Around the World in Foodventures (Seychelles: OCTOPUS CURRY)

It's been a while, eh?  The world is focused on another topic right now, as have been I.  With Covid-19 doing it's thing, we've been minimizing our number of trips to the supermarket and definitely haven't been too interested in visiting multiple stores to gather unique or hard-to-find ingredients.  But walking by the frozen fish case a couple weeks ago, I did happen to see octopus -- so I grabbed a package knowing that Seychellois Octopus Curry was next up on my list.  Then I had to wait for Amazon to finally send me the coconut milk I couldn't find anywhere in person, as well as some Saffron.

I never imagined I'd cook with this critter (who funnily enough turned out to be a septopus rather than an octopus - I wonder what happened to it?), but here it is:

I basically followed the recipe at: https://www.internationalcuisine.com/octopus-curry/), but when it wasn't turning out nearly the color shown, decided to also reference this (http://lenautique.sc/blog/2016/08/31/creole-recipes-octopus-curry/) and this (http://globaltableadventure.com/recipe/recipe-massale-spice-blend/) -- which led me to add a little bit of curry powder, chili powder, and cayenne pepper.

Frankly, I'm not a huge fan of this dish.  There's nothing wrong with it and it's not bad.  It's just not my thing.  I honestly think I'm mainly turned off by the octopus itself (I've never really liked calamari or anything of the sort), and I guess I thought the eggplant would have absorbed more of the curry flavor than it did.  ((((shrug))))  I don't think I have anything else left to say other than....

Stay safe.  Stay healthy.  Flatten the curve.  ❤🧡💛💚💙💜

Oh, and I have like 3 or 4 more frozen little octopuses that I have no idea what to do with (nor do I really want to eat them).  Want any???

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Parsnip-Leek Soup

This soup is Vegan / Plant-Based and Gluten-Free.

INGREDIENTS:

• Vegetable Oil
• 1 large leek (sliced fairly thin)
• a generous pinch or two of salt
• 1 teaspoon of Black Pepper
• 1 heaping teaspoon of Minced Garlic
• 1 box (4 cups) of Vegetable Broth
• 2 cups of Water
• 1 pound of Parsnips (chopped)
• fresh Rosemary (~2 Tablespoons, chopped)
• fresh Sage (just a few leaves, chopped)

PROCEDURE:

1. In a medium pot -- saute the leeks in some oil, along with the garlic, salt, and pepper until the leeks are soft and smell delicious (maybe about 5 -10 minutes?).
2. Pour in the broth and water, and dump in the rest of the ingredients (parsnips, rosemary, and sage).
3. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer (covered) for 20 minutes (or until the parsnips are soft enough to mash).
4. Puree the soup using either a stick blender or by transferring the soup (in batches if necessary) to a regular blender.
5. If needed, adjust the spices to your liking -- then enjoy!

This post is an original recipe that I created from scratch.

My goal is to share my love of food simply -- without all the fluff (unless it's Marshmallow Fluff!), long winded stories, excessive and repetitive photos, or incessant rambling that I see on other blogs.  I personally tend to skip over all that, just scrolling straight to the bottom in hopes of finding the recipe right away.  Therefore, I hope you appreciate the brevity above.

** You'll also never find ads here. **

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or
contact me directly using the form near the top of the right-hand column.

Around the World in Foodventures (Chile: PASTEL DE CHOCLO)

When I read that the national dish of Chile is Curanto, "a stew that...consists of every meat and seafood ingredient imaginable," it just didn't grab me.  There's nothing bad about it (don't get me wrong!) -- it's just that the really large amount of different meats and seafood seemed like a lot, and also, it sort of felt too similar to something like a traditional New England Clambake to be....adventurous?  So, I searched on and found Pastel de Choclo, which is sometimes also said to be a national dish of Chile, but even if it's not officially is in any case traditional and popular. 

I browsed a lot of Pastel de Choclo recipes, because I couldn't believe the odd mix of ingredients I was seeing (beef, corn, olives, raisins, hard-boiled eggs, and sugar) -- but soon realized that it was for real.  The strange melange combines to become what amounts to a Shepherd's Pie of sorts, and it's quite tasty:

Some recipes call for chicken in addition to the ground beef; some don't.  I decided to omit that particular component, even though the recipe I settled on did list it.  Here's what I followed: https://www.thespruceeats.com/pastel-de-choclo-beef-corn-casserole-3029546.

