Month: October 2023

FOOD, LIFE, LOVE, TRAVEL

Cub Scout Camping at Lodges Ekologika – Portibi Farms in West Java

Another campout with the cub scouts is in the books.

We departed around 6:00am Saturday morning and traveled by hired bus for about 1.5 hours to the Lodges Ekologika – Portibi Farms in West Java.  http://portibi.com/

When we arrived, we dropped our bags in our respective bungalows, huts, and tents and then enjoyed a light breakfast of bagels, toast, banana bread, fresh fruit, etc.  We filled our tummies and then headed off on a hike.  The Webelos scouts recited their Outdoor Code and Leave No Trace principles.

Bungalow en suite at Portibi Farms, Indonesia

After the hike, we had lunch – enjoying many of the delicacies of the farm.  Lots of fresh salads, local specialties, hot soup, and beef tenderloin sandwiches.

People serving themselves from a lunch buffet of sandwiches and soup.

Then, the kids moved on to a lesson in first aide, before heading down the hill to do some farming. 

They discovered that cinnamon grows on TREES!  They harvested lettuce, nutmeg, rosemary, cassava.  I understand there was also a bit of fighting over whose turn it was to fertilize the plants with goat poop!  While the kids were farming, the adults had afternoon tea – Indonesian farm style.  Lots of hot tea and fried snacks – like fried bananas – and we had fresh fruits like watermelon, honeydew, and orange slices. 

Cassava is also known as yuca or manioc, Cassava is a type of root vegetable that is high on vitamin C. It can be boiled, fried, grated, or pureed.

When the kids returned, the Webelos had a cooking lesson – peeling, chopping, and boiling their cassava.  While dinner was cooking – and to keep the kids out of the rain that had started – it was time for some art practice.  The Webelos needed to create two self-portraits – using two different mediums.  All the kids joined in and we did pencil drawings with colored pencils and then paintings with water based acrylic paints.  It was so much fun to see all of the kids sitting together and showing off their creativity.  We had to stop at 5:00pm, so dinner could be set up, but I think some of the kids would have been happy to keep on creating.

At 6pm, we had a lovely dinner of beef tenderloin, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes made with purple ‘sweet potatoes’.  We topped them with some butter and pesto!  We had French fries made with the purple sweet potatoes, and delicious salads.

Of course, it would not be a cub scout campout without a bonfire and s’mores.  So, after dinner, we went in search of the bonfire.  It was at the very bottom of the hill.  We had to navigate our way down a narrow path lined with stepping stones, and it was getting quite dark.  Luckily, we had our flashlights and (battery operated) lanterns.  The kids enjoyed roasting their marshmallows and lining up for mini chocolate bars and graham crackers to make s’mores.  What a fun-filled day.  We all wound our way back up the mountain to find our beds.  Jackson and I  were lucky to have a shower (with hot water!) in our bungalow.  However, another mom was in a ‘hut’, and although she was dripping sweat from climbing the mountain in the heat and humidity, she did not want to venture out in the dark to the shared shower room, so she used her fan to cool off before drifting off to sleep.  (I think we are all glad to be back to ‘civilization’!!)

Sunday morning included a lovely breakfast of mini waffles, eggs, bagels, and some local favorites such as Nasi Goreng (fried rice).  The kids learned to tie square knots and then we packed up and headed home.

We had loads of fun and made new friends. 

CELEBRATE, FOOD

Promotions Celebration!

In my line of work, promotions are hard to come by – we compete against our peers to fill a designated number of spots at the next pay grade. Even if you have been recommended for promotion by the promotion boards, there might not be enough spots. In this instance, you miss out on the promotion, and start all over again the next year. 

I should have been thrilled when the stars aligned and I was finally promoted.  However, I learned that I had received a promotion on the same morning that I learned my mom’s passing was imminent.  It was an awful morning, and I was certainly in no mood to celebrate.

Now that a few weeks have passed, I took advantage of the Columbus Day holiday and invited a few colleagues (who were also promoted!) over for lunch.  We had the day off, but the kids had school, so we enjoyed a relaxing afternoon talking about how we got to where we are today, and the next steps – for our next promotions!

We started with a glass of champagne to toast our success.

I added fresh squeezed lime juice, lime wedges, and simple syrup to the tray. Then of course, I opened the champagne!

We had fresh lime sodas and mango juice to drink.

We had Italian wedding soup, Greek salad, fresh Italian bread, and baked ziti for lunch. 

And for dessert we had tiramisu and pizzelles, served with hot tea and coffee.

I made the tiramisu using this recipe from All Recipes.
All of the tips I read insisted that I use real espresso. So, I had some delivered from Paul cafe!
I’ve tried this recipe before, cooking the eggs in the pan, and my eggs curdled. I now use a ‘double boiler’.
A friend gifted me her Kitchen Aid stand mixer when she received a new one. It is still running strong on the transformer! (Note the UHT (shelf stable) whipping cream.)
Most recipes call for Marsala wine. I didn’t have that, and I didn’t have any rum, so I used cognac.
I tried dipping the ladyfingers into the coffee on a shallow plate, but I ended up dunking them in the measuring cup with tongs. That worked best for me.
After they were chilled, and ready to be served, I sprinkled them each with a bit of unsweetened Hershey’s cocoa powder.
The table was set – ready for food and guests! I put each tiramisu cup on the little boards, with a fresh mint leaf – plucked from our herb garden.

I mentioned earlier that promotions are hard earned, oftentimes taking 6, 8, 10 years or more to achieve.  Technically, I am competing against each of these ladies for future promotions, but this was a warm, friendly gathering – each of us sincere in celebrating each other and encouraging success.