Bananas & Coconuts

Banking, baking, baking… I baked three loaves of banana bread today. Yesterday we had banana pankaces. We are slowly using up the bananas but I can see the tree outside is ready to come down which means in a couple of weeks we will have a few dozen more!

Baking is an adventure. First there are the ingredients. Guessing at some of the ingredients. I am hoping this is baking soda?

I forgot to buy a measuring cup so I used this 350ml bottle of water to help me estimate 1c and 3/4c

 The cook at the school showed me how to use two forks back to back as a mixer. I have started to realize how spoiled we are that we have a different tool or appliance for everything we do. When we made empanada’s at the school we used this fork method instead of a whisk and we used our hands to flatten the empanada’s not a rolling pin. This from a lady who cooks for a a hundred or more kids every day.

Lastly there was the challenge of the oven. First I had to finish un-packaging it. Remember it was just purchased this month. Nobody ever took the plastic off and I haven’t used the oven part yet so haven’t needed to. I have never cooked with a gas oven so you pretty much just guess at what the temperature might be.

Our next adventure was with a coconut. Every time I have bought them they have already been taken out of the main shell. Douglas decided he wanted to buy one that was still in it’s green shell. I wasn’t sure what the difference was but I’m willing to experiment.

 So thanks to Google I have learned:

• Coconuts take about one year to fully ripen
• Young Green Coconuts have a clear juice that is sweet, refreshing, and aromatic. Young coconuts have a jelly-like meat which can be eaten or used in smoothies.
• The husk slowly turns to brown as the fruits mature
• the water converts to the white nut meat lining around the inside of the shell
• As they mature the meat turns hard, the meat firms up and can be used to make shredded coconut or coconut milk.
• Meat harvested at this stage is often dried to a form known as "copra," which is squeezed to extract coconut oil.
• you can use the shaking method to judge ripeness. Fully ripened, copra coconuts make no sound when you hold them up to your ear and shake. Coconuts at six to seven months contain mostly coconut water, so you hear a lot of water sloshing inside the shell

We have had a rat in the house since we got back. I can’t catch the little shit and I can safely say that my love of animals and nature does not extend to rats! I am considering moving. This is probably impulsive and not very realistic to think that I won’t face the same problems in a different house but I am loosing my shit right now LOL