Carnival tabanca

IT is "Carnival time" here in TT and although we will all be celebrating in our hearts this year; this too shall pass. Carnival is a part of our DNA. Whether we masquerade, are pan jumbies, J’Ouvert revellers or partygoers, there is something in our Carnival for everyone, young and old.

It’s also a lucrative time for food vendors and fast-food outlets as they pull their portable kitchens roadside and peddle their wares, so to speak. Come Carnival Monday and Tuesday there is no shortage of corn soup, boiled corn, shark and bake, souse and Indian delicacies, just to name a few.

All this certainly won't be happening this year, but you can recreate those Carnival tastes in your home kitchens and enjoy them whilst reminiscing and enjoying any of the virtual shows, with soca and calypso, new and old, and of course pan music.

Spicy fish turnovers

1 lb boneless fish fillets, steamed

Salt and freshly-ground black pepper

1 egg

1 tsp hot pepper sauce

½ tsp fresh lime juice

½ cup finely-chopped mixed herbs, (parsley, thyme, chadon beni, chives)

1 large potato, peeled, boiled and crushed

2 large cloves garlic, minced

breadcrumbs

mustard

coconut oil for frying

Flake fish and remove bones, add all other ingredients and mix well.

Taste and adjust seasoning

Dough

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

4 tbs shortening

Combine flour with baking powder, salt and butter. Add water to make a soft but pliable and non-sticky dough.

Knead into a ball and let rest.

Divide dough into 10 pieces, and roll each piece into a ball. Rest for 5 minutes.

Roll each piece of dough into a 5-inch circle.

Place about 1-2 tablespoons of the filling onto the lower portion of the circle, and bring the upper portion over lower portion to cover in a half-moon shape.

Seal and continue until all the dough and filling are used up.

Heat oil in a frying pan and shallow fry pies until golden brown.

Drain and serve.

Makes 10 pies.

Shark is not my fish of preference, due to it being unsustainable and because sometimes there may be the presence of heavy metals in the meat. Using other types of fish will give the same if not better results.

Mini bake and fish with chadon beni pesto

20 chadon beni leaves

2 large Spanish thyme leaves

6 cloves garlic

½ cup olive oil

1 hot pepper, seeded and chopped

juice of one large lime

1 tbs white vinegar

salt to taste

Puree all the ingredient except the oil; then add the oil to make a thick emulsion.

Breaded fish

1 lb fresh fish fillets,

1 tsp ground chives

1 tbs minced chadon beni

2 clove garlic, minced

juice of one lime

salt and freshly-ground black pepper

flour to dredge fish

coconut oil for frying fish

Wash fish in flour, cut into bite-sized pieces, season with herbs garlic and lime juice.

Season with salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste.

Heat oil in frying pan, dredge fish in flour and fry until golden.

Drain and serve with floats.

Floats

4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp yeast

1 tbs sugar

1 tbs shortening

water

coconut oil for frying

Combine flour with salt, sugar and shortening. Rub in shortening until mixture resembled fine crumbs; add enough warm water to make a soft dough.

Knead for five minutes, form into a smooth ball, cover and rest for 30 minutes until doubled in size.

Form dough into 12 balls. Let rise again for 15 minutes.

Flatten balls into 3-inch rounds.

Heat oil in a deep skillet and deep fry floats until they actually float to the top of the oil. Turn and fry until golden. Drain and serve hot.

Makes 12

Trinidad corn soup with dumplings

8 cups beef stock or vegetable stock

¾ cup yellow split peas, picked and washed

1 lb English potatoes, peeled and quartered

2 onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 carrots, diced

⅓ cup fresh thyme, chopped

¼ cup chopped celery

⅓ cup chopped chives

1 habanero pepper or hot pepper

4 pimento peppers, chopped and seeded

6 ears corn, cut into 2-inch pieces

½ cup chopped chadon beni or cilantro

½ cup coconut milk (optional)

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven heat stock, add split peas, potatoes, onions and garlic, carrots, thyme, celery, chives, and peppers, bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about one hour until peas are soft.

Puree soup to a thick and creamy consistency, return to pot.

Add corn and dumplings and coconut milk, if using,

Continue to cook for a further 20 minutes until corn and dumplings float to the surface.

Add chadon beni, remove from heat, taste and adjust seasonings.

If soup seems too thick you can add a little water.

Serves 6 to 8