of water you add for your favorite consistency. Okra has a bad reputation because of its texture, but here it holds together the greens.

Callaloo is made in Jamaica, Trinidad, and all over the Caribbean! It is traditionally made with dasheen (taro) leaves. Go with any leafy green that’s fresh!

Easiest method ever. Boil everything for a while. Then eat it. That’s it!

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about 2 lbs of chopped collard, torn spinach, lamb’s quarter, kale, or whatever dark leafy greens you have (remove the toughest ribs if you’re using thick greens like collard)
1/4 cup pumpkin or other winter squash, peeled and chopped
8 okra, trimmed (fresh if you can)
1 – 2 cans of coconut milk, then fill the cans with water and add those
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 scallion, chopped
1 scotch bonnet pepper (optional – just a deseeded piece if you like it mild, or whole if you like it extra hot)
1/4 cup celery, finely chopped
2 sprigs thyme
1 tsp. parsley, finely chopped
stock, broth, or water and bouillon (as needed)
Salt to taste

Add everything to a soup pot and simmer for 30-40 minutes (with baby spinach or other young greens) or an hour (for collards or tough older greens), or until the greens are tender. Leave the heat fairly low and stir often – coconut milk will burn. You will have to add extra liquid if it gets thick, so keep an eye on it. You can add stock or broth if you have it, or even just water.

When it’s done, add a teaspoon or two of butter or margarine.

Simply Trini shows it over rice with avocado slices and chunks of meat. It’s just as good with rice and beans!

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adapted from simply trini cooking and caribbean pot

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edit 1/14/2016

It’s delicious! I made it with a pound of baby spinach, green chard, red chard, and kale, and a small golden nugget squash. I left out the parsley and okra and it was still great. If you like your greens sweet, you’ll love this!

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doubles

this is the quintessential trinidadian street food.

savory, sweet, hot, filling, and wonderful.

doubles consist of two (hence the name) flat pieces of fry-bread called BARA filled with a chickpea mixture.

it is also agreed throughout the recipes i checked out that the chickpeas and bara themselves are not the sweet, spicy, and sour flavor doubles are known for. this flavor comes from the condiments. see below for toppings!

it is the kind of street food that people in trinidad don’t really cook at home (source) but if you have a craving like i do, you can try to make it at home.
the doubles i got at trini-gul in a west indian neighborhood in brooklyn were one of the best foods i’ve ever had in my entire life.

i hope to make them at home and have them taste even half as good.

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bara

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1 T baking powder
1 teaspoon yeast
1/3 cup warm water
1/4 tsp sugar
Oil for frying

place warm water, sugar, and yeast in a bowl until foamy.

knead ingredients together until dough is smooth.

pour a bit of oil over the top, cover the bowl with a kitchen towel, and rest until dough doubles.

oil or wet your hands – dough is sticky. make two-inch balls. flatten to the size of your hand.

fry, at about forty seconds per side or until puffy and done.

adapted from trini gourmet, simply trini cooking, and chennette

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chickpeas

heat 1 T oil in a heavy bottomed pot or pan. add a chopped onion. when soft, add 1 t curry powder, 1 t turmeric, three cloves of garlic minced, 2 t ground cumin, 2 t salt, 1 t pepper, 5 leaves chadon beni (bandhania/culantro/long cilantro, or substitute cilantro,) and 1 t trinidadian pepper sauce. stir-fry until fragrant. add 2 c chickpeas and a cup of water. simmer until chickpeas are soft.

adapted from trini gourmet, simply trini cooking, amazing trinidad, and chennette.

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you MUST top with grated or preserved cucumbers or cucumber chutney, mango kuchela (trinidadian sweet&sour chutney,) and tamarind sauce to get that flavor!

trinidadian vegan (or fishy) pastelles

To prepare fig leaves (or corn husks), steam them in a large pot of boiling water for ten minutes until they become pliable and soft. They may also be softened by waving them over an open flame. You can also use sheets of tin foil.

Cornmeal dough and pastelle assembly

Ingredients

2 cups yellow cornmeal
3 cups hot water
1/2 cup butter (or lard)
1 1/4 tsp salt

1. In a food processor or by hand, combine cornmeal with butter and salt.
2. Add water and process to make a soft, pliable dough.
3. Divide the dough into 12 balls. Cover with a damp cloth to prevent drying.
4. Place one piece of dough on a greased fig leaf and press into an eight-inch square.
5. Spoon two tablespoons of filling onto the middle of the dough and fold and seal pastelles.
6. Wrap in fig leaf and tie into a neat package. (you can also use foil)
7. Steam pastelles for 45 minutes until cooked.

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Sarina’s Vegan Sweet Potato Pastelles

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups finely grated sweet potato
2 medium-large onions, minced
1 cup chopped chives
2 pimento peppers, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 tablespoons chopped olives
1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons margarine
1 tablespoon browning
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon tomato paste

1. Combine first 8 ingredients (sweet potato through salt) in large mixing bowl.
2. Heat olive oil over medium heat
3. Add potato mixture, sauté for 5 minutes.
4. Turn off heat
5. Add water, margarine, browning, brown sugar and tomato paste.
6. Stir to combine.
7. Add raisins and olives.
8. Stir to combine.
9. Taste and adjust seasonings (especially salt and pepper) to suit.
10. Proceed to fill pastelles as above

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fish, chicken, or beef pastelles

1 lb chopped beef, chicken, fish, or a combination
2 onions, finely chopped
2 tbs olive oil
1 cup chopped chives
1/4 cup chopped fresh thyme
2 pimento peppers, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbs chopped celery
1/2 Congo pepper, seeded and chopped (optional)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup tomato sauce
4 tbs capers
3 tbs stuffed olives, sliced
1/4 cup raisins
2 tbs fresh thyme

1. Combine beef with chicken. Add salt and black pepper.
2. Add a quarter-cup chopped chives and one tablespoon thyme.
3. In a large saute pan heat olive oil.
4. Add onion and garlic. Saute until fragrant.
5. Add pimento peppers, remaining chive, pepper and thyme.
6. Add meat and cook until brown.
7. Add tomato sauce, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.
8. Add raisins, capers and olives and stir to combine.
9. Cook for about five minutes more. Taste and adjust seasoning.
10. Add two tablespoons fresh thyme and stir to combine.

11. Remove from heat and cool.
12. Prepare dough as in recipe above and fill and fold pastelles as indicated.

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recipe from trini gourmet