Garlic Lobster & Chili and Lime Fish

Garlic Lobster
Boil a pot of sea water and drop live lobster in and replace lid. Boil for 10 minutes, remove lobster and refrigerate to cool. Remove tail from shell and remove back vein. Heat a fry pan with butter and crushed garlic, pan fry quickly to warm....serve with crusty bread and salad.

Chili and Lime Fish
Place fillet of fish in foil with a good splash of chili sauce, cracked pepper and the juice of half a lime. Seal foil and fry in a dry pan turning until cooked (a few minutes).

Meat & 3 Vege.

Never again will we take the basic "meat and 3 vege" meal for granted.
First job when we get to a new , inhabited destination, is to clear customs. Next stop is usually a coffee shop, in search of the perfect cappuccino (Cotton Tree is still the best so far) ... Our first meal in a new location is often a "local" meal out as we have usually depleted our meat and produce supply, or we just want to check out the local food. After a grocery shop our first on-board preferred meal is cold meat and salad or meat and 3 vege.

Chicken breast and pork fillets have generally been quality cuts, inexpensive and in good supply throughout the Caribbean. We haven't been adventurous enough to try some of the unidentifiable meats (to us) yet...in fact, probably isn't going to happen. We are happy enough with our international culinary sampling to date without going overboard (no pun intended).

Jazz up the basic:

• Add a big squeeze of honey to carrots whilst cooking, then serve with butter and dill (from our new herb garden).
• Mashed potatoes are creamy with a good dollop of sour cream and grated cheese.
• Add garlic, leek, mushrooms and onion to pan while frying meat, add creme fraische upon completion.

Recipe...Easy Chicken & Vegetable Soup

Quick easy and tasty......
Ingredients:
large chicken breast fillet or thigh fillets, olive oil, 2 to 3 cloves garlic, 2 to 3 chicken stock cubes, large onion, washed potato, peeled sweet potato, carrot, any or all of these green vegetables - celery, leek, cabbage, broccoli, silverbeet. Salt and cracked pepper.

Dice chicken and vegetables. In a large saucepan brown chicken, onion and garlic in olive oil.
Add diced vegetables and stock cubes and a few cups of water. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer, cooking until the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and cracked pepper if desired.

Variations to recipe: add pumpkin and a little curry powder
add chinese noodles
add a good swig of white wine (and a swig for the galley slave)
add a little grated cheese or parmesan or sour cream

*you could also substitute chicken with bacon or beef (beef needs to be cooked for min. 90mins before you add vegies)

We are presently at Curacao, Dutch Antilles.....the supermarket has bags of diced vegies...I just add the potatoes, garlic and onion....makes the recipe even easier.