Many of you know that in my other life I am a full time instructor of English as a Second Language at a community college. My students come from all over the world representing numerous languages, nationalities, ethnicities, and religions.
Chicha, Peru. This is a beverage made of purple corn and seasoned with cinnamon. A revelation in holiday beverages (no alcohol, but certainly has the potential to make a delightful cocktail!)
Since it is an intensive immersion program, we spend a lot of time together in the course of a semester. Twenty hours a week for fifteen weeks, in fact.
Fish cutlets, India. Dense, yet creamy croquettes with a flavor that is not too fishy, but robust.
So it is wonderful to be able to share that most American and most inclusive of holidays — Thanksgiving — with all of them.
Foreground: Griot, Haiti. Pork shoulder deliciousness, with savory vegetables like onion and peppers and a spicy sauce. Center: Indian fish cutlets. Back: empanadas.
It reminds me of just what a true celebration of America, its achievements, and its possibilities, Thanksgiving is.
Pupusas, El Salvador (sort of a thick, soft tortilla or arepa, stuffed with cheese, sometimes beans or meat, and topped with a Salvadoran cabbage slaw)
So after a major in-class essay-writing assignment (which I still have to grade before Monday. Yikes!), we unwrapped our potluck offerings, did a little heating up in the office microwave, (one student even plugged in her slow cooker!), and tucked in.
Top: empanadas (I am not sure where these are from actually: Perhaps one of the student who reads the blog can tell me so I can fix this?), popular all over Latin America, they are meat, cheese, or pizza stuffed pastries, and bottom, sugared peanuts from Angola.
We should’ve brought hammocks too; after this incredible feast, we had the classic Thanksgiving hangover: food coma and barely dragged ourselves through the History Channel Thanksgiving lesson.
Oven-roasted chicken, El Salvador. This was falling off the bone, juicy and delicious!
So today I am showing you some images of the feast – not the students, because I didn’t ask their permission to put their pictures on-line!
My plate!
Thanks to my wonderful, hard-working, inspiring, and fun students for this feast, especially the ones who cooked!
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Tags: chicha, cooking, empanadas, food, griot, international students celebrate Thanksgiving, pupusas, sugared peanuts
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