Biscuits

1 C Whole Milk, fridge cold

2 Tbsp Lemon juice

2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

2 C unbleached All Purpose Flour, plus more for dusting

¼ Tsp Baking Soda

1 Tbsp Baking Powder

1 Tsp Kosher Salt

6 Tbsp cubed Unsalted Butter, fridge cold

Heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a clean dry bowl add milk and lemon juice and let sit for a few minutes, until the milk starts to curdle.

Combine all ingredients in a clean dry bowl and mix well.  Using your fingertips, break up the fridge cold butter into pea size pieces and mix through the dry ingredients.

Add vanilla extract to curdled milk and lemon juice then add this wet mix to the dry mix with butter.  Using the handle end of a wooden spoon, mix till it is a wettish clumpy dough.  Transfer to fridge for a few minutes to make sure all ingredients are fridge cold again.

Turn the dough out into a well floured clean surface and form a rectangle using the palm of your hands, roughly 9” x 6”.  Fold the right third of the dough over the middle and then fold the left third over the rest so there are three layers stacked on top of one another.  Flip the dough and flatten with your palm once agin to 9” x 6” rectangle.  Repeat this process 4 times minimum, ensuring that the working surface is dusted enough so that the dough does not stick throughout.  Transfer the dough to a parchment lined baking sheet and refrigerate for 5- 10 minutes again.

Cut chilled dough into 6 evenly sized biscuits and space them out on the tray so that they are not touching.  Place in oven and bake for 9 minutes, turn tray and cook for another 4 minutes.  They biscuits should be puffy, flaky and golden brown.

Serve with Honey Butter (below recipe)

Honey Butter

1/2 lb room temperature Unsalted Butter

1/4 C Honey

1 1/2 Tbsp Icing Sugar

Add all ingredients to a clean dry bowl and mix with a rubber spatula until evenly combined.

Store any unused Honey Butter in the fridge in a sealed container.

Arepas

• 1 C Masa Arepa (Pre Cooked Dehydrated Fine Ground Corn)
• 1 1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 1/4 C Water
• 2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil

Combine corn flour and salt in a clean stainless bowl, add water and mix till well combined then cover with a

plate. Let dough rest for 20 minutes to allow the water to absorb. Split the dough into 4 equal sized balls

and form each into a hockey puck shape. Have a small bowl of water nearby to help form the pucks, using

the water to smooth any cracks as you go. Let rest another couple minutes to let the surface moisture

absorb.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Preheat a large cast iron pan to medium heat.

Rub both of the flat sides of each formed arepa dough with vegetable oil and place in preheated pan, making

sure to gently press down on each arepa in the pan. Let the arepa cook till medium brown then flip and

repeat, each side should take approximately 5 minutes. Once both sides are browned, place in the oven for

15 minutes to fully cook.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to handle. Using a sharp knife, cut the arepa in half

horizontally. Fill the arepa with your favourite fillings, there a few ideas below to get you started.

Arepa Bar Filling Ideas

Folded Omelette with herbs

Your favourite cheese

Deli Meats

Fresh Herbs

Chopped Chilies

Guava Cheese

Avocado

Chicken or Tuna Salad

Your favorite Jam

Grilled / Braised Meats

Chopped Hard Boiled Eggs

Pickled Vegetables

• ó C chopped Unsweetened Chocolate
• ó C chopped Roasted Peanuts (shells and skins removed)
• 1 C All Purpose Flour
• 1 Tsp Baking Powder
• ó Tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 Stick Unsalted Butter at room temperature
• ó C Smooth Peanut Butter (not natural peanut butter)
• 1 C packed Light Brown Sugar
• 2 Eggs at room temperature
• 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, for sprinkling
• Confectioners’ Sugar, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Chop unsweetened chocolate to roughly the size of garlic cloves and add to clean dry stainless steel

bowl. Add chopped peanuts, flour, baking powder and salt to same bowl then set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream butter and brown sugar together until smooth. Add eggs one at a time

making sure to completely incorporate each egg before adding the next. Using a rubber spatula, add

peanut butter and combine till smooth followed by the dry mixture with chopped nuts and chopped

chocolate; mix until just combined.

Form the dough into golf ball sized balls and place on a parchment‐lined tray, leaving about 2 inches

between each cookie. Bake for 10 minutes until cookies are set but still have soft centers, 10 to 12

minutes. Cool on the baking sheet until they are slightly above room temperature, about 10 minutes.

Using an offset spatula, transfer cookies from tray to a wire rack and cool completely.

Sprinkle half of the cookies with cocoa powder and the other half with icing sugar using a fine‐mesh

strainer.

Egg Crepes

• 4 large free run Eggs
• 1/2 Tsp ground Turmeric

Preheat a non stick 8” skillet to low heat.  

Using a whisk, beat eggs and turmeric together till smoothly combined.  

Using a 1/4 cup measure, pour egg mixture into lightly oiled preheated skillet.  Move the pan around so that the egg forms an even layer in the pan.  Allow the egg to cook for about 1 minute then, using a heat resistant rubber spatula, remove gently from the skillet and place on a tray.  Repeat until all egg is used up, you will have 4 egg crepes.  

Cranberry Grapefruit Chutney

• 3/4 C freshly squeezed Grapefruit juice
• 1/2 Tsp lightly packed Grapefruit zests
• 1 C frozen whole Cranberries
• 1 Tbsp + 1 Tsp Honey
• pinch of Kosher Salt

Place all ingredients in a small sauce pot and simmer over low heat for approximately 20 minutes or until cranberries burst and the sauce forms a thick jam like consistency.   Mix the contents of the pan so that it still retains some texture but all the cranberries are mushed down.  Cool completely. 

