I’ve got the sweetest treat for you after not blogging for about a month (my bad)! As it goes, life has been a little crazy for me lately, but I’m always thinking about the next recipe I want to share with you.
This past weekend, I was in Miami for one of my best friends’ bachelorette party. When I got to Miami, I had a little time to kill so decided to hit up Little Havana with one of the other ladies. This was my first time in Miami/Little Havana so, of course, I had to check out all the foodie spots. One of the most memorable stops on the trip was at Guayaba y Chocolate. We were actually on the hunt for guava pastelitos and assumed with “guayaba” in the name, they’d have it. But, what they had was so much better.
There, we met Ari who let us sample some amazing Venezuelan chocolate. If you’ve never had Venezuelan chocolate, it’s a dark chocolate, but made with only about 65% percent cacao (unlike typical dark chocolate which has about 75% cacao). Aside from the chocolate, they had delicious bon bons, alfajores, and, my favorite, jams, specifically a strawberry jasmine jam and a guava habanero jam (hello, adult grilled cheese sandwiches!).
Ari also shared her passion for food and talked about some delicious recipes including platanos calados (or caramelized plantains). The next day, I put together a menu for our bachelorette dinner party and HAD to include a spin on this dish. Hope you enjoy it as much as we all did!
INGREDIENTS
- 3 very ripe plantains (it should have black spots)
- 1/2 cup panela (or cane sugar)
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 shot mango rum
- 2 sprigs thyme
HOW TO MAKE IT
- Start by removing the peels from the plantains. I like to do this by cutting the tips of the top and bottom then making a light slit down the center of the plantain. I take my thumbs at the center of the plantain to slip off the peel like a jacket. Be careful not to break the plantain. Cut the plantain into 1-inch round pieces and set aside.
- In a skillet on medium heat, add the panela (or cane sugar) along with the butter. Start stirring this so that the panela and butter melt evenly. We want this to turn into a slightly thick caramel so keep stirring until you see bubbling. (reduce heat to medium low if needed)
- Once you see bubbling, add the vanilla, mango rum, and thyme. Mix together and then add the plantains, gently tossing them in the caramel so they get coated. Once evenly coated, make sure all the plantains lay flat. Let this cook for about a minute or until you see the edges turn lightly brown.
- When the edges turn lightly brown, flip the plantains and cook for another minute. Remove from heat, sprinkle a little fresh thyme, and enjoy!
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