Loretta’s been in the ‘test kitchen’ so to speak over the past few weeks. I’ve been trying to re-define familiar caribbean dishes as we know them; from ackee to water crackers (anyone who comes across a caribbean dish beginning with ‘z’ please contact me and I will edit this post accordingly!).

Last week I started with Breadfruit. Breadfruit has to be one of the most understated fruits I have come across. After sharing a breadfruit recipe last week, I did a little more research and found that as well as being high in nutrients and vitamins, Breadfruit is a great substitute for eggs, so it can be used in cakes. And for those looking for a gluten free, vegan alternative to cooking, it looks like breadfruit pasta is in the pipeline!

We have been sitting on a goldmine. Just like the humble Goiji berry and Chia seeds, Breadfruit deserves superfood status, which means both financial and scientific investment into the versatile qualities of this amazing fruit. Can you imagine what impact this could have on the economy of the communities and islands which harvest it?

Well back to the test kitchen: over the past two weeks I have been testing out breadfruit pasta. Pasta is usually made with a combination of flour, semolina and eggs. I have substituted eggs for breadfruit, inspired by Vegan Chef Tamyer Mason. The original recipe can be found here. Thank you Tamyer for this inspiring recipe!

I have made regular pasta before, but I have to say, I like this one better! It cooks quicker, is softer and more pliable than regular pasta. The first time I made this, I made it with a homemade char-grilled aubergine pesto. However I had some leftover salt fish and ackee from some patties I made in the week, so rather than waste it, I thought I should try the combination of the two.

I didn’t use all the pasta, I froze about half of it. It should keep in the freezer roughly a month. You can use any combination of fillings you like, the trick is, to make sure the filling is not too wet and sloppy, if that’s the case, then grind some stale bread in a food processor and add little by little to the mixture, the bread will soak up the juices.

As I’m thinking now, you could probably use the same pasta to make a pasta sheets for lasagna…the mind boggles!

If you would like my saltfish and ackee recipe please e-mail me.