Organised by the former Chairwoman of  Women in Diplomatic Service (WDS), the High Commissioner for Grenada, Ruth Elizabeth Rouse, many of London’s female Heads of Mission presented special dishes from their respective countries on the occasion of International Women’s Day at the High Commission for the Commonwealth of Dominica

Attendees Included:

HE Mrs Inaam Osseiran

Ambassador of Lebanon

Baklava

HE Ms Ruth Elizabeth Rouse

High Commissioner for Grenada

Camerhogne Nutmeg Cake

HE Mrs Ana Alban Mora

Ambassador of Ecuador

Ceviche

HE Mrs Dumsile Sukati

High Commissioner for Swaziland

Samp with Beans and Chicken

HE Mrs Esther Armenteros Cardenas

Ambassador of Cuba

Congri (Cuban Beans & Rice)

HE Mrs Mari-Cruz Evuna Andeme

Ambassador of Equatorial Guinea

Agombo

HE Ms Perla Perdomo

High Commissioner for Belize

Pork Pibil (Pulled Mayan Pork)

HE Ms Francine Baron

High Commissioner for Dominica

Manger Creole

HE Mrs Asta Skaisgiryte Liauskiene

Ambassador of Lithuania

Šakotis – Lithuanian traditional cake

 HE Mrs Marie-Pierre Lloyd

High Commissioner for The Seychelles

Ladob Patat (Sweet Potato in Coconut Milk)

Lithuania: ŠAKOTIS, traditional Lithuanian cake

Šakotis is a traditional Lithuanian cake, similar to Germany’s ‘Baumkuchen’ that has been around since the era of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The name means ‘branched,’ describing its distinctive shape and is baked by painting layers of batter onto a rotating spit in a special oven.

Often eaten at Lithuanian celebrations – especially weddings, birthdays and Christmas – Šakotis can be served decorated with chocolate and flower ornaments, but is also often eaten plain.

Ingredients:

50 eggs

1,250g butter

1,250g flour

800 g sugar

10g lemon essence

6 glasses cream (20% fat)

100g cognac

Preparation:

Beat the butter and sugar into a smooth paste. While stirring, add 1-2 eggs at a time until all eggs are used.

Add the flour and lemon essence, then the cream and cognac. Beat the paste to a smooth consistency. Bake šakotis in the special oven dripping the pastry slowly onto the rotating stick.  Serves up to 100 people!

Cuba: CONGRI,

Cuban beans

and rice

Preparation time:

40 minutes;

Cook time: 1 hour; Serves: 6

Wherever you go in Cuba, you’ll find the country’s most traditional dish: Congri. This version uses pork belly, but Congri is just as delicious without meat.

Ingredients

1 cup black beans

2 bay leaves

1 cup long grain rice

2 tablespoons olive oil

Sofrito

1 small onion diced

2-3 garlic gloves crushed

1 pork belly piece, bacon or spanish chorizo

½ red or green diced pepper

½ teaspoon cumin powder

1 small tomato chopped (optional)

1 teaspoon fresh coriander or mixed dry herbs

Preparation

Soak the black beans in water for a few hours or overnight.

Drain and reserve the liquid. Place the beans in a large saucepan and cover with water. Add the bay leaves. Boil for 45-60 minutes or until the beans are tender.

To prepare the sofrito, heat the olive oil in a fry pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes or until the onion softens. Add the pork belly and fry until brown. Add the capsicum, cumin, tomato and coriander, and cook for 5 minutes.

Place rice in a rice cooker or saucepan. Add the sofrito, reserved liquid, and 1 cup of drained cooked beans. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well and cook until rice is ready.

If you don’t have a rice cooker, then cook rice over low heat, stirring occasionally for 20-25 minutes until rice is soft.

A traditional Cuban feast will serve Congri with boiled cassava with garlic sauce and fried plantains. Accompany with a  lettuce, cucumber and tomato salad.

Belize: PORK PIBIL,

pulled Mayan pork

Ingredients:

5lb pork shoulder /pork leg

1 garlic bulb

1.5 tablespoons salt

2 teaspoons cumin

1.5 tablespoons all spice

1.5 fresh ground pepper

2 tablespoons diluted

red recado (Red recado

is a paste made from

ground chillis, achiote

and corn masa.)

