In December of 2008, my Grandma, Mary Kay Staples, gifted
her grandchildren with the Cooking With Friends cookbook that her church
wrote. When I was home this past
April I came across a copy of the book (actually, it’s Sarah’s) and decided to
bring it down with me to Paraguay (sorry Sarah). Dean Boucher’s banana bread recipe is a real hit with the
women of South America!
While I have really enjoyed trying out recipes from this
book, I quickly realized that it doesn’t do me a whole lot of good down
here. The issue is that I can’t
get 2/3 of the things I need to cook each recipe. Grandma, I can’t tell you how many times I have looked at
the recipe for Ro-Tel Fiesta Chicken with longing and then realized that I
don’t have access to Ro-Tel, which judging by the name is a key
ingredient. I also have searched
all over Paraguay and the only Elephant I’ve found belongs to the zoo and they
said they won’t sell him for my Elephant Stew.
Due to my lack of access to most necessary ingredients
(biscuit mix, cake box mix, cream of mushroom soup, brown sugar…) I have been
picking and choosing which recipes to make and which recipes to look at with
longing and dream about. Bringing
back a cookbook was a really good idea and I wanted to write this blog to thank
the authors of this book for filling some of my boring winter afternoons with
activities. Although I have messed
up numerous recipes, mixing amounts improperly since I have no actual measuring
cups and making up ingredients (sugar cane honey with white sugar is pretty
much brown sugar, right?); I think it has been going pretty well. I also should thank Mr. Daniel who so
kindly replied to my tweet requesting how many grams go into a pound (the different
measuring systems are a killer!).
Winter in Paraguay, especially for
an Ag Volunteer, can be pretty slow. There are gardens to tend to but the major
field crops won’t be planted until around late July or early August. I have started a demonstration plot
with a contact and my garden is in full swing! I have around 100 tomato plants
(a minor miscalculation on my part) so the spring might end up involving me trying
to make my own Ro-Tel and canning sauces.
I have also been in site for
almost 7 months. According to most
volunteers, this is when things can get a little tough. I think I am holding up pretty well, my
down fall and homesick moment will most likely be when Katy gives birth to baby
girl number 2 in August and I realize how bummed I am not to be there. For now Copper (my dog) and I are
bundling up in bed, trying to escape the cold, reading, and knitting - judging
by this post I have retired not joined the Peace Corps.
I am off to try and make some
fresh pig fat biscuits, but seriously Crisco is just pig fat in disguise!