The sweetness in this rustic plate is really nice.  You should try it.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Creamy Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

This soup is neither Vegan / Plant-Based, nor Gluten-Free -- but can be made
so by using Vegetable Stock in place of the Chicken Stock, and Corn Starch in
place of the Flour.  (Though, any liquid swap out will affect the flavor somewhat.)

INGREDIENTS:

• One 4.5-ounce package of Carolina Long Grain & Wild Rice with Seasonings (or some equivalent amount with or without spices added) 
• One box (~4 cups) of Chicken Broth
• One bunch of Scallions (chopped)
• 1/2 cup of Heavy Cream
• 1/2 cup of Milk
• 2 Tablespoons of All-Purpose Flour 
• 1/4 teaspoon Dried Thyme
• 1/8 teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1/8-1/2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 1.5 cups of sliced (Button or Baby Bella) Mushrooms
• 1 Tablespoon of Brandy

PROCEDURE:

1. Put the chicken stock and rice into a medium pot, bring it to a boil, then simmer (covered) for about 15 minutes.
2. Add the scallions and cook for 10 more minutes or until the rice is tender.
3. Mix together the flour, all the spices, the cream, and the milk -- then add this mixture to the pan along with the mushrooms.  Bring the heat back up to medium-high, and stir until it begins boiling again.
4. Reduce the heat back down to a simmer, add the brandy, and cook on low until the mushrooms are done (about 10 more minutes). 
5. You'll get 3 - 4 good size bowls of soup when done.

This post is an original recipe that I created from scratch.

My goal is to share my love of food simply -- without all the fluff (unless it's Marshmallow Fluff!), long winded stories, excessive and repetitive photos, or incessant rambling that I see on other blogs.  I personally tend to skip over all that, just scrolling straight to the bottom in hopes of finding the recipe right away.  Therefore, I hope you appreciate the brevity above.

** You'll also never find ads here. **

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or

contact me directly using the form near the top of the right-hand column.

Chipotle Sweet Potato Soup with Roasted Red Peppers

This soup Vegan / Plant-Based, Gluten-Free, and spicy!
If you want to tone down the hot, feel free to add some
cream, but then obviously it won't be vegan anymore.
Another option would be to use fewer Chipotle peppers.

INGREDIENTS:

• Vegetable Oil of your choice 
• 1 teaspoon of Kosher Salt 
• 1 teaspoon of Ground Black Pepper 
• 1/2 of a Yellow Onion (chopped) 
• 2 stalks of Celery (chopped) 
• 1 large Carrot (chopped) 
• 2 heaping teaspoons Minced Garlic 
• 3 very large Sweet Potatoes (chopped) 
• 8-ounces of jarred Roasted Red Peppers 
• 3 Chipotles in Adobo (chopped) 
• One 32-ounce box of Vegetable Stock 
• Water 
• 1/2 cup of Maple Syrup
  

PROCEDURE:

1. In a big soup pot -- sauté the onion, celery, and carrot, with the Salt and Pepper, in a few Tablespoons of oil until things start to look translucent and soft. Add the garlic towards the end. 
2. Once the garlic cooks for a couple of minutes, add the sweet potatoes, roasted red peppers, chipotles, vegetable stock, and enough water to cover everything (in my case, this was another 32-ounces...I used the veggie stock box to measure).
3.  Bring it to a boil and cook for 20 - 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are mushy.
4.  Add the maple syrup, and then carefully puree everything together (either using a stick blender right in the pot, or by transferring it in batches to a regular, counter-top blender).
5.  Enjoy as-is if you like spicy food, or swirl some cream into your bowl if you'd prefer to mellow it out.

This post is an original recipe that I created from scratch.

My goal is to share my love of food simply -- without all the fluff (unless it's Marshmallow Fluff!), long winded stories, excessive and repetitive photos, or incessant rambling that I see on other blogs.  I personally tend to skip over all that, just scrolling straight to the bottom in hopes of finding the recipe right away.  Therefore, I hope you appreciate the brevity above.

** You'll also never find ads here. **

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or

contact me directly using the form near the top of the right-hand column.

BBQ Sliders (Meat v. Plant-Based), and Asian Oven Wings

This foodventure is brought to you by a combination of using-up-all-the-meat … and … things-hanging-around-in-the-fridge … and … cooking with my very favorite kitchen partner, The Husband.  First we made our weekly potluck contribution (BBQ Sliders and Asian Oven Wings), which resulted in us no longer having meat in our house (to which I'm not sad at all)* -- and then by happenstance this evening I put together what look to be the same BBQ Sliders, except now they are Plant-Based.

* This doesn't mean we won't ever eat meat; but I don't plan to store it here anymore -- when we do eat it, we'll only buy fresh what we need for that instance.

