Sikil Pak is a delicious dip, dating back to Mayan times, that combines the nutritional power of pumpkin seeds along with the sweet heat of a tomato ‘n’ habañero combo, for your noshing pleasure. Think of it as a spicy pumpkin seed hummus!
Ingredients
1 small onion, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
8oz. fresh tomatoes, regular or roma (3-4)
3 Tbsp fresh orange juice
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2-3 Tbsp habañero hot sauce or ½ of a habañero chile, roughly chopped (optional)
8 oz (about 1 ¾ cup) pumpkin seeds, plus 2 Tbsp extra for garnish
Pinch of cumin powder
Salt to taste
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
Pinches of chili powder
Directions
Roast tomatoes in oven at 400°, for about 20-30 minutes until blistering and soft.
Toast pumpkin seeds in dry skillet on medium-low heat until they start to pop/change color, about 5-10 minutes.
Using a blender or spice grinder, grind pumpkin seeds into a powder.
To a blender, add roasted tomatoes, onion, any habañero, orange and lime juices and cumin to the blender. Pulse-blend to combine. Add 8 oz. ground pumpkin seeds and several pinches of salt to blender and pulse-blend again.
Add a little water if the mixture is too thick and needs some liquid to help it turn over. Pulse-blend again.
Taste for heat level and add more “fire” as desired. Adjust salt.
Before serving, scatter a few pinches of chili powder on top for more flavor/color. Also scatter reserved 2 Tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds and chopped cilantro (if using).
Red, in many West African cultures, is a symbol of strength, spirituality, life and death. Hibiscus is native to West Africa as well, and its tangy flavor has been a part of Juneteenth celebrations since the beginning.
Ingredients
5 cups water (or more to adjust for taste)
2 Tbsp chopped ginger
1 cup dried hibiscus petals
1 cinnamon stick
1 750 ml bottle of white wine (Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay)
1 ½ lbs fruit cut into chunks – for example – mango, strawberries, peaches, pineapple, blueberries
1-2 oranges, sliced thinly with peel still on
Lime chunks – cut limes into halves and then each half into quarters
½ cup light rum
2 cups water and 1 cup sugar (for simple syrup) or honey or agave syrup to taste
Directions
If making/using simple syrup – Bring 2 cups water to a boil. Add in 1 cup sugar and simmer until sugar has dissolved. Allow to cool.
In a large heat-resistant bowl, combine dried hibiscus, chopped ginger, cinnamon stick, lime chunks. Boil 5 cups water in a kettle or pot and gently pour water into the bowl to cover these ingredients. Let steep 45 minutes – overnight. If steeping overnight, place in fridge once stuff has cooled down. The longer it sits, the more intense the flavor. Once done steeping, strain and reserve liquid; discard solids.
Combine all fruit in a large pitcher. Add rum, then hibiscus-spice liquid, wine, and simple syrup or another sweetener. Stir and let sit from a few hours to overnight before serving.
Early Bird Farms & Mill makes a lovely cornbread mix that is made from organic and local ingredients.
Ingredients
2 cups mix
1 large egg
1 1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp honey
Directions
Heat over to 400 degrees. Preheat an 8-inch cast-iron pan or 9″x13″ baking dish. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, and 1/4 cup olive oil. Fold wet ingredients into Early Bird Cornbread Mix and mix until just combined.
Add remaining tablespoon of oil to preheated pan, swirling to coat the bottom. Pour in batter and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake until golden brown and a tester comes out clean from the center, 20 to 23 minutes. Brush with honey, then let cool. Cut in to wedges and enjoy!
Tea cakes have an African American history dating back to the 1600s. They’re an easy and delicious traditional cookie served on the Juneteenth holiday – not as sweet as sugar cookies and with a softer texture.
Ingredients
½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
½ cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 tsp fine lemon zest
½ tsp vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp Kosher salt
¼ tsp nutmeg
Granulated sugar for sprinkling
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
In a bowl, using an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, mix until combined. Pour in buttermilk, vanilla extract and lemon zest and mix again until combined.
