Costa Rica Cost of Living Update: One Plantain— 40 cents
Rob is definitely the funny one in the relationship. He even tells funny Brooklyn stories with characters straight out of central casting: Pina Colada Pat, Frankie the Fist, Fat Joey, Skinny Joey, Ice-Pick Joey (that’s actually a terrifying guy with a not-so-funny story).
There is nothing humorous about me. I come from a long line of Eastern European/Russian ancestors that have not uttered anything comical since 1832. It is rumored that in 1832, someone blew a fart at the dinner table and a seven-year-old boy laughed. He was never seen again.
My husband is Italian, and these lunatics plan their life around fun activities. I’ve just learned to say yes to all of Rob’s ideas. “You want to go kayaking?” Sure. “Hike up a waterfall?” Why the hell not? If it were up to me, I’d sit in my room all day reading Tolstoy’s, The Death of Ivan Ilyich. Spoiler alert: he dies.
My husband will even wake up in the middle of the night and ask me if I want French Toast… just because it’s fun to eat five hundred, carb-rich calories at three in the morning. Like I said, he’s nuts.
But I can make Rob laugh when he watches me cook. So I am making these videos just to see him smile. His smile can turn a mediocre day into a pretty good one. And when it’s a good day I can ask him to remove the fourteen hornet’s nests that are growing around the house.
Today I’m making plantains. They cost 40 cents each, and anything that cost 40 cents is worth making a video about. But I know most people in the United States don’t make them because they are weird and seem complicated. Who needs that in their produce? Not me. I want it easy. So this is an easy, cheap plantain recipe that will impress your non-plantain eating neighbors at the next block party. I bet they don’t have a sense of humor either. But they will after you make these.
Ingredients:
(Preheat oven to 350 degrees)
4 super ripe plantains (they will be turning brown)
½ tsp pumpkin spice
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 stick salted butter
2/3 cup of Maple Syrup
- Cut ends off plantains and score a shallow slit lengthwise. Peel off skin.
- Cut plantain into one-inch pieces
- Cut stick of butter into multiple thin pads
- Toss plantain slices onto buttered baking pan
- Layer butter on plantain slice
- Mix vanilla into the syrup and pour over the plantains
- Back at 350 degrees for twenty-five minutes
And if you are Italian, wake up your spouse and make these at three in the morning. Just because it’s fun to eat food in the middle of the night.
Love plantains and root crops-do you like breadfruit?
It’s raining and crummy here in Kirkland- what about you’se??
DEAR MS. NADINE,
My wife is Filipino and makes fried plantains in oil with granulated sugar spread over the top. They are a great desert. Your baked ones look much more healthy and less like a desert and more like a side dish?
But, boy do they look good!
Your cooking demo is a blast, even when you don’t catch the banana! You and Rob do such a great job with your blog and your videos. I look forward to seeing each new edition!
Thanks for what you do to keep us up-to-date about Costa Rica. I’m building a house up at Lake Arenal, starting this summer/fall, and look forward to moving into it next spring!
Fred
This recipe sounds yummy too. And so easy. I’ve never tried to cook a plantain but I think now, I will!
They are so cheap here, it’s totally worth it to make as a side dish. I’ve even seen them wrapped in a tortilla!
I love to eat plantains but have never attempted to make my own. They’re a special treat when I visit Costa Rica. Thank you for posting this recipe, I’m heading to the grocery today in search of some plantains and soon we will be enjoying them in southern Nevada as well. Thank you, Nadine ?
I would love to know how much they cost by you, Karen. If you get a chance, let me know.