Crême brûlée

The originality of this great classic of the French southwester cuisine is much discussed by those who think that it is in reality a Crema catalana, although they are different desserts. And to say that the crême is Catalan, it is like to say that the Catalan cream is nothing but a custard... Most likely both are …

Egg braided bread

Merry Christmas! Here is a sneak peek into our Christmas Eve dinner. We had prawns and foie gras as starters, then turkey with ciabatta and roasted chestnuts stuffing (for the vegan in the family I made a delicious sweet potato curry) and an apple tart (pie) for dessert. Everything was delicious, the family was happy, we sang …

Ragoût

As soon the days start to get colder, ragout makes its appearance  at home. I like it because it is easy to cook, I just put everything in the pressure cooker and basically forget about it for the next 30 to 40 minutes, and so heartwarming. In Panama we have a similar recipe, it is call …

Blueberry coffee cake with vanilla glaze

Last week was Juanfran's birthday. To celebrate  we had diner at Real cafe Bernabeu, a very nice restaurant located inside Santiago Bernabeu stadium, with views over the field.  Unfortunately there was no game, so the stadium was empty, but about 50 screens allowed us to watch the match from every angle possible while enjoying a …

Octopus ceviche two ways

This summer in Panama I got the chance to enjoy a marvelous dinner at El Trapiche a Panamanian cuisine restaurant very popular among tourist and locals as well, which is always a good sign. There I ate a classic menu with fried everything…and a corvina ceviche. Everything was delicious as expected. But lately is fashion …

Chicken rolls with spicy tamarind sauce

One of the things that I brought from Panamá this summer was tamarind pulp. I know that I can buy tamarind here in Madrid but it is so expensive…Besides, it was a present from my mom, so what’s not to like! Normally the first thing that comes into mind with tamarind are sweets. You can …

Neopanamax: Pesada de Nance

  After almost four weeks of vacation in Panama, I came back recharged and full of ideas and Panamanian recipes to publish here at BlueJellybeans. The first recipe is one that perhaps only could be made while in Panama, because its main ingredient is Nance, a small yellow fruit native of Panama and other tropical …

Homemade Panamanian Mafá

Near my home in Panama there was a “tienda”,  a dry cleaners, the “55" (some sort of mini market belonging to Enrique and his wife Elsa), a chicken slaughterhouse (led by Enrique’s brother) and a large store for building materials and knickknacks (our favorite place for buying mother’s day presents with our precarious savings), all …

Plantain tarts

Also known as plantit tat or plantitá, today’s recipe has West Indian roots, as many of our traditions do. Panamá is really a “melting pot of races”. People from around the world came and went through our frontiers, many stayed and made of Panamá their home, enriching this country with their own culture. That’s why …

Codfish fritters

  I’ve had this post ready since Holly Week ... but I haven't had the opportunity to publish it until now…It’s a shame because this is a traditional dish for that time of year in Panama. Like many of our recipes it has Afro Antillean roots and, also, as many of our recipes, they are …