Location: Western Europe Population: 10.3 million Capital: Lisbon Geography: A mainland of mountains and rolling plains on the Iberian Peninsula, and two Atlantic archipelagos (the Azores and Madeira) Language: Portuguese Signature flavours: Seafood, potato, tomato, egg, piri piri, olives and olive oil, pork, pastry The Menu Eric and I went to Portugal and the Azores…
Assignment 66: United States of America
Location: North America Population: 327 million Capital: Washington Geography: A vastly varied landscape of plain, mountain, tundra, forest, desert, swamp, and coastland Language: English Signature flavours: Beef, corn, sugar, cheese, wheat products, potato, chicken The Menu Ah, America. Home of hotdogs and hamburgers, pizza and apple pie. Land of millions of diverse voices and thousands…
Assignment 65: Ukraine
Location: Eastern Europe Population: 42.4 million Capital: Kiev Geography: Fertile plains Language: Ukrainian Signature flavours: Potato, beets, cabbage, mushrooms, pork, dairy products, fish, vinegar, berries, dill The Menu My research on Ukrainian food started and finished with The New Ukrainian Cookbook by Annette Ogrodnik Corona. I was inspired early on by her descriptions of the…
Assignment 64: Afghanistan
Location: Central Asia Population: 31.6 million Capital: Kabul Geography: A landlocked, mountainous country Language: Pashto Signature flavours: Rice, lamb, rosewater, cumin, dried fruits, nuts, yoghurt The Menu Eric went straight to the Toronto Public Library for cookbooks when he was assigned Afghanistan. A newly-released and well-reviewed Afghan cookbook was on order for the library and…
Assignment 63: Paraguay
Location: South America Population: 7.2 million Capital: AsunciĆ³n Geography: Tropical, with a landscape of plains and some low hills Language: Guarani, Spanish Signature flavours: Corn, cheese, onion, chicken, beef, anise, yerba mate The Menu As inadequate as my Spanish is, I did my research in Spanish for this assignment. We are quickly learning that when…
Assignment 62: El Salvador
Location: Central America Population: 6.3 million Capital: San Salvador Geography: A tropical, mountainous nation with significant geothermal activity Language: Spanish Signature flavours: Corn, cheese, tomato, chicken, beans, chilli peppers, red onion, pumpkin The Menu Eric had eaten Salvadorian food once before, when he lived in Texas, where there is a large Salvadorian population. Flavours familiar…
Assignment 61: Democratic Republic of the Congo
Location: Central Africa Population: 78.7 million Capital: Kinshasa Geography: An equatorial country covered in jungle and savannah Language: French Signature flavours: Beans, roots vegetables, leafy greens, peanuts The Menu This was the first assignment after a holiday hiatus that gave Eric and I some much-needed rest. I have to say that I enjoyed taking a…
Assignment 60: Italy
Location: Southern Europe Population: 60.5 million Capital: Rome Geography: A largely mountainous country extending into the Mediterranean Sea Language: Italian Signature flavours: Bread and pasta, tomato, garlic, dairy products, coffee, basil, oregano, beef, olives and olive oil The Menu At the outset of the Wooden Spoon Wanderer project, Eric and I agreed that we should…
Assignment 59: St Vincent and the Grenadines
Location: The Caribbean Population: 109,600 Capital: Kingstown Geography: A collection of 32 islands, the largest of which is St Vincent Language: English Signature flavours: Breadfruit, coconut, seafood, root vegetables The Menu St Vincent cuisine was not easy to research, and there was a definite dearth of resources. I didn’t get anywhere in my quest for…
Assignment 58: Kenya
Location: East Africa Population: 49.1 million Capital: Nairobi Geography: A mix of savannah, desert, and fertile highland Language: Swahili, English Signature flavours: Corn, ginger, leafy greens, beans, chicken, potato The Menu When Eric got his Kenya assignment, he wondered how similar he would find it to Ā Zimbabwe, another East African country from which he cooked…
Wooden Spoon Wanderer 