Show your national colours

Yesterday I got all nostalgic for our Trinidad and Tobago Independence Day.  It was our Jubilee anniversary and the islands were bursting with pride.
 I decided that I wanted as much as possible to celebrate this occasion right here in my neighbourhood.  Wearing my red top with black pants along with red and black slippers I took a short morning walk to the supermarket, reviewing spots of the national colours on everyone, red, white or black shirts, skirts, pants, shorts, shoes, scarves, caps, umbrellas!    Found my flag and taped it to one of the porch walls.  It held up waving in the breeze even as the heavy afternoon rain fell.

Had to show  our colours in my main meal so I decided to make a bean salad and while I need to work on my food photography, (see the picture), trust me the salad tasted really well according to those who shared in it.  Here is my recipe.

TnT Bean Salad

1 can each navy beans, red beans and black beans (drained)
2 red seasoning peppers
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
½ white onion, diced
Dash cinnamon
½ cup black olives sliced
¼ tsp cumin aka geera
2 tsps. Tamarind sauce
Oil & vinegar dressing or Italian style dressing

Method

Jeannelle's TnT Bean Salad

Place drained beans each in their separate bowls.  Add the chopped peppers and tomatoes to the red beans.  Add the diced onion and cinnamon to the white beans.  Add the sliced olives cumin aka geera and tamarind sauce to the black beans.  Pour the oil and vinegar dressing over all.  Marinate for at least ½ hour or overnight if possible.  Present in a clear bowl layering the beans according to the colours of the Trinidad and Tobago flag, red, white, black, white, red.  Enjoy!

Red Velvet Brownies with almonds

Unfortunately the brownie recipe I selected did not create a brownie of the nostalgic kind.  You know the brownie that has the crackly top and is dense with a bit of stickiness inside?  That may be due to the fact that I decreased the sugar and included dates along with red food colouring since I want a red, velvet brownie.  But the recipe said you could cut the sugar by 1/3 and it would still be good?? This brownie recipe while promising to do that came out more like a cake and does not look so attractive.  See, it needs some work, lol!    So, I refused to waste time covering it with cream cheese icing and licorice sprinkles in a creation of the TnT flag.  O’ well, I am sure the children in the neighbourhood (my taste testers) won’t mind a bit of cake, chockfull of nuts and dates.  If anyone has an old-fashioned brownie recipe that gives a dense product with a crackly top, with less than 1 cup of sugar, please send it along.

Asked my neighbour, C, to break her holiday rest and headed out to Blue Range to pick up school supplies from a high school friend for another neighbour’s 2 children.  My high school friend and her friends do good works by providing school supplies for those children whose parents cannot afford to do so adequately.  She opened her heart when I told her of the 2 children’s needs and supplied all that she could.  Thank-you friends!    The circle of love in action demonstrated.  There are so many people who practice this love in action, quietly and effectively here in Trinidad and Tobago.  All kudos to them!

Planned to watch the Port of Spain fireworks, with my neighbours C, and R, her mother, whatever we could see from our vantage point in Diego Martin, while sipping a French rosé I found in clearing up.  The fireworks were re-scheduled to past my bed-time, so we started at the original time with the wine and a toast to our nation and to friendships.  The rosé was too dry for my liking but went well with the New Zealand cheddar, Venezuelan manchega and apple,  I received after demanding something to eat or else I would be drunk in no time.

No time came quickly, along with its partner,  a little gay abandon,  resulting in 2 shakes of a donkey’s tail me being tipsy, giggly and feeling no pain.  R’s  face was now the rosé colour of the wine and C was watching us both, myself and her mother ,with a “jaundiced eye” and muttering that she could hear nothing since we both were talking at the same time!  LOL!  I really tried staying awake but finally  trotted down the street with a beautiful full moon for company, just a bit before the fireworks started and promptly fell asleep.


What a nice Independence day, simple and pleasant.   I did a little good and I did a little bad.  Thank God I can laugh at myself!

What did you do for the Trinidad and Tobago Independence Day, August 31st 2012?  Share your day with me in Comments on my blog page.

Until,

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