The traditional Caribbean Christmas cake, aka euphoria! This heavy-duty rum fruit cake takes some time to make: with the minimum soaking time the recipe extends over two days, but I always take a month! However, it’s of course not active working time 😉 and the cake is not difficult to make at all, so don’t let the length of the instructions scare you! The most tedious part is chopping the fruit – try to resist to urge to use a food processor, as chopping by hand will give you the best results. Have a glass of wine, listen to your favourite music and make a night of it! If, however, you do give in to temptation, be very careful not to process the fruit into a sticky mass: you want finely chopped, not jam! Serve this wonderful cake in thin slivers with a dollop of whipped cream.
Not to be confused with the vegetable of the same name from temperate countries, sorrel is a favourite West Indian drink for Christmas and New Year. Actually it’s more of a spiced, iced tea, as the juice is drawn from the red sepals of the Roselle plant (Hibiscus sabdariffa) which is commonly called sorrel in the Caribbean. This drink is a favourite with children to whom the task of ‘picking’ sorrel (removing the red sepals from the prickly seed) is often given. The drink is usually prepared in two batches with one batch being spiked with rum for the adults. The drink needs a lot of sugar to temper the tartness of the fruit but to my mind it should not be made thick and sweet, for then it becomes sickly and cloying although some like it this way, so feel free to vary the ingredient amounts to suit your taste. Usually served chilled with ice but I had a German friend tell me that this drink reminded her of mulled wine so I imagine it could also be served warm.
A shredded salt cod and vegetable salad. Buljol is a corruption of the French brûle gueule, which means “burn mouth”. A popular dish in Trinidad and indeeed throughout the Caribbean. Serve with Recipe #194158
