I know everyone around the world is dealing with the corona virus in one way or another and we each have stories to share. With that said let me tell you some of my stories so you can see that life aboard a boat still gets affected by a pandemic.
I dropped my last charter off on March 18th after we sailed back to St Lucia from Martinique and making it to customs only hours before they shut the island down to incoming traffic (you can read about this in the last blog). Since that time I have been anchored in Rodney Bay, St Lucia because all the other islands are closed to incoming traffic also.
I had some food left over after the charter and went to shore to get more on March 23rd. I spent the next week and a half aboard relaxing, writing, and working on projects even though people were allowed ashore and to walk around except for a curfew from 8pm-6am. On March 31st I decided I was running low on provisions and I would go to the grocery store the next day. WELL turns out the government initiated a week long 24 hour curfew where no one was allowed outside their homes and every business was closed that night without warning!!!!!
I checked what I had aboard and figured 2 cans of soup, a box of mac & cheese, spaghetti & sauce, 3 boxes of cereal, a dozen eggs, and some other odds and ends should last me the week. Turns out not only did it last the week, but also another week because the lines at the grocery stores were 3 hours long as everyone panicked and I was not going to stand there if I did not have to. When I finally got to the grocery store I still had the soup, mac & cheese, 2 cereals, and spaghetti & sauce left in the cabinet.
I was amazed how a little amount of food last a long time. I ended up finishing a few left overs and making my special homemade bread and using that for egg sandwiches (with a little ham & cheese) and French toast (I call it Caribbean toast since I add nutmeg 🙂 ). I also ran out of cookies in my snack basket, so made my mom’s famous chocolate chip cookies minus the chocolate chips……I guess that just makes them cookies. Haha
Luckily, the boat next to me found a source and had fresh produce bags delivered to the marina and they brought out to the boats in the middle of that second week since all my fresh fruits and veggies were gone before the week long curfew hit. In the bags I had cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, and bananas. The bananas were squished and turning so I had banana bread. Yummy!!!!
My point of all this rambling is that you can stretch food a lot longer than you think and also always have a stock (which I did not), because you never know when you might not be able to get more food. Also it is amazing what you can make with stuff you probably already have. For example bread, cookies, and brownies. Below you will find my bread recipe and a new brownie recipe. Also, so I don’t miss an opportunity, don’t forget you can order a copy of my cookbook, “Cooking on the Guiding Light” with 70+ recipes and over a dozen stories to entertain you. 🙂
HOMEMADE BREAD
2 1/2 Cup warm water
2 Tbsp yeast
1/4 Cup sugar
2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
6 Cups flour
-Add everything except flour to a large bowl and use a whisk to stir well
-Add 6 cups flour and stir everything together. Eventually you will have to mix by hand and fold it over several time to kneed it.
-Divide and place into two greased loaf pans.
-Let it rise for 1 hour and then bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
BROWNIES
1 Cup sugar
1 Cup flour
1/3 Cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 Eggs
1/2 Cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
-Mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased 9×9 pan.
-Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
