Nothing characterises a Trini Christmas more than food: ham, pastelles, Christmas rice, cake and the list goes on. And if you're looking for some way to jazz up the normal end-of-year fare with some new twists, you've come to the right place. In this series, Desiree McEachrane interviews three celebrated female chefs about what Christmas goodies they serve for their own families.
Chef Sabrina Rosales
Chef Sabrina Rosales has been very busy. Since we last spoke to her in 2008, she moved on from her position as Executive Chef at Batimamzelle restaurant in Cascade, and she's recently started flying solo as a freelance chef. "I told myself, 'You know what Sabrina? It's time for you start to cut your own trail.'" Her new company, Executive Caterers, does food consultancy and catering. And these days she's been doing everything from writing menus to private dinners to magazine photo shoots. There's even talk of her doing a Caribbean-based food show, which is like a dream come true. But when cooking for her own two girls, her mom and sister's family, Rosales relishes the traditional Christmas spread. "I just love to cook, so anything to do with cooking I tend to go overboard," she said, giggling. Rosales served up slices of a honey and cinnamon glazed ham with home-made chow chow, a vegetable stuffed chicken breast, fresh apple baked stuffing and a sweet and savoury corn bread. Bon Apetite!
Vegetable stuffed chicken breasts
Ingredients:
4 skinned boneless chicken breasts
Vegetable stuffing
2 sweet peppers, diced
2 carrots diced
1 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, diced
2 oz butter
Method:
�2 Rub chicken breasts in paprika and garlic powder. Add salt and pepper to taste.
�2 Saut� vegetables in butter until tender.
�2 Stuff chicken breast with vegetable stuffing
�2Heat a saut� pan with a little oil. Place stuffed chicken breasts in pan and cook on one side until golden brown. Place in oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit to finish. Cook for about ten minutes.
Fresh apple baked stuffing
Ingredients:
1lb ground beef
3 cloves garlic
1 large onion chopped fine
5 pimento peppers, chopped
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp chopped chive
2 tbsp chopped shadon beni
2 fresh apples diced
1 pinch chili powder
2 eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
Method:
�2 Heat one medium sized pot, adding a little oil.
�2 Cook seasoned beef for about ten minutes.
�2 Mix milk and eggs together and add to cooked beef. Then add fresh apple.
�2 Grease a baking pan. Add beef mixture and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Honey and cinnamon glazed ham
Ingredients:
1 large 5lb ham
1 cup honey
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon powder
4 oz salted butter
Method:
�2 Wash ham and bake.
�2 In a sauce pan, melt butter, sugar, honey, cinnamon and salt. Cook for about five minutes under low heat.
�2 Baste ham.