Puerto Rican festival offers suggestions for the holidays

Looking for some new or unique ideas for your holiday shopping? Hungry for Puerto Rican food? Come to the Puerto Rican Market Day Saturday at the United Puerto Rican Association of Hawaii social hall.

There will be Puerto Rican foods, Christmas crafts, baked goods, Spanish CDs (both new and used), jewelry, clothing, and Latin American products from Mercado de la Raza.

To get you in the mood for holidays, we're sharing two popular Puerto Rican recipes commonly prepared for special occasions. Both come from the cookbook "Recipes from the Heart of Hawaii's Puerto Ricans" by the United Puerto Rican Association of Hawaii.

The cookbooks are $10 ($13.50 by mail order). Call 847-2751, 488-8501 or 487-7040 to order a copy, or better yet -- buy a cookbook at the market this weekend.

PERNIL (PORK ROAST)

6 pound pork butt roast
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 to 4 tablespoons adobo seasoning (Goya brand preferred)
Cut slits in pork butt.

Combine garlic, oregano, pepper, flour and olive oil. Rub all over meat. Rub adobo seasoning all over roast. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Place roast, fat side up, in shallow roasting pan. Bake uncovered at for 3-1/2 to 4 hours. Serves 10.

Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving: 500 calories, 40 g total fat, 14 g saturated fat, 135 mg cholesterol, 750 mg sodium, 1 g carbohydrate, no fiber or sugar, 32 g protein.

PASTELES

1-1/2 pounds pork butt or boneless chicken thighs
1/3 cup achiote seeds
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup minced green onions
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 jar (7 ounces) chopped pimiento
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1 can (8 ounces) pitted black olives, drained
2-1/2 teaspoons salt
4 Hawaiian red peppers, seeded and minced
20 medium-sized green Chinese bananas
1 pound potatoes
Heavy foil
Chop pork or chicken into small pieces.

In a small saucepan, combine achiote seeds and oil. Cook over low heat about 5 minutes, or until oil has a rich red color; strain and discard seeds.

In a saucepan, heat 3 tablespoons achiote oil; brown pork or chicken. Add onion, garlic, green onions, parsley, pimiento and oregano. Cover and simmer 10 minutes.

Stir in tomato sauce, olives, 1-1/2 teaspoons salt and red peppers. Cook over low heat 1 hour; cool.

Soak bananas in hot water 10 minutes. Peel bananas and potatoes; grate finely.

Combine bananas, potatoes, 3 tablespoons achiote oil and remaining 1 teaspoon salt.

Cut foil into 20 pieces, 20-by-9-inches each.

To make each pastele, spread about 1/2 teaspoon of remaining oil on a piece of foil. Spread 1/3 cup banana mixture over oil, forming a 9-by-6-inch rectangle. Spread 1/4 cup meat mixture over banana mixture. Carefully fold foil lengthwise around filling. Repeat to make 20 pasteles. Place in large saucepot; add water to cover pasteles. Bring to boil, lower heat and cook 1 hour. Makes 20 (10 servings).

Note: Pasteles can be wrapped in wilted banana leaves and tied with string instead of foil.

Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (using pork): 350 calories, 20 g total fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, 50 mg cholesterol, 1,000 mg sodium, 28 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 2 g sugar, 16 g protein.

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