Pancake Travels

After Colombia, we found ourselves heading back to the African island of Comoros in our search for pancakes.  Unfortunately, we didn't find any pancakes for Comoros.  After Comoros our journey took us to Democratic Republic of the Congo, where, again, we didn't find any pancakes.  Next comes Republic of the Congo, and once again we had no luck finding pancakes.  Of all of the countries we've traveled to for pancakes so far, the most difficult ones to find pancakes in have been in Africa so far. Now we head back to the Americas, Central America to be exact, as we begin our trip to Costa Rica.  It was relatively easy to find a pancake recipe for Costa Rica.  We discovered that Costa Ricans call their pancakes chorreadas, and they are primarily made from corn.  Without further discourse, here is what you will need to make chorreadas: 4 cups of fresh corn 1/4 cup of milk 4 cloves of garlic 1 teaspoon of salt oil for frying To get 4 cups of fresh corn, we n...

Here is the recipe for Gallo Pinto: 1 can of black beans (don't rinse them, keep the water it's packed in) 1 cup of rice 1 small onion 3-4 small, sweet baby bell peppers (not the large ones you buy individually, but the small ones that come in package) 1 3/4 cups of vegetable broth (you can use chicken broth instead if you'd like) 1 tablespoon of oil Directions: 1.  Dice the onion and sweet peppers.  Set aside 2.  Rinse the rice well, and drain as much of the water off as you can. 3.  Heat the oil in a skillet, then put rice in and saute for about 2 minutes. 4.  Add the onion and peppers and saute for another 2 minutes. 5.  Pour in the vegetable broth, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. 6.  Once the rice is finished cooking, pour in the can of beans, stir, and cook on low until the beans are heated through.

So we find ourselves on an extended pancake journey in Colombia.  If you recall, we came to the conclusion that our previous arepas did not turn out because we had the wrong masarepa flour.  We returned to Northgate Market to buy a different type of flour, and this is what we bought this time: Of course, we bought some more corn tortillas while we were there too!  Once again, here are the ingredients for arepas: 2 cups masarepa 2 cups hot water 1/4 teaspoon of salt 2 tablespoons of soft butter 50 grams of shredded cheese In our previous research, we found some recipes that called for putting cheese in the dough, and we decided to add some cheese this time as well. As before,  you'll need to  mix the masarepa, water, salt, cheese, and butter. Knead with your hands for about 3 minutes moistening your hands with water as you work. Again, divide the dough into 6 small balls.  Once again, I made one big ball, cut it in half, and then cut each half into thirds. A...

Once again we find ourselves heading back across the Pacific Ocean to South America.  We arrived in Colombia and discovered their pancakes are arepas.  Woohoo!  I love arepas, and now I had the chance to make them.  I couldn't wait!  Through much research, Sam discovered that arepas were made from a special type of corn flour called masarepa flour.  He also discovered a local Mexican market that carries it.  So we headed there to buy some. Before I continue our pancake story, I have to give a bit of a plug for Northgate Market .  They are one of the best Mexican markets I have ever been to, and I've been to a lot of them.  They make their tortillas on premises, so of course, I had to buy some.  I will say they are the best corn tortillas I have ever tasted!  If you live in Southern California, you should totally check out this fantastic Mexican market. Now back to the pancakes.  We arrived at Northgate market only to discover t...