1/2 cup sour orange juice

 2 medium onions quartered

1/4 cup of diced coriander

smoked banana leaves

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 165°C (325°F).

Pierce the pork skin

with a knife and insert

garlic cloves.

Mix all dry ingredients and then combine with red recardo diluted in orange juice and coat pork.  Marinate overnight.

Place pork in a large roasting pan lined with banana leaves and seal tightly with foil.

Bake for 5 hrs or until meat is very tender and starts to release from the bone. The dish can also be cooked in slow cooker on low for 12 hrs or on high for 6 hours. Serve warm.

Serves 6 to 8 people.

Swaziland: GNUSH, Samp with Beans and Chicken

This dish is traditionally eaten in winter, often with rice or buttered bread. There is no one definitive recipe, because nearly every family has its own variation.

Ingredients:

2lb chicken

1½ tablespoons salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

samp and beans (Samp is dried corn kernels that have been stamped and chopped until broken)

finely chopped onions

grated tomato

Preparation:

Add samp and beans to a big pot and rinse well.  Then half-fill the pot with water, add salt, samp and beans, and bring to a boil until cooked.

In another pot, braise onions in oil. When cooked, add meat and braise until tender. Add grated tomato, samp and beans. Cook on low heat for an hour and a half.

Before serving, add butter and let it simmer. Serve in a bowl with a side plate or buttered bread or rice.

Ecuador: CEVICHE

Preparation time: 15 minutes, 3-4 hours to let sit. Always use the freshest fish possible, and make the same day you purchase fresh fish.

Ingredients:

2lbs of firm, fresh red snapper fillets (or other firm-fleshed fish), cut into 1/2 inch pieces, completely deboned

1/2 cup of fresh

squeezed lime juice

1/2 cup of fresh

squeezed lemon juice

1/2 red onion, finely diced

1 cup of chopped

fresh seeded tomatoes

1 serrano chili,

seeded and finely diced

2 teaspoons of salt

dash of ground oregano

dash of Tabasco or

 a light pinch of cayenne pepper

coriander

avocado

tortillas or tortilla chips

Preparation:

In either a Pyrex or ceramic casserole dish, place the fish, onion, tomatoes, chili, salt, Tabasco and oregano. Cover with lime and lemon juice. Sit covered in the refrigerator for an hour, and then stir, making sure all of the fish is exposed to the acidic lime and lemon juices. Sit for several hours, giving time for the flavors to blend.

During the marinating process the fish will change from a pinkish grey translucent colour, to a whiter less opaque appearance. Serve with chopped coriander and slices of avocado with heated tortillas for ceviche tacos or with tortilla chips. Serves 4.

Seychelles: LADOB PATAT,

sweet potato in

coconut milk

Ingredients:

600g sweet potato

600ml coconut milk

(tinned or fresh)

160g sugar

5g salt

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

grated nutmeg

Preparation:

Peel and wash the sweet potato and cut into 3 inch chunks. Place all the ingredients into a cooking pot. Simmer, stirring occasionally until the potato is soft and the sauce has thickened. Serve hot or cold.

Equatorial Guinea: AGOMBO

Ingredients:

peanut butter

cassava

palm oil

prawns

salt and pepper

Preparation:

Grind the cassava and mix with peanut butter. Add palm oil, salt, prawns and pepper and mix for two minutes. Place mixture in aluminium foil, in desired shape and form. Cover mixture with aluminium foil and boil in water for around 40 minutes. When serving, drink with Tope.

DOMINICA: MANGA CREOLE

Manga Creole is a series of different dishes served together. Serves 6.

Salt fish Salad

Ingredients:

1 pack of saltfish

1 large onion

2 to 3 cloves garlic

1 chilli pepper

1 sweet red pepper

3 spring onions

3 tablespoons of oil

salt to taste

Preparation:

After soaking  the saltfish overnight in fresh water, par boil it for 10 minutes and then drain. Chop onions, garlic, chilli pepper, red sweet pepper and spring onions.  Heat oil in frying pan, and then add the onion and garlic and fry lightly. Then add shredded saltfish and other ingredients. Add salt to taste and serve with fresh tomato or cucumber salad.