Straightaway, here are the recipes, in order:

BBQ Sliders (meaty)

INGREDIENTS (measurements on this one are a little vague because, as I said, I was using things up that needed using):

• 3 pork hocks
• a pile of beef short ribs
• a couple chunks of chorizo
• some boneless pork butt (shoulder)
• the last inch or so of a half-gallon carton of apple cider
• several heaping teaspoons of minced garlic
• fresh thyme and rosemary
• a little bit of onion powder
• 3 stalks of celery (chopped)
• a salsa-sized jar (because that's how we store it) of BBQ sauce.  We used The Husband's super secret and best ever BBQ sauce; you can make your own sauce or pick whatever prepared kind you like.

PROCEDURE:

1. Put everything except the BBQ sauce into a large crock pot and cook on high for 6 – 7 hours, stirring occasionally, until all the meats are easily falling off their bones.
2. Separate all the meat from the inedible and undesirable bits (bones, cartilage, skin), and shred it. Then combine with the BBQ sauce.
3. Serve on slider buns with your favorite pickles.
4. Add cheese, or slaw, or anything else you want.

*****************************************************************

Asian Oven Wings - recipe 100% by The Husband

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups of tamari
• 3/4 cup of rice vinegar
• a splash of Cheongju (Korean rice wine)
• a splash of sesame oil
• 1 knob of ginger (grated)
• ~ 4 Tablespoons of minced garlic
• 1 bunch of scallions (chopped)
• 2 Tablespoons of light brown sugar
• ~ 1 cup of water
• One dozen chicken wings

PROCEDURE:

1. Make a marinade by mixing everything except the chicken in a bowl.
2. Cut off and discard the wing tips, then separate the drumettes from the wingettes ... resulting in about 24 pieces.
3. Put the chicken and marinade into a zip-top bag, mix well, squeeze out the air, and let it sit in the fridge (inside a leakproof container so you don’t get chicken goop all over your fridge) for 24 hours, flipping the bag over once halfway through.
4. Remove from the marinade and bake on a sheet pan in a 375⁰ oven for 45 minutes (or until cooked through).
5. Enjoy!
6. (You could also boil and reduce the marinade down to form an additional sauce to pour over the cooked wings -- but we didn't do that because I dumped it down the sink too fast -- oops!)

*****************************************************************

Jackfruit (Plant-Based) BBQ Sliders
-- I find it very amusing that a little bit of the filling fell out on the bottom left
just like it did with the original meat slider -- I swear this was not staged --

I basically followed Sam Turnbull's "6 Ingredient Pulled Jackfruit" recipe (with very minor deviations in ingredient amounts), so will write here in my own words exactly what I did...

INGREDIENTS:

• One 20-ounce can of Jackfruit in brine, sliced along the grain
• 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil
• 1/2 of a Yellow Onion, sliced thin
• Several heaping teaspoons of minced garlic
• 1/2-cup of Vegetable Broth
• 1/2-cup BBQ sauce (I used Pepper Palace Cinnamon & Apples Barbeque Sauce** because that's what we had on hand with just the right amount left in the bottle)

** This BBQ sauce is technically not vegan because it has honey in it, but it's close enough for me.

PROCEDURE:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400⁰.
2. Sautée the onion and garlic in the olive oil over medium-high heat until the onions are soft and start to brown.
3. Add the jackfruit and vegetable broth, stir well, cover, and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
4. "Mash" it all together with a potato masher.  The jackfruit should become shredded looking at this point.
5. Spread it out onto a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes or until it starts to dry out.
6. Mix in about 2/3 of the BBQ sauce and bake for 10-15 more minutes or until you start to see tiny "burnt" spots.
7. Serve on slider buns with your favorite pickles.

THE BOTTOM LINE? --- I would happily eat Jackfruit sliders any day instead of true meat sliders.  The sauce is what makes it, anyways, as far as I'm concerned.  But moreover, I know I've made a pretty excellent vegan food when I find myself feeling like I should eat less of it because my brain instinctively thinks it bad for me.  That's my gut reaction to my vegan chili, and is what's happening here. 

*****************************************************************

This post contains original recipes that I and my husband created from scratch,
as well as one borrowed from another blogger.

My goal is to share my love of food simply -- without all the fluff (unless it's Marshmallow Fluff!), long winded stories, or incessant rambling that I see on other blogs and personally tend to skip over, just scrolling right to the bottom in hopes of finding the ingredients and instructions faster.  Therefore, I hope you appreciate the brevity above.

