Friday, September 25, 2015

Foodscapes El Salvador: Cheese Making in Celina Ramos

Back in July we embarked upon a learning journey to Suchitoto, El Salvador.  

The first week was a hands on experiential permaculture workshop in the ecologically diverse community of Papaturro.  I was the chef for this segment of our journey.  We made everything from scratch by hand, using molcajetes, comales, metates and wood burning stoves using local ingredients sourced from neighbors and our hosts.  Many of the participants were from the village of Papaturro and the guests all stayed in local homes with families in Papaturro.  Papaturro was settled 14 years ago by refugees who had left El Salvador during the violent civil war.  The regrouped and formed this farming community.  Many Papaturro youth have looked to the north to earn money in the US and to live the American Dream.  Many of the youth of Papaturro are part of the SERES network and are working to create regenerative systems in Central America to support thriving communities there.   

The second week of the program, Foodscapes, was focused on following the route of ingredients as they pass through these unique communities that hosted us in Suchitoto.  We milked cows, visited farms, learned from bee keepers, exchanged stories in fishing villages, harvested tropical fruit, processed local corn using the the Mayan technique of nixtamalization then ground the corn in the communal mill and dove deep into the food world of the region.

I would like to highlight the diverse group of participants on this learning journey.  We were: 

• Four UC Irvine students focused on sustainability
• Fernando, the program manager of the Global Sustainability Resource Center at UCI
• Two educators from IMAP (Instituto Mesoamericano de Permacultura) and SERES  
• A few SERES youth from Guatemala, including Maria the chef 
• A group of SERES El Salvador youth, including some very local Suchitoto folks and some from other Salvadorean regions
• and lastly, one eco chef, me, Rogelio

SERES is pretty special for a number of reasons.  SERES is a youth led network of social change makers dedicated to environmental action planning and creating resilient communities in Central America.  

IMAP is a very cool organization and permaculture demonstration center, based on Mayan traditions and permaculture practices. We were fortunate to have one of the founder members join us on this learning journey as an educational facilitator.  Ramiro Tzunun (Tzunun means hummingbird) honors traditional Kachikel Mayan wisdom that has been passed down to him through generations and implements these sensibilities into his work.  Please take a moment to learn about the story of our learning partner, Rony Lec, founder and coordinator of IMAP in this interesting article

The GSRC is bringing together some very inspiring young people on campus at UC Irvine who are implementing sustainable practices into their work and studies.  We are also creating some interesting programming via our Campus as a Living Lab Pathway (Fall and Winter programming to be announced next week) and Communiversity Pathway


One of our foodscapes participants Daniel Mejia took us to his home where his family makes homemade cheese to sell and trade in his community of Celinas Ramos near Lake Suchitlán.

Fresh, raw cows milk is coagulated to separate the curd and whey.

The curd is pressed to release all excess curd and moisture.

The curd is kneaded to create a distinct texture.  Then the curd is molded by hand into torpedo shapes to be sold and traded in the community.  We brought a few pounds back to our base in Papaturro to serve with hand made corn tamales.


Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Yuca Frita and Salsa Soul Cocina

sun dry chilies

dig up yuca

peel yuca
boil yuca until soft then fry in coconut oil or vegetable oil

 pick tomatoes
 char tomatoes with chilies, garlic, tomatillos, sesame seeds
 blend tomatoes and chile with some lime juice and cilantro and serve with avocado and yuca

Monday, March 09, 2015

Friday, May 09, 2014

CORNUCOPIA

SERES and Foodscapes come together to bring you this unique dining experience that aims to inspire action, discussion and thought in the progressive Chicago North Side space the Rib Cage.

A multi-course interactive storytelling feast with corn as the featured ingredient under the roof of The Rib Cage. We follow the route of corn from seed to table and discuss the journey it takes and the impact this journey has on the world.

