I’m Home Party

I had a few friends over to celebrate me being back home.  I put together a slide show of photos that ran on the TV while I shared stories of my travels.  The highlight of the party was sharing some of the foods I enjoyed in each country I visited.

Belize

I shared some of my favorites from several trips I’ve taken over the years.  We started with Shrimp Ceviche using the recipe I learned from Raggamuffin Tours.

Close-up of Shrimp CevicheFor the entree we had Stewed Chicken with Coconut  Rice and Beans.  I’ve made this before and even came up with a modernized version.

My Belizean Stewed ChickenFor dessert I served Fry Jacks with honey.  I’ve enjoyed many Fry Jacks during my travels in Belize, but this was the first time I made them myself.  I found a great recipe online and the flavor was darn close.

My Fry Jacks
My version of Belizean Fry Jacks.

New Zealand

A New Zealand meal wouldn’t be complete without Marmite.  I hadn’t heard of Marmite before visiting New Zealand.  While very similar to Vegemite, no New Zealander will admit it.

MarmiteChoosing an entree from New Zealand was a slam dunk.  It had to be New Zealand lamb and I was pleased to find exactly that at Whole Foods in Bellevue.  Having sheared a sheep and eaten lamb several times, I couldn’t wait to relive those memories.

Dessert was even easier to choose.  It couldn’t be anything other than Pavlova.  There is a long standing debate between the Kiwis (New Zealanders) and the Aussies regarding which country created the first Pavlova.  Wikipedia says that New Zealand wins via “formal research”.  This is the recipe I used.  I wouldn’t say it was difficult to make, but it wasn’t exactly easy either.

My Pavlova
My version of the Pavlova.

Australia

There was no other choice than Vegemite for my Australia appetizer.  This fermented brewer’s yeast spread is best when used sparingly.  I actually like it.  I prefer a light spread of Vegemite over cream cheese and cracker.  I can understand why a lot of people are not fans, but I enjoy it.

VegemiteNo other meat is more Australian than Kangaroo.  I had the opportunity to eat a Kangaroo burger while visiting a gold mine in Bingara, Australia.  The process of finding Kangaroo meat in Western Washington was not easy.  A friend had seen it once at a store in Vancouver, Washington but that would have been quite a ride.  After many internet searches, I called the Vancouver grocery store but they didn’t have any in stock and neither did their supplier.  I decided to do one final internet search the week of my party and found Marx Foods in Seattle.  I contacted them, but they also didn’t have any in stock.  I finally decided to order it from their website.  The cost included overnight shipping in “keep frozen” packing material.

Notice the deep rich red color of the meat and it’s low fat content.  It’s a little gamy, but also a little sweet.  When cooking it you have to be careful not to dry it out.

Ground KangarooChoosing a dessert brought me back to surfing in Byron Bay.  At the end of a long day of “attempting to surf”, our instructors served us Tim Tams (under the brand of Arnott’s in the United States).  Tim Tams are wafer cookies covered in chocolate.  You don’t just “eat” Tim Tams, you do Tim Tam Slams.  The steps are simple:

  1. Bite corresponding corners off the Tim Tam.Tim Tam Slam
  2. Use the Tim Tam as a straw and suck coffee, tea , or Milo (the Aussie favorite) through it.
  3. Once the drink of choice is sucked all the way through, eat the cookie quickly.
  4. Enjoy the yummy’ness.

Tim Tams

I’m pretty sure the party was a major hit and I had a blast sharing my stories of Belize, New Zealand, and Australia.

I have to give a shout out to my friend John.  If he hadn’t of volunteer to come over early and help cook I never would have gotten it all done.

4 Replies to “I’m Home Party”

  1. I’m not usually adventuresome with new foods but I’m proud of myself for at least taking a bite of everything. A big shout-out to my grandson, Mason, who ate a kangaroo slider as well as a lamb slider. He surprised me with his willingness to try both of them!

    • Mason was such a trooper…I was so proud of him for trying everything.