a summer recipe treat: Cuban rum cake!

As I've noted before, along with music, tradition, and the Catholic faith--food is a major part of Cuban (and all Hispanic) culture.

Today's recipe comes courtesy of my cousin Marina Páez, a fabulous cook! 

What makes this rum cake uniquely Cuban, you ask? Choosing Bacardi rum, of course--whose beginning as a company dates back to the 1860s in Cuba!

Rum Cake

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1 181/2 oz. pkg. yellow cake mix*

1 31/4 oz pkg Jell-O* Vanilla Instant Pudding and Pie Filing

4 eggs

1/2 cup cold water

1/2 cup Wesson oil

1/2 cup of Bacardi dark rum (80 proof)

*If using yellow cake mix with pudding  already in the mix, omit instant pudding, use 3 eggs instead of 4, 1/3 cup oil instead of 1/2.

Glaze:

1/4 lb butter

1/4 cup water

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup Bacardi dark rum (80 proof)

Preheat oven to 325 degree F. Grease and flour 10" tube or 12-cup Bundt* pan. Sprinkle nuts over bottom of pan. Mix all cake ingredients together. Pour batter over nuts. Bake 1 hour. 

Cool. Invert on serving plate. Prick top. Spoon and brush glaze evenly over top and sides.  Allow cake to absorb glaze. Repeat till glaze is used up.

Glaze: melt butter in saucepan. Stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in rum. 

An optional idea is to decorate with a border of sugar frosting or whipped cream. But honestly, there's no need. 

Plátanos Maduros Recipe

Since my Arroz con Gandules recipe went over so well, this time I’m sharing one of my favorite Cuban side dishes—one I will fight you over, to the last platanito!

Sweet fried plantains, or plátanos maduros, are a staple of Cuban cooking, but also popular in other Latin American countries. I have learned that in Honduras they are often served with sour cream, and in Venezuela, sprinkled with cinnamon.

But in Cuban cooking plátanos maduros are served “as is.” They go well as a side dish to pork or with black beans and rice. But it can also be served on its own as an appetizer.

As you can see, there’s no great mystery to the process. The critical thing is to pick the right color plantains—with dark yellow and black skin!

Plátanos Maduros Recipe

Ingredients:

Two ripe plantains with black skin

Canola or corn oil

Optional: fresh lime

Heat enough oil in a frying pan over medium heat so that the oil is about ¼ an inch deep. As the oil heats, cut the ends off of each plantain, and make a slice along the length of the skin.  Unlike peeling a banana one section at a time, you should be able to easily remove the peel in one piece.

Slice the plantain into diagonal pieces anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. When a drop of water sizzles in the oil, add the plantain slices and fry until the bottom is golden brown. Be sure to cook each slice until both sides are golden and the edges of each slice slightly dark and caramelized.

Remove the fried plantains, and place on paper towels to soak up excess oil.  The slices should be slightly soft. Serve hot!

For a slight variation, squeeze some fresh limejuice before serving.

arroz con gandules, a recipe to spice your Wednesday!

Like music and the Catholic faith, an important aspect of passing down tradition for Hispanics is food! Months ago my wise Cuban cousin Marina suggested that I feature recipes from our tradition.

So today I begin with one of my favorites, a recipe from my adopted Puerto Rican heritage: Arroz con gandules, rice with pigeon peas. Even the name sounds better in Spanish!

An important note: This sofrito should not to be confused with Italian Soffrito. In Latin American cooking, sofrito is a seasoning mixture used as a base, one you will also find in Spanish and Portuguese cooking.

Sofrito

4 cloves garlic

1 1/2 cebolla, onion

2 green peppers

Bunch cilantro

Recado, fresh cilantro

Oregano

Salt & black pepper

For the rice

In a large pot, heat a bit of coconut oil, one can of tomato sauce, the sofrito mix, and 1/2 cup chopped ham (or cooked pork pieces). Add one envelope of Goya sazón/seasoning (with achiote), and sauté the ingredients until they are well mixed.

Add one 15-ounce can Pigeon Peas/Gandules (drained and rinsed), blending it slowly into the sauce.  Add 2 cups of rice and 4 cups of water. Bring to a boil for two minutes, immediately cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 35 to 40 minutes.

Note: One recipe tradition calls for coconut water instead of plain water for an additional Caribbean flavor!

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NOW HEAR YE!

Tomorrow, May 2, I will feature a special post, a Q&A with Marge Fenelon about her newest book, "Imitating Mary: Ten Marian Devotions for the Modern Mom."

And I have an extra copy of "Imitating Mary" to give away -- all you have to do is leave a comment on my blog post that day!