Plus video screenings of Project SERES youth leaders in Central America

SMALL PLATES

IMLI POPCORN - Tamarind popcorn

IZQUITL - Warm corn salad with garlic lime aioli, cotija cheese, cilantro and smoked chile pequin powder

GREEN GAZPACHO & SWEET CORN GLASS CHIP

PUFFED CORN BHEL PURI - Puffed corn tossed with mint chutney, green mango, purple potato and sweet tamarind served in a Gujrati newspaper

BLUE CORN HUITLACOCHE QUESADILLA - Hand made blue corn tortillas hug the corn fungus known as huitlacoche along with melted chihuahua cheese served with Soul Cocina salsa

POZOLE VERDE - This classic Mexican slow cooked hominy stew is tinted green from roasted tomatillos, serrano chiles and braised greens

HUSHPUPPIES & MALA SAUCE - Hot corn kernel fritters with a numbing chile and sichuan peppercorn sauce

CHEESY SOFRITO SHRIMP N GRITS - Garlicy prawns sauteed with simmered peppers and tomatoes over stone ground grits cooked in a cauldron with milk and cheese.

SALT CARAMEL AND CORN CREME BRULEE

Suggested donation of fifty to one hundred dollars to go towards the food sovereignty work of SERES and Foodscapes in Central America. 


About the hosts and their passions...

~~~~~~~~~
The Rib Cage
http://theribcage.net/
the ribcage is a social playground, home to an intentional community. we are growing a compassionate, creative safe space. we do not exist in a vacuum; our efforts here are only one method for building the just and beautiful society we would like to see in the world. we expect our community to:

practice radical consent - ask first!
listen
foster communication
cultivate honest relationships
follow through and learn from mistakes
interrupt oppressive dynamics
try to understand how power and privilege work in our lives
grow aware of our boundaries and push open our minds~~~~~~~
make yummy foodz
the ribcage is a sometimes-public and sometimes-private space; navigate our home with empathy.


