Comfort Food from the "Old Country"; Cachupa

This soup is part of my Cape Verdean culture (a recipe passed down from my Vozinha). Its also a staple meal in Cape Verde (also known as Cabo Verde to the locals). A very flagrant and hearty stew that is perfect for this time of year, however if it's your first time making it, be sure to allow yourself plenty of prep/cooking time. Maybe try it out one weekend when you have the extra hours to spare...

Ingredients;

1 pkg. Pork Bones or Pigs Feet (you can also substitute smoked turkey bones or ham)

2 cups Dried Corn (also known as yellow samp)
1 cup Dried Red Kidney Beans
1 cup Dried Lima Beans
1 Medium Onion Chopped
2-3 White Potatoes cut in 4 (sweet potatoes optional)

Olive Oil

Spices- Salt, Pepper, Garlic, Paprika (to taste)

Cooking Instructions;

In a large pot, saute meat & chopped onion with

olive oil until golden brown. Fill pot half way with
water. Add salt, pepper, garlic, and paprika to taste.
Bring to a boil. Add corn & beans. Cook on
medium heat slowly until corn & beans are soft.
Add potatoes close to the end to help broth thicken.

Serves; 10-12

Cooking Time; 2.5-3hrs.

I must say, it's very yummy (not because I'm bias or anything *wink*), but if you try this recipe, let me know how it comes out! Good Luck! xo


Photos taken by: Wahkuna

Weekend in Reveiw Vol.#3- Sleepover at Vozinha's

Lately, I always find myself reminiscing about the "good ole days", when I was young enough- not to have any "real" problems or responsibilities. Of course those days are long gone, however it's nice to think back on them every now and again, to remember where we came from and what made us the people we are today. Some of my fondest childhood memories are the sleepovers I had at my Vozinha & Vovo's house (which means grandmother & grandfather in Cape Verdean creole). Sometimes I would sleepover my grandparent's house alone and other times I would be with my cousins, which was a real treat (considering they all lived an hour from us)! There was always plenty of love, laughs and good food to go around at the sleepovers. Oh how I miss those days!

Now that I am a young woman, I'm still lucky enough to have Vozinha in my life. She's 80 years old and still kicking! Vozinha is quite the feisty one (which is why she has outlived the rest of my grandparents), not to mention she's like super woman! I'm so grateful to still have her in my life. And lets just say that now-a-days when I have a chance to sleepover there, it's so much more special, because it makes me feel like a kid again, like I'm reliving my younger years all over again. This weekend my cousin Lanita and I slept there one night and she brought her new little baby, Audrianna for quality time with Vozinha (her great-grandmother). It was 3 generations having a sleepover- something you don't hear of everyday, and most certainly doesn't happen very often. Here are some images I captured with my phone while we were all together;

Isn't she the cutest baby ever? I mean how can you resist that face! *smile*

As for the rest of my weekend- it was pretty low key. I finished working on a scrapbook/guestbook for the Bat Mitzvah event I posted about here, which I will share with you soon. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend and was able to spend some quality time with family too...

That's it for now, be back soon! xo

Photos taken by; Wahkuna