Global Recipe Project

Another Caribbean country finished! Jamaica was fun, bright, and delicious. Jerk chicken, rice and peas, rum punch and a pineapple cake. We broke with tradition and made the rice and peas even though it wasn't Sunday. Great recipes if not a tad heavy on the carbs. As an aperitif we had some plantain chips and coconut soda. Wonderful way to spend a Thursday evening. Rice and Peas Ingredients 1 can red kidney beans 1 can coconut milk 1 tbsp fresh thyme 4 green onions, chopped 2 cups of rice (rinsed well) 2 cloves of garlic, minced water salt pepper Preparation Drain the kidney beans over a measuring cup that holds 4 cups. Add the coconut milk and then add enough water to make 4 cups of liquid. In a large pot, add the liquid mixture, garlic, thyme, onions, kidney beans, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and taste the liquid for saltiness. Next add the rice and boil or 2 minutes. Reduce the heat and simmer covered for 15 - 20 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve wa

Interestingly enough, especially in the midst of Chinese New Year, we hit China on our journey around the world. I decided to tackle Chinese dumplings (known as jiaozi) since they're a traditional New Year dish. Happy Year of the Monkey! About a year ago, we were invited to dinner at our neighbors' house. They are a wonderful couple from Shanghai. They taught us the art of dumpling making. It was delightful if not time consuming. For our country night, I decided to brush out my notes from that dinner and the results were delicious. I used pre-made dumpling wrappers so I guess that's cheating. Oh well. Pork Dumplings Ingredients 1 and a half packages of dumpling wrappers 1 cup ground pork 1 tbsp soy sauce 1 tbsp rice wine 3 tbsp sesame oil 3 green onions chopped 1 1/2 cups of shredded napa cabbage 1 tbsp minced fresh ginger 2 garlic cloves minced Preparation Mix all the ingredients for the filling. Place 1.5 tsp of filling in each wrapper. Using a to