Experiment night...Chicken, portabella(sic?) mushrooms, spinach, peas, artichokes, capers and garlic in a lemon cream(cream=low fat lactaid,a bit of olive oil and a thickener) sauce added a bit of parmesan on top at the end . Used my wok and did a slow simmer turned out pretty well ~Red

Yum! I love Bahn Mi sandwiches, especially the ones with cold-cuts, black pepper pate, cilantro, pickled diakon, carrots and jalapenos.

We have Sunday brunch every week at my mom's and we cook traditional Haitian food each time, rotating who does the cooking. It was my turn this week and because of the snow, I thought a hearty soup would be perfect. Medium-large pieces of lean beef is marinated in herbs and spices then cooked until well browned/caramelized. Then mirapoix is added to make a rich stock. Once the stock is completed and the beef is tender, malanga (taro), plantains, potato, habanero pepper, green pepper, spinach, watercress and chayote is added and all is simmered in the tasty well-seasoned broth until tender. We love to eat this soup with crusty french bread and butter, washed down with a cup of coffee made with cinnamon, sugar and light cream. So delicious and so healthy.

This sounds so good, how did it turn out?

This sounds awesome. I want to try it!!! What is mirapoix?

Germahaitianese my dinner turned out pretty well thanks. I think that when I make it again I will cook the peas a bit in advance or leave them out. Rutabaga might be a good addition to the flavor as well and perhaps just a bit more lemon, maybe the zest too.

What type of spice combination is used for Haitian cooking? I keep my spices quite well stocked (health uses as well as cooking) and am always looking for different ways to combine or new spices to try.

BeMyValentine I believe mirapoix is the mix of celery, carrots and onions (possibly the spices as well)..the traditional soup/stew base vegetables in many cultures. Please forgive me if this is incorrect. Watched an awful lot of cooking shows when my son was at home he discovered them about age 2. ~Red

Mirapoix is just fancy cook talk for a mixture of celery, onions and carrots, they form the base of any good soup recipe. I'll write out my mom's recipe for the bouyon (haitian veggie soup) and post it tonight after my daughter goes to bed.

99% of Haitian cooking uses just a few ingredients: fresh and dried thyme, sour orange and/or lime juice, habanero (scotch bonnet) peppers, maggi bouillon cubes, green pepper, onion, tomato, cloves, and tomato paste. If you have these items in your pantry, you can cook anything Haitian. We also love root veggies and beans, they form the base of the diet with small amounts of meat used to flavor food. Red snapper and shellfish is also a huge part of the diet.

My household is a multi-ethic/cultural household where we go from eating Haitian food one night to Chinese the next and German the next. But my true love is cooking Indian food, my best friend is from South India and she taught me how to cook with all the traditional spices, so if you want some good Indian recipes, let me know. She's a vegetarian though, so can't help you with meat dishes but I know a great recipe from Vegetable Sambar.

I love Middle Eastern cuisine. Love cooking with spices. But I've never tried to cook anything Indian. Pls post some good recipes you know, I don't care if they are vegetarian. We love veggies.

Would love any recipes that you are willing to share. Please and Thank you~Red