** You'll also never find ads here. **

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or

contact me directly using the form near the top of the right-hand column.

Curried Rice

We didn't prepare ahead of time for our weekly potluck like we usually do, so yesterday morning I found myself roaming around the kitchen working out what I could make using what we had on hand and without having to stop for groceries along the way.  This curried rice is what I came up with, and was pleasantly surprised by more than one "Wow" or "Damn, you nailed it" reaction.

This rice is Vegan / Plant-Based and Gluten Free.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of Slivered Almonds
• 1-2 Tablespoons of chopped Red Onion (because that's what was lying leftover in fridge)
• 2-3 Tablespoons minced Garlic
• 1 Banana Pepper, seeds and ribs removed, chopped
• 2-3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
• Kosher Salt
• ground Black Pepper
• 4-5 cups of Vegetable Broth
• 2 cups of Basmati Rice
• 3+ Tablespoons of AuntieArwen’s Muchi Mughul Curry Blend
• 2 handfuls of Golden Raisins
• 2 handfuls of Regular Raisins
• 2 handfuls of Jabsons Nimboo Pudina flavor Roasted Chana
•  ~1/3 cup of Pepitas

PROCEDURE:

1. Toast the almonds in a dry pan until they start to brown.  Set aside.
2. In whatever pot you will use to cook the rice -- sauté the onion, garlic, and banana pepper in the olive oil with an amount of salt & pepper that is to your liking.
3. Once everything begins to soften, add 4 cups of the vegetable broth, all of the dry rice, and 3 Tablespoons of the curry powder.
4. Bring it to a boil, cover the pot, and reduce the heat to a simmer.  Stir occasionally.
5. About halfway through cooking, add the Raisins and the Roasted Chana.
6. Continue simmering and stirring occasionally until the rice is cooked all the way through, adding more vegetable stock and/or water if needed.
7. When the rice is done, taste and adjust the spices (salt, pepper, curry powder) if needed.
8. Finally, stir in the toasted almonds and pepitas, and serve.

This post is an original recipe that I created from scratch.

My goal is to share my love of food simply -- without all the fluff (unless it's Marshmallow Fluff!), long winded stories, or incessant rambling that I see on other blogs and personally tend to skip over, just scrolling right to the bottom in hopes of finding the ingredients and instructions faster.  Therefore, I hope you appreciate the brevity above.

** You'll also never find ads here. **

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or

contact me directly using the form near the top of the right-hand column.

Around the World in Foodventures (Spain: BACALAO AL PIL-PIL)

There are a lot of dishes from Spain that really grabbed me, sounded super delicious, and frankly would have made for a much sexier photo --  but I decided to put a pin in those for later exploration, and instead chose to make Bacalao Al Pil-Pil . . . because I'd never before heard of emulsifying oil with fish gelatine to create a sauce, and that seemed like an intriguing new skill to acquire.

Specifically from Basque Country, Bacalao Al Pil-Pil is unsurprisingly all about salt cod.  And while I can't say it's the most delicious thing I've ever tasted, it is yummy and quite hearty.  I certainly wouldn't reject it if I came across it again.

All you need are four or five ingredients -- depending on whether you use any herbs -- and about a half hour (after 2 full days of soaking the fish to de-salt it, of course) to do a quick bit of chopping then babysit a pan.

With a bit of research, I settled on some combination of these four recipes and YouTube videos:

• https://www.bascofinefoods.com/spanish-recipes/bacalao-pil-pil-recipe/
• https://www.thespruceeats.com/cod-with-pil-pil-sauce-recipe-3083183
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HA_kF-5NsA
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BJOUFpJP3Q

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Butternut Squash & Cabbage Soup

This soup is Vegan / Plant-Based and Gluten Free.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 large carrot (chopped)
• 2 large stalks of celery (chopped)
• 1 medium yellow onion (chopped)
• An unholy amount of minced garlic (I dunno, it was probably 4 heaping spoonfuls)
• 1/2 of a butternut squash (chopped)
• 1/2 of a head of cabbage (sliced into thin strips)
• Pepitas (roasted pumpkin seeds)
• 1 box (~ 4 cups) of vegetable stock
• 2-3 Tablespoons of AuntieArwen’s Muchi Mughul Curry Blend.
• Kosher salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• Oil

PROCEDURE:

1. In a big pot with a little bit of oil at the bottom -- sauté the carrot, celery, onion, and garlic. Add some salt and pepper while this is happening.
2. Once things are mostly translucent -- add the butternut squash, vegetable stock, and curry powder.
3. Bring it all to a boil, then simmer until the squash is....squishy.
4. Using either a stick blender or by transferring the mix into a regular blender (in batches if necessary), puree the soup.
5. Add the cabbage, and simmer for another 10-15 minutes or until the cabbage is softened yet still retains some of its crunch.
6. Adjust the spices to your liking, and serve the soup topped with some pepitas.