In a separate bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add to wet ingredients and mix until just combined. You may need to mix the last of the dry ingredients in by hand since the dough can get quite thick.
Divide dough into four portions. Roll each portion on a lightly floured surface to ¼ thickness. Using round biscuit cutter, cut dough into 2 ½ inch rounds.
Place on prepared baking sheets, about one inch apart. Lightly sprinkle tops with additional sugar.
Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until edges start turning golden and bottoms slightly browned.
Remove to rack, cool completely. Store in tightly covered container for up to a week.
Popular all over the former Soviet Union states, honey cake is traditionally layers of cake and sweetened sour cream filling. The cake layers are more cookie-like and after the cake is assembled, it must sit for at least 12 hours to let the cake layers absorb the syrup and soften to a cake-like consistency. This version is a spin on the traditional, using whipped cream and fresh ginger.
Ingredients
Cake
1 stick of unsalted butter
1/3 cup honey
¼ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup sugar
1 egg
2 Tbsp heavy or whipping cream
3 ¼ cups All Purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
Ginger Syrup
½ cup sugar
½ cup water
2 oz ginger, peeled, cut in 1-inch chunks
Lemon Cream Filling
1 large lemon
1/8 cup heavy or whipping cream
1 cup powdered sugar
Directions
Cake Layers
Melt butter and honey in a large bowl over a simmering pot of water, stirring continuously until the butter melts. Take off heat and stir in sugars to cool down.
In a separate bowl, whisk egg and cream and add to cooled butter-honey mixture.
Sift flour and baking powder into liquid mixture and using your hands knead just enough to bring it together to a cohesive dough, cut it and roll into 9 even balls and wrap in cling film and chill in fridge for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Roll each piece of dough into a thin layer. Take a round 6” plate and cut each into a disk. Bake each disk for about 8-10 minutes on sheet pans lined with parchment. You may need to do it in 2-4 batches depending on how much oven space you have. Let them cool completely before assembling the cake. Bake any rolled dough offcuts along with your disks.
Ginger Syrup
While your dough is chilling, heat syrup ingredients until they come to a simmer and let sit. When ready to use, remove ginger. Let cool.
Lemon Cream
Zest and juice the lemon. Beat cream, adding powdered sugar, until medium peaks, then whisk in lemon zest and juice, continuing to whip until peaks are stiff.
Assembly
Pulverize 2 of the disks and the baked scraps with a food processor into crumbs.
Brush disks heavily with syrup. Let it absorb, then brush again to absorb. Place one disk on a plate. Spread 3 Tbsp of the cream on top – about 1/4”. Place the next disk on top and press down slightly, continuing with all seven disks. Drizzle the top with tea, then spread the cream. Repeat until you used seven biscuit discs. Spread the rest of the whipped cream on top and all around the sides of the cake.
Pat the cake crumbs all over the top and the sides of the cake so they stick. Most important! Refrigerate for at least 12 hours before cutting into the cake so the layers have time to soften.
Grilling fava beans in their pods is simple and delicious. They get a subtle, smoky flavor that goes great with a squeeze of juice from a grilled lemon half.
Ingredients
2 pounds fresh fava beans, in pods
2 ½ Tbsp olive oil
Salt
2 lemons, halved
Directions
Toss fava beans in a large bowl, with olive oil and a few generous pinches of salt. Place lemon halves and beans in a single layer on your grill over medium heat
Grill about 3-4 minutes until there are nice spots of char. Flip over and cook another 3-4 minutes. If pods start to burn, move them to a cooler spot on the grill to finish cooking.
Transfer charred lemon and favas to serving place. Sprinkle with chile flakes or togarashi. To eat, tear open a pod, take a fava bean and pinch the skin to slide out the bright green beans. Be careful of the stream from the hot pod.