~~~~~~~~~
Project SERES
www.projectseres.org
SERES mission is to create a new generation of future makers, supporting the emergence of local leaders by educating and empowering young people to launch and lead environmentally sound programs. SERES work seeks to create impact by empowering vulnerable communities to address our most critical issues starting with the least likely source: the youth. As the voices of the future who will be left with a legacy of unresolved environmental, social and economic problems, SERES recognizes that engaging with and involving this generation is essential in the development of smart solutions that lead us towards healthy, thriving and sustainable societies.
SERES current focus is on youth and young adults in Guatemala and El Salvador, where there are 15 million people – more than 60% of the population – aged under 30 years of age. Our goal is to harvest this untapped potential and use it to create positive change for good.


~~~~~~~~~
Foodscapes
www.soulcocina.com
Foodscapes is a project that explores the journey of ingredients from seed to table by young leaders across the Americas. The journey is documented in live space through creative expression at events and within workshops using culinary arts, storytelling, dance, music and theatre. The journey will also be documented in virtual space through creative expression on-line via a web-series using video, photography, poetry, sound and more. We also record snippets of the sounds created on the journey (tractors, train rides, sizzle of oil on the grill, slapping of tortillas against palms...) to use as the sound samples to build the musical score/audio collage.

Have questions about Foodscapes or SERES?
Contact Roger@SoulCocina.com


Any food leftovers will be donated to Pilsen Food Not Bombs 







Friday, February 28, 2014

Armadillo


Lo siento mucho Pachamama.  I am sorry Mother earth.  I was exploring the central market of Antigua, looking for new ingredients that I had never cooked with before.

Like pacaya which I saw growing in the potential future home of the SERES center and finca.


At the same finca I also discovered an hoja santa plant.  I didn't realise what it was until Gregorio, one of our friends from IMAP called it to my attention.

I use hoja santa in my mole pipian (a recipe I got from a friend from Puebla, Mexico) along with radish leaf, pumpkin seeds and green chiles.  All of these ingredients are readily available in Guatemala.

So I found picaya at the market.

And used it in a beet and orange salad.

Another new ingredient, for me, that I found at the market is the Caimito.  I tried this once in Maui where it is called star apple fruit.  In Vietnam it is called "mother's milk"


It is too late in the season for loroco, but I did get to make pupusas with loroco last time I was in Guatemala.


 As I was leaving the market in Antigua, I came across a woman cutting up a cooked armadillo.  This was definitely a new ingredient for me.  I had never eaten or cooked armadillo.


 I prepared the armadillo in a red chile - pumpkin seed sauce.  I fried the armadillo meat in it's own fat and added plenty of lime, onion and chile.  Like sisig, then I simmered it in the sauce.

 There was talk at the meal I prepared that armadillos may be endangered.  After some research, I discovered that although most armadillos are not officially endangered, many species are considered threatened.

The pink fairy armadillo is endangered.  It lives in central Argentina and is the smallest of all armadillo species.

The giant armadillo is a threatened species.

Although I am not sure what species of armadillo I bought, I am pretty sure it was not the giant armadillo or the pink fairy, based on it's size and the fact that giant armadillos habitat regions South of Guatemala and fairy armadillos are only in Argentina.

Pumas and Jaguars also eat armadillos in Guatemala, and apparently so do Catholics in Nicaragua during lent.

But even if the species of Armadillo that I bought is not endangered, some of it's predators are endangered, like the Jaguar.  So by eating the armadillo we may be competing with the Jaguar.

I am sorry Pachamama.  My ignorance does not make it ok.  I will be more conscience of the effects that my eating and cooking habits have on you from now on.

I may follow the route of the armadillo in one of my foodscapes projects.  Or maybe the Iguana.



I absolutely love this song and the Armadillo Project












Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Chocolate Odyssey



Foodscapes and SERES invite you to experience









JANUARY 29 6:30pm

The Posner Center
1031 33rd Street 
DenverCo 80205

For the first time ever, SERES and Foodscapes come together to bring you this unique dining experience that aims to inspire action, discussion and thought.
Come and join us for a sensory journey of cacao that will inspire discussion, action and thought on the issues of food and culture.  
Chef Roger Feely of Soul Cocina will create a multi-course meal using chocolate as the ingredient in focus.  This event at the Posner Center is the launch of the new Soul Cocina project called Foodscapes.



MENU
Crispy Cumin Cacao Garbanzo Beans
Red Beet Fritters • Oaxacan Mole • Confetti Squash • Radish Leaf Rice
Dark Chocolate Almond Pot De Creme • Persimmon • Pommegranate
Hand Made Little Take Home Chocolates


About the hosts and their passions...
Foodscapes is a project that explores the journey of ingredients from seed to table. The journey is documented in live space through creative expression at events and within workshops using culinary arts, storytelling, dance, music and theatre. The journey will also be documented in virtual space through creative expression on-line via a web-series using video, photography, poetry, sound and more. We also record snippets of the sounds created on the journey (tractors, train rides, sizzle of oil on the grill, slapping of tortillas against palms...) to use as the sound samples to build the musical score/audio collage.
~~~~~~~~~
SERES mission is to create a new generation of future makers, supporting the emergence of local leaders by educating and empowering young people to launch and lead environmentally sound programs. SERES work seeks to create impact by empowering vulnerable communities to address our most critical issues starting with the least likely source: the youth. As the voices of the future who will be left with a legacy of unresolved environmental, social and economic problems, SERES recognizes that engaging with and involving this generation is essential in the development of smart solutions that lead us towards healthy, thriving and sustainable societies.
SERES current focus is on youth and young adults in Guatemala and El Salvador, where there are 15 million people – more than 60% of the population – aged under 30 years of age. Our goal is to harvest this untapped potential and use it to create positive change for good.
~~~~~~~~~
Have questions about A Chocolate Odyssey? Contact Soul Cocina



Behind the scenes of a Soul Cocina pop up

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Baylando Records

Take a ride on that google bus


Two Santero cuts from Baylando Records:

The first jam features Boogat

The second jam is Santero on a Champeta beat.



Favi and P.E.A.C.E. on that Blood Money riddim

And check out Hector Guerra on the Blood Money riddim too with Sister Eyerie

BAYLANDO RECORDS

beats by El Kool Kyle and co.