Callaloo

Ingredients:

500g smoked meat

250g  plain flour, for dumplings

250g spinach

4 tania (root vegetable)

3 green bananas

4 small onions

2 garlic cloves

6 beef and 3 vegetable stock cubes

salt and pepper

Preparation:

Wash and boil the spinach, onions, cubes and garlic for 15 minutes, and blend the ingredients when cooled.

Wash the smoked meat with lemon or lime, cut into cubes and bring to boil for 15 minutes and then discard the water. Peel the tania and banana, and cut the banana in slices, and the tania in cubes. Bring the smoked meat back to the boil add the banana and tania, on boiling point add the dumplings. 10 minutes before cooking and the spinach mixture.

Bakes

Ingredients:

4 cups all purpose flour

 4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1 tablespoon salted butter

lukewarm water

oil for deep frying

cinnamon (optional)

Preparation:

Sift flour into bowl, add margarine, baking powder, salt, sugar and cinnamon (if using) to a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Knead the ingredients into a ball and then shape into small balls and flatten each one. Place flat balls in heated oil in a frying pan and fry until golden brown on both sides.  Drain on kitchen paper.

Fried Breadfruit

Ingredients:

1 breadfruit

2 to 3 tablespoons oil

Preparation:

Take one breadfruit, remove the stalk and cut it into four pieces and place it in a pot of boiling water and cook until tender. Peel the skin and core away from the breadfruit slices. Heat oil in a frying pan and place slices in oil. Fry for 1 to 2 minutes on both sides. Drain on kitchen paper.

Souse (Pork)

Ingredients:

3lbs pigs trotters

lime/lemon (alternatively vinegar)

handful of chives/ spring onions

seasoning peppers

onion and garlic to taste

water

Preparation:

Wash the trotters and place them in a pressure cooker.  Add water and boil for between 20 to 30 minutes.  When cooked, remove the trotters and rinse them in a mixture of cold water and with a squeeze of lemon/lime or vinegar. Place the trotters in a large bowl and add the chopped chives, onions, seasoning peppers and crushed garlic.  Add a further squeeze of lime/lemon/vinegar.  Boil some water and pour it over the seasoned trotters.  Leave to stand for at least ten minutes before serving.

Grenada: CAMERHOGNE NUTMEG CAKE

(A unique recipe created by HE Ruth Elizabeth Rouse)

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

or cake flour

1 cup white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup butter

1 cup milk

4 eggs

3 drops of vanilla extract

1 1/4 teaspoons ground Grenada nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2  teaspoon ground ginger

1 cup de la grenade nutmeg syrup

Preparation:

Sift together dry ingredients and mix in spices. Cream butter with sugar and beat in milk alternately with dry ingredients. Add eggs, vanilla extract and beat until batter is smooth. Pour into a greased and floured 9-inch spring form pan.

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 60-75 minutes, until a tooth pick comes out clean. Cool on rack. Remove sides of pan and pierce top of cake with fork. Pour in nutmeg syrup and let rest before serving.

Lebanon: BAKLAVA

Cook time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Baklava takes a lot of time to make. It’s a sticky and gooey process and you will get messy, but it’s worth it! Baklava is a dessert of passion: the passion it takes to make it, enjoying the sweet taste with each bite, makes it a dessert that is one of a kind.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups walnuts

or pistachio nuts

4 cups sugar plus 1/2 cup

1lb butter

1 package, or 16 oz frozen filo pastry dough, thawed

2 cups water

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons rosewater

cinnamon if using walnuts

Preparation:

Prepare the syrup first, by combining the sugar, lemon juice and water in a medium saucepan. Bring to boil for 10 minutes. Add rosewater and bring to a boil again. Remove from heat immediately and allow to cool.

For the dough and filling, combine 1/2 cup sugar and nuts in a bowl. If using walnuts add cinnamon. Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F).

Unroll dough and cut into 9’x12 inch pieces to fit into dish. Grease bottom of 9’x12 inch pan with butter. Place two sheets of dough in the baking dish. Brush dough with butter and repeat until half of filo dough is used.

Spread about 1 cup of nut mixture over the last layer of dough. Place two sheets of filo dough and brush with butter. Repeat until nut mixture is used. On the final layer of filo dough, be sure to brush with butter.

Cut into 3 inch squares. Then, cut each square in half diagonally to make triangles. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and pour the syrup over top of baklava and allow it to saturate it well.