Add honey and kosher salt and stir till evenly mixed.  Set aside and allow to cool fully.  

Putting It Together

• 8 pieces of fresh Chive
• 2 Avocados julienned 
• 1/4 C freshly picked Mint
• Kosher salt to season
• freshly ground Black Peppercorns to season
• Maldon Sea Salt to finish

Bring a small pot of water to the boil.  Submerge chives in hot water and when they change color and soften, after about 30 seconds, remove using a slotted spoon and transfer to a bowl with cold tap water.  Allow to cool fully, drain, then set aside.  

Place a crepe on a flat clean surface cooked side down.  Place avocado on the lower third from end to end of crepe and season with salt and pepper.  Add roughly 3/4 Tbsp of cranberry chutney from end to end beside the avocado.  Evenly distribute 1/4 of the fresh mint on top of chutney.  Roll up the crepe like a cigar, tightly but gently.  Using a very sharp thin knife, trim the ends of the cigar so that it is cleanly cut; removing about 1/4” off of each end.  You want straight clean edges and you will have to rinse knife after each cut.  

Slide a piece of chive gently under the cigar roll until it is about 2” from the end of the cigar and tie into a knot, repeat on the opposite end.  Cut the cigar roll in exactly half so that you now have two Golden Egg Rolls. 

Repeat until all of the egg rolls and chives are used up.  You will have made 8 Golden Egg Rolls by the time you are done.   Sprinkle each with a little bit of Maldon large crystal sea salt.  

Serve immediately.  

Beet Hummus

• 3 cups trimmed, peeled, and roughly diced Red Beets
• 1/3 cup (80 mL) olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) toasted sliced almonds
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/3 cup (80 mL) olive oil
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) ground cumin
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt

For garnish

• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) toasted cumin seed
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) lemon zest
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) toasted sliced almonds for garnish

Add diced beets and first amount of olive oil to blender.  Using plunger attachment, pulse and blend on medium low to start pureeing mixture.  Remove plunger, cover with lid and increase speed to high.  Blend on high for 7 minutes, until beets are just cooked through.  With blender off, carefully remove lid (mixture will be hot) and scrape beet mixture down and off lid.

Add almonds, garlic, remaining amount of olive oil, ground cumin, lemon juice and salt.  Blend on high until mixture is smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.

Let mixture cool.  Place into serving bowl, and garnish with toasted whole cumin seeds, lemon zest, olive oil and additional toasted sliced almonds.  Serve with pita chips.

• 4 ears Corn, husked
• 2 Limes, halved
• 1 Tbsp Five-spice Powder
• Kosher Salt

Preheat a grill to medium-high, and lightly oil the grate.  Arrange the corn on the grates, and let them cook through and char, turning frequently, approximately 15 minutes.  Rub the grilled corn with the limes and season with five-spice powder, then salt to taste.

Curry Chicken

• 3/4 C fresh Cilantro
• 1/2 C fresh Parsley
• 3 Garlic cloves
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/4 C Vegetable Oil
• 1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
• 1/2 Tsp freshly ground Black Peppercorn
• 6 skinless, bone-in Chicken Thighs (about 2.5 lb /1.2 kg), each thigh cut into 3 pieces
• 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil
• 1 cooking Onion, chopped
• 6 Garlic cloves, smashed
• 3 Tbsp mild Curry Powder (Lalah’s brand recommended)
• 2 C low-sodium Chicken Stock
• 2 1/2 C peeled and diced White Potato (about 1 large)
• 1 can (19 oz/540 mL) Chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• Kosher Salt to taste

In a food processor, combine cilantro, parsley, garlic, Worcestershire, oil, salt and pepper. Pulse until mixture is a fragrant paste; there should still be very small pieces of herbs visible. Evenly coat chicken thighs with marinade. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour, ideally overnight for best flavour.

In a large pot, bring coconut oil to medium high heat. Add onions and garlic; sauté until very dark golden brown, about 7-8 minutes. Add curry powder and cook out for a minute, then add chicken pieces, including the marinade. Let moisture from the marinade cook out slightly, allowing the chicken to sear, about 3-4 minutes each side. Add chicken stock, gently scraping bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to lift up any delicious browned bits. Bring mixture up to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes before adding in diced potatoes. Return to a simmer for another 15 minutes, then add chickpeas, stir and simmer uncovered for a final 20 minutes. To thicken up the curry slightly, smash a few of the chickpeas and potatoes with a fork against the side of the pot and fold back into the sauce. Simmer a few minutes longer to let it all come together. Check seasoning, adding salt to taste. Keep warm for roti assembly.

For Roti Assembly & Serving

• Wax Paper
• Dhal Puri roti skins*
• Curry Chicken, above
• Hot Sauce to taste (Yellow Caribbean-style Scotch Bonnet sauce recommended)
• Paper Bags

Time to assemble! For each serving, place a roti skin on top of an equal-sized square of wax paper. Scoop a generous amount of curry chicken (about 3 pieces of chicken, with an even amount of potatoes, chickpeas and sauce) onto the centre of the roti skin. Season with hot sauce to taste.

Next, fold over the left side of the circle, like wrapping a present, then the right, followed by the top and bottom edges, forming a squat, firmly packed rectangle. Confidently flip your filled roti, seam-side down on the wax paper. Roll the paper up firmly, folding the open ends in to seal. Place the whole package into a paper bag. You’re all set to enjoy a taste of Trinidad!

*Thin Caribbean flatbread filled with seasoned ground split peas. Look for in West Indian grocery shops.