Life at Pangaia

Eight weeks ago I left Virginia with 3 suitcases containing all my worldly possessions (ok, ok, I left 4 boxes of stuff in my mom's shed) after selling the rest. Hawaii was beckoning me to her pristine black shores to rest my weary, aching head and heal. I am home at last and my gift of gratitude is to provide nourishment for our community here at Pangaia.

After over a month of preparing rather eclectic community meals, I thought it would be fun to have "Theme Nights at Pangaia". The first one was Mexican style meal. We had raw burritos (collard green leaves instead of tortillas) which according to our guest Aaron, who by the way was quite the raw food skeptic, were the best burritos he's ever eaten. Mango salsa, guacamole, mock "refried beans" and Mexican rice rounded out our fiesta.

For Jeff's journey party we brought Thai food to a whole new light with green papaya salad (Jeff's personal favorite), Thai coconut soup made with fresh coconut milk (opened and juiced the coconuts myself...yes I have a machete and I know how to use it), I made mango curry and cucumber salad too, mmmmmm. Here's my recipe, rough version (meaning not tested by anyone yet, so leave some feedback).

MANGO CURRY
Ingredients:
2 medium mangoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1-2 medium carrots, cut into thin slices
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

CURRY SAUCE:
3-4 cloves garlic
1-2 fresh red chillies
2 cups fresh coconut milk
2 Tbsp. Nama shoyu
2 tsp. Agave nectar
juice of 1/2 lime
juice of 1 medium orange
1 tsp. tumeric
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar)
1 Tbsp. ground coriander seeds, 1 Tbsp. ground cumin
1/3 purple onion, thinly sliced
GARNISH:
handful of fresh basil leaves

Preparation:
1.To make the curry sauce, place all sauce ingredients together in a food processor (or blender if you don't have a processor). Process well. Set aside.
2.Prepare the rest of the vegetables.
3.Add the bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, stirring to incorporate.
4.Do a taste test for salt and spice. If not salty enough, add a little more nama shoyu, 1 tsp. at a time. If not spicy enough for your taste, add more fresh chill.
5.To serve, scoop into a large serving bowl, or portion out on individual plates. Sprinkle with fresh basil leaves. Serve with plenty of soaked wild rice, and enjoy.