hello goodnight 🙃
let’s go to trinidad + tobago for pastelles

although there are many similarities—from the look to root origin—pastelles are NOT the same as tamales. the cooking technique, flavor, texture, ingredients—all unique to trinidad + tobago 🇹🇹#happyfoodmas #avaeats trinidadian pastelles were thought to come from the original spanish settlers in the 15th + 18th centuries—some argue it was brought even earlier by the amerindians that first discovered + inhabited the island #happyfoodmas #avaeats

tonight for #HappyFoodmas, i’m tryina keep it short + sweet..

sweets?

dessert?

let’s go to cuba for majarete—corn pudding 🌽🍮🇨🇺
#avaeats there’s a great dispute whether majarete originated in cuba, the dominican republic, or puerto rico. all three islands were once populated by the taínos.
#HappyFoodmas #avaeats

since it’s meghan markle’s first christmas as duchess of sussex, lets talk about christmas pudding.

w. origins in medieval england, it’s sometimes known as plum pudding or just "pud" #happyfoodmas #avaeats we know pudding as a soft, custard dessert—in the uk, pudding just means “desserts”

christmas pudding consists of dried fruits held together by egg +suet (raw, hard beef fat) moistened w. molasses +flavored w. cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, ginger +other spices #happyfoodmas #avaeats

i’m gonna piggyback off of @EatWithNia‘s ham thread.

for day4, we’re in the philippines for lechon!

you know exactly what i’m talmbout—that brick-red whole suckling pig on a stick! yup! #HappyFoodmas #avaeats many cultures have their own version of the whole roasted pig: the cantonese have siu yuk + there’s whole hog barbecue in the carolinas, but in ‘09 the og anthony bourdain called filipino lechon the “best pig ever”
#happyfoodmas #avaeats

tonight, we’re going all the way to to eastern europe for kūčios, the traditional lithuanian christmas eve dinner.

though some traditions are no longer honored, family makes the journey + a special effort just to come together to enjoy dinner #happyfoodmas #avaeats lithuanians make the journey not so much for the meal, but for the sacred ritual of kūčios, bringing everyone closer + strengthening family ties.

if a family member died that year or can’t attend for a serious reason, an empty place is left at the table..
#happyfoodmas #avaeats

snaking lines like a supreme drop in japan—but this line isn’t for a new sneaker release.

or the new iphone.

it’s for christmas chicken.

CHRISTMAS FRIED CHICKEN.

specifically, KFC.
#HappyFoodmas #avaeats while doing my research on christmas traditions around the world, the christmas fried chicken was a pleasant surprise. as i went down the rabbit hole of fried chicken in japan, i found two very different explanations of its connection to christmas.
#HappyFoodmas #avaeats