Côte d'Ivoire: Cooking Around the World with Camilla

Whoops. I just realized that I never did the wrap-up on our tabletop travel to Côte d'Ivoire. Formerly known as the Ivory Coast, this West Africa country officially uses its French name, Côte d'Ivoire.

The country's name come from its supply of ivory - from the tusks of elephants - that Europeans desperately sought to control. In return for the gold and ivory,  Europeans brought weapons; the Portuguese introduced Ivorians to cassava, which is now a daily staple. 

We started off with Crevettes au Curry (shrimp curry) that we served over mashed yams with tomatoes. A curry dish with tangy unripe mangos and saucy tomatoes, this is traditionally made with crayfish for a Ecrevisses au Curry.

We washed that down with glasses of cold citronelle, a sweetened lemongrass tea.

And to cap off our Ivorian feast, Dylan baked a Tarte à l'Ananas Caramélisé (caramelized pineapple tart).

Funny story inspired by the tart...

My mom is reading Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck to the boys. [No, I don't think the language is appropriate.] There's a passage describing a woman as a tart. Nonna asked if they know what a tart is. My foodie 8-year-old yells, "I know, I know! A tart is like a pie, but the crust is just a little bit different. And sometimes it's made with pineapple!!!!"

Well, duh. Of course that's what a tart is.