Zara Cooks in Cameroon

Ingredients:

2 t dry yeast 1 1/2 T sugar 1 1/4 c. warm water

3 1/2 c. flour (+ more for kneading) 1 1/2 t salt

Add sugar and water to 1/2 c. of warm water and let sit 5 minutes. Stir to dissolve. In a large bowl, mix flour and salt and form a well in the center. Pour the dissolved yeast and half the remaining water into the well and mix. Add reserve water as needed to form a firm and moist dough.

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Gradually work in more flour to form a stiff and firm (but still smooth and elastic) dough. Put dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turning the dough to coat it, cover it with a cloth and let it rise somewhere warm for about an hour (or til doubled in size).

Punch the dough down and let it rest 10 minutes. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces (or 9, if you can only fit 3 bagels at a time in your marmite oven and you like symmetry). Roll each piece into a ball and press between your hands to get rid of air bubbles (you can feel them coming out!). Coat a finger in flour and press it through the ball to form a ring. Gently stretch the ring and work your fingers into the hole until it is about 1/3 the diameter of the ring. Cover with a cloth and let rest 10 minutes more.

Meanwhile, set the oven to preheat at 425 F or preheat your marmite to what seems like a good temperature. Also, bring a large pot of water to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer. Use a slotted spatula to lower the bagels into the water in batches of 2 or 3. Boil, uncovered, until they rise to the surface (~1 minute) and then flip them once. Remove from the water and drain excess water. Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet (or inverted pan lid) and bake 20 minutes until beautifully golden.

I found the recipe here, a truly amazing baking blog! While mildly time consuming, like all bread is, the bagels were amazing! My yeast didn't proof as well as I wanted, and my bagels were neither smooth nor highly-poofed, but they were delicious bagels in Cameroon. The recipe is easy if you've got the time, and I imagine they get better each time you make them.

Lacking cream cheese, lox, jam, etc, I ate the bagels plain, and ate one toasted and topped with a fried egg, avocado and Cameroon style condiment. Yum, yum, YUM!

May your dreams be starchy and garlic-thumbed.

Ingredients:

2 lb potatoes, peeled 1 t salt 1 egg 2+ c. flour

Chop potatoes into 1-in chunks and boil until tender. Drain water and mash potatoes with a fork. Let potatoes cool til they won't cook a raw egg. Whisk egg and salt and add to warm potatoes. Knead in flour, about 5-10 minutes. Roll out into ropes and cut into little gnocchi sized pieces (1/2 inch-ish?). Poach in salted water 3-5 minutes. Drain and serve with sauce.

Pesto
Ingredients:
2 c. fresh basil leaves
1/2 c. olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1/3 c. pine nuts (if your loving family sent you some)
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese (i have no idea where you would acquire this in Cameroon)
salt and pepper to taste

Chop basil, garlic and pine nuts very finely. Mix with olive oil, salt and pepper. (There is no Parmesan cheese here).

During Peace Corps training, we made gnocchi for one Thursday night dinner, with 3 sauces - pesto, spicy tomato, and creamy-cheesy. Every time I make gnocchi on my own, I overestimate what 2 pounds of potatoes looks like and end up adding so much more flour and cooking for hours and destroying my kitchen.

The first time I had gnocchi was at a chic little Italian restaurant in Eureka, CA of all places, when my family all came to visit me at college. That gnocchi had a butter sauce and smoked salmons and capers...