This post is an original recipe that I created from scratch.

My goal is to share my love of food simply -- without all the fluff (unless it's Marshmallow Fluff!), long winded stories, or incessant rambling that I see on other blogs and personally tend to skip over, just scrolling right to the bottom in hopes of finding the ingredients and instructions faster.  Therefore, I hope you appreciate the brevity above.

** You'll also never find ads here. **

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or

contact me directly using the form near the top of the right-hand column.

Around the World in Foodventures (Sudan: MOUKHBAZA and KUINDIONG)

Sudanese sweets!  That's what I'm up to today.  Specifically, from the Eastern part of the country I made Moukhbaza (spicy mashed banana), and from the South came Kuindiong (a pudding of sorts).

They are both really easy, requiring simple ingredients and just a little bit of time.  And while neither is very exciting to look at, they're pretty unique and darn delicious.

If I had to pick one over the other, the Moukhbaza (shown here on the red plate) would be my 2nd place finisher today, because my oh my is that green bowl of Kuindiong good.  It's basically a cream of wheat -- but the topping (brought to life by literally frying plain, unsweetened yogurt in butter) somehow comes out tasting like caramel and puts it in the absolute win column.

Recipe for Moukhbaza: https://www.theafricangourmet.com/2016/11/recipe-sudanese-moukhbaza-something.html

Recipe for Kuindiong: https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/sweetened-semolina-kuindiong

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Norway: SMÖRGÅSBORD)

When I learned what the national dish of Norway is, I felt pretty "meh" about it -- not because it wouldn't be delicious, but because it's so simple to make, doesn't contain any ingredients that are new to me, and wouldn't teach me any skills.  So, I went searching for other Norwegian things . . . and then had a hard time choosing which to make.  What this ended up causing, fittingly enough, is a smörgåsbord!  It contains:

1. Fårikål (a simple lamb and cabbage stew) served over boiled, buttered potatoes;
2. Gravlaks (Norway's version of lox) with a Dill-Mustard Sauce; and
3. Julekake (a heavily -cardamom- spiced cake usually reserved for Christmastime) with some Gjetost* on the side.

* Gjetost is a full fat whey cheese with a fudgy texture and sweet caramel flavor.  It's divine.  We've had it before thanks to a friend's semi-annual cheese party, and when I saw that it's sometimes served alongside Julekake, I thought "um, okay, yesplease."

For the Fårikål, I tossed a little less than a pound of lamb meat (cut into large chunks) with a couple Tablespoons of flour, then layered it in a pot with wedges of cabbage (a little more than half a head, cored), salt, and whole peppercorns.  I used a good handful of peppercorns when all was said and done.  Then I put about a cup of water in the pan and simmered it until everything was cooked and tender.  It was a combination of these recipes:

• https://northwildkitchen.com/farikal-norwegian-lamb-cabbage-stew/
• https://www.matoppskrift.no/sider/recipe_2118967762.asp
• https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/83349/farikal/

For the Gravlaks, I combined this recipe (https://www.goodlifeeats.com/norwegian-salmon-gravlax-recipe/) with this one (https://www.gct.com/community/the-inside-scoop/the-buzz/recipe-a-scandinavian-smorgasbord) and came up with my own procedure:

• Mix 3 Tbsp kosher salt with 2 Tbsp granulated sugar, 1 tsp freshly ground pepper (1/2 white - 1/2 black), and 1 handful of coarsely chopped fresh dill.
• Put half of the mixture on each side of a salmon fillet about the size of my hand (skin still on), sprinkling each side with half the brandy, and then wrap it all tightly in plastic.
• Keep it in the fridge for 72 hours, weighted down to press out the liquid that forms, and turning it over every 12 hours.
• After 72 hours, rinse it off and slice an at an extreme angle.  Serve with the mustard sauce (I used the recipe, as is, from the second link).

For the Julekake, I simply followed this recipe: http://www.outside-oslo.com/julekake-norwegian-christmas-bread/.  I would have done homemade candied citron if I had to, but (1) I couldn't find citron at our market, and (2) it's close enough to post-Christmas that the store still had pre-packaged candied citron left; so I just used that.

Yeah yeah, maybe I went a little crazy this time.  😋

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as I'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain