Pancakes are awesome
Although we, as an international community, may not agree on many things these days that statement above seems to be something that all of us believe to be true. Oh, and soccer is great as well! And breathing. But the truth is that among the many different amazing meals that one can make for breakfast pancakes stand out among the pack (Yes, bacon is good. But did you ever notice no one says, ‘bacon and pancakes?’ There is a reason for that). Whether they are flavored with butter, blueberries, syrup or pumpkin pancakes are one of the best ways to start your day (number two: coffee or orange juice).
The interesting thing with pancakes, like any other type of food that crosses borders, is that each country/culture has their own way making them. In this edition of the CONCACAF Cookbook we are going to take a look at the pumpkin pancake, a staple of the island nation of Curacao. Pumpkin pancakes, or Arepas di Pampuna in Dutch, are a common breakfast meal in Curacao due pumpkins being grown year round. Since they aren’t seasonal like they are in other parts of the world they have become more of a staple of those from the area. It has even started to creep into North America with our fascination of all things pumpkin over the past 5-10 years (Good news: we will not be choosing pumpkin-spiced lattes for our drink for Curacao).
So how does one make the pumpkin pancake? Read on!
Ingredients
(credit: 30s Magazine)
1 pumpkin mashed and cooked (Note: if you do not have pumpkin because it is not in season the pumpkin mix in a can will suffice).
1 cup of milk
1 cup of all-purpose flour
2 eggs
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
Directions
1.) Cut your pumpkin up into smaller pieces and put them in a pot to boil. Once they are soft use a fork to mash them up. If you don’t have a pumpkin, open up your can of pumpkin mix.
2.) Turn on your stove and place a skillet on it at a low setting. It is going to take a few minutes to get the pan warmed up so that leaves ample time to make your pancake mix.
3.) Crack your eggs open and put them in a mixing bowl. Add your pumpkin and mix the two together.
4.) Add your milk and vanilla. Mix them in.
5.) Add your flour, then your cinnamon sugar. Keep mixing in your ingredients. If you notice that your batter is too dry add a little more milk or water. If it is too wet add in some more flour.
6.) Once your pan is warmed up add the oil to the pan. Pour your batter onto the pan and cook on both sides until it is golden brown. Place in a pyrex pan with a lid so that your pancakes stay warm. Repeat this step until all of your batter is used.
7.) Once your batter is gone you are ready to eat! Traditional toppings apply here: butter, maple syrup, a little confectioner sugar if you have it.
Drink to have with your pumpkin pancakes: Curacao liqueur
The island nation is famous for their Curacao liqueur (Yes, that is the name of the company) which uses the peel of the laraha citrius fruit to make a refreshing tropical drink. The laraha plant is not actually native to Curacao-it actually came to the island via the Spanish around 1527. The Spanish attempted to transplant Valencia orange trees to the region and as opposed to paying to attention the fact that it was a very different soil and temperature they tried to grow oranges in the region (science is hard). While they did not get the desired result what they did grow was a citrius fruit whose insides were bitter but whose rind was quite pleasing. Enter: the laraha.
Given that it is a sweet, light drink Curacao liqueur will go well with one’s pumpkin pancakes at this year’s Gold Cup.
Will Curacao supporters be eating pumpkin pancakes at the 2017 Gold Cup final? One would be wise not to sleep on Curacao at this year’s tournament. The former Dutch colony earned their first-ever Caribbean Cup title this year after going through several rounds of qualification where they lost just once and beat their Group C opponents Jamaica in the final. Coach Remko Bicentini and the Curacao Football Association have used their scouting network within the Netherlands to locate and train some top-level talent including goalkeeper Eloy Room of Vitesse in the Dutch Eredivisie , defender Cuco Martina formerly of Southampton, and Leandro Bacuna of Aston Villa.
Success for Curacao at this year’s tournament, their first since 1973, will largely depend on if they can find a true scorer up top. Gino van Kessel (Slavia Praha) and Felitciano Zschusschen (FC Saarbrucken) each scored seven goals during Caribbean Cup qualification. However, five of them came against the U.S. Virgin Islands. The also failed to score in the semi-finals against Martinique and in the final against Jamaica. Defensively they should be able to take whatever El Salvador and Jamaica give them with Room, Martina, Dustley Mulder (formerly of NAC Breda), and Darryl Lachman (Willem II). But they are going to need to find some attacking spark from their forwards particularly against Mexico to keep the goal difference down.
Prediction: Get ready for a few pumpkin pancakes this summer as Curacao will once again defeat Jamaica and then earn a hard-fought victory over El Salvador. Although they will not get any points against Mexico they will earn a spot in the knockout round where they play Honduras close and make a few Catrachos supporters nervous in Texas but just fall short.
