Lima Beans and Cacao Pods

It’s cantaloupe. No wait, lemons, and is that guava, and oof! The sting of vinegar tickles the insides of my nose. Cacao beans, an entire Igloo ice chest full of them are right in front of me and they’re almost vibrating with life. When the beans went in 24 hours ago, they were so fruity […]

The Mayan PB & J

Her wood fire crackled, radiating heat into the center of her already 80+ degree home. In this part of Belize, everyone sweats. There’s little electricity, air-conditioning is a very rare luxury, and there’s work to be done. Work for Mrs. Bo is making tortillas, by hand, sometimes 200 or more per day. Mrs. Bo is […]

Escape to Belize…NOW

Ready to Visit Belize? We arrived here on November 2nd, 2020 for a year-long adventure. And I believe that qualifies us to answer your questions about your desire to visit Belize. Vaccines are being administered, travelers are making plans and Belize hasn’t been affected by the pandemic like some other countries you’ve read about. Now […]

Chocolate Cake with a Belizean Twist

This cake involves several steps, but the beauty of it is you do not need a mixer and each part can be made ahead of time. The candied cacao nibs can be made a few days ahead of time and kept in an airtight container as can the cake and chocolate syrup. The nibs, when […]

On the Passing of Chef Curtis Wolf

February 18th At 6:00 am this morning I learned a good friend of mine had passed away.  And I’m heartbroken. For 17 years Curtis Wolf was the executive chef of a luxurious hotel in downtown Greenville. In my world chefs are prone to jump back and forth between jobs searching for just the right circumstances, […]

The Best Bites of San Pedro’s DFC

After seeking out the best eats of DFC, the working-class neighborhood of San Pedro, Belize, I believe I’ve been humbled thanks to a young lady from Honduras and the green bananas she cooked for us. Recently we joined culinary forces with Rebecca Coutant, the force behind San Pedro Scoop, the most widely read and followed […]

Mayan Chocolate and Cotton Trees

Juan offers me the cacao pod. About the size of a Nerf football, its color is deep orangish yellow with a few tiny dark brown spots and it’s textured, with deep ridges running horizontally. It’s also light, the whole thing weighs less than a pound. I run my knife into its outer hull, which is […]

Mangroves and Howlers

Raymond is slapping his four-foot-long machete on the Cohune Palm then he barks to the tribe of Howler Monkeys racing across the treetops. His command was a husky “AhhRoof!” that he repeated six or seven times over. Imagine our surprise when one of the young males clambered down to within twenty feet of us, easily […]

The Hummingbird Highway to Placencia

Hello Google. How do I say “Which way to the beach in Mayan?” There’s four highways in Belize. No kidding. Four major highways crisscross this country of nine thousand square miles. The Philip Goldson, Western (George Price), Southern, and the Hummingbird Highway. If your destination is off one of those highways by twenty miles there’s […]

The Jaguars and Speed Bumps of Belize

The big cat quietly scrunched up its body, coiling its muscles as a competitive swimmer would on the starting blocks. Her mass was being converted to momentum, she was kinetic energy, clutching claws, and sharp teeth wrapped in a priceless fur coat. At that moment I was unsure that Carlos even realized how close this […]