American Samoa (Oceania) 24 March 2023

American Samoa is located in the continent of Oceania. It has the Pacific Ocean to the north, northwest, east, and south, New Zealand to the far southwest, Australia and Papua New Guinea to the far west.

The capital is Fagatogo (Pago Pago).

The official languages are English and Samoan.

The climate is tropical and receives ample precipitation. Temperatures are generally constant and range from the high 60s to the low 90s F.

The staple foods are boiled eggs, cornflakes, fresh bread, green bananas, taro, canned corned beef, turkey tails, coconut cream, rice, fish, pineapple and many more delicious foods (https://metrosouth.health.qld.gov.au/sites/default/files/content/heau-cultural-profile-samoan.pdf).

https://www.britannica.com/place/American-Samoa

SAMOAN BBQ CHICKEN WITH COCONUT RICE (https://southernfellow.com/samoan-bbq-chicken-with-coconut-rice/):  

Polynesian BBQ Sauce:

            – 2 TBSP sesame oil

            – 2 TBSP ginger, finely diced

            – 3 tsp garlic, finely diced

            – ½ C onion, finely diced

            – 1 C soy sauce

            – ½ C ketchup

            – ¼ C apple vinegar

            – ½ C pineapple juice

            – 3 TBSP honey

            – 2 tsp sriracha

            – 2 TBSP corn starch

            – water

1. Place a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Add the sesame oil.
3. Once the oil is hot, add the onions, garlic, and ginger.
4. Cook until the onions start to become translucent.
5. Add the remainder of the ingredients except for the cornstarch and water.
6. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium.
7. Cook for 15 minutes and raise the heat to medium-high once more.
8. Dissolve the cornstarch in as little water as possible in a small bowl.
9. Next, stir in the cornstarch slurry into the BBQ sauce.
10. If it looks a little thin, make more cornstarch slurry.
11. Then add a little at a time until you get the thickness you desire.

Chicken Marinade:

            – 1 C canola oil

            – 2 limes, juiced

            – 2 cloves garlic

            – 1 TBSP ginger, finely diced

            – 2 TBSP honey

1. Whisk the marinade ingredients together in a bowl.
2. Place the chicken in a Ziplock bag and then add the marinade.
3. Zip the bag tight and work the marinade around the chicken.
4. Refrigerate overnight.

Chicken:

            – 4 leg quarters

            – ½ tsp salt

            – ¼ tsp pepper

            – ¼ tsp cinnamon

            – pinch ground clove

1. Remove the chicken from the marinade and season with salt, pepper, cinnamon, and clove.
2. Preheat a BBQ grill to 275 degrees (If you are using a pellet smoker, I recommend adding the chicken before you preheat for the best wood-fired flavor).
3. Place the chicken on the grill and let cook for 40 minutes.
4. Bring the grill to 300 degrees and top the chicken with BBQ sauce.
5. Let cook for about 15 minutes.
6. Next, flip the chicken over and add BBQ sauce to the bottom.
7. Cook for another 15 minutes.
8. Flip the chicken once again and sauce the top.
9. Let it cook for about 10 minutes.
10. To check the chicken for doneness, lift up on the leg and if it starts to separate from the thigh section; your chicken is done. If not, give it a little more time.
11. Once done, remove from grill.

Here is how my chicken turned out. The BBQ blend added so much great flavor!!

Coconut Rice and Grilled Pineapple Slices:  

            – 1 C short grain rice

            – ½ tsp salt

            – ¾ C chicken stock

            – ¾ C coconut milk

1. Short grain rice can be very starchy, so rinse the rice several times to remove some of the starch.
2. In a heavy-bottomed 4 quart pot, add the chicken stock, coconut milk, and salt.
3. Bring to a boil.
4. Add the rice, cover, and reduce heat to low.
5. Let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until rice has absorbed all the liquid.
6. For a nice touch, serve with sliced green onion, grilled pineapple, and red pepper.

The coconut rice and grilled pineapple slices were great side dishes to the BBQ Chicken!!

SAMOA COOKIES (https://www.justataste.com/homemade-samoas-girl-scout-cookies-recipe/):  

For the Cookies:

            – 1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

            – ½ C sugar

            – 2 C all-purpose flour

            – ¼ tsp baking powder

            – ½ tsp salt

            – 2 TBSP milk

            – ½ tsp vanilla extract

1. In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In three increments, add the flour mixture to the creamed butter, mixing between each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
4. Add the milk and vanilla extract, blending until combined and the dough begins to come together in large pieces.
5. Use your hands to divide the dough in half, pressing it together to compact it into two disks.
6. Wrap the disks securely in plastic wrap and refrigerate them until firm, about 1 hour.
7. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
8. Once the dough has chilled, roll each disk out onto a lightly floured surface until it is 1/8-inch thick.
9. Cut out as many cookies as possible with a doughnut-shaped cookie cutter.
10. Place the cut-out cookies on a Silpat or parchment paper-lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.
11. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheet half-way through, until the cookies are pale golden brown.
12. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Coconut Topping:

            – 3 C shredded sweetened coconut

            – 15 oz. store-bought or homemade soft caramels

            – 3 TBSP milk

            – ¼ tsp salt

            – 8 oz. dark chocolate

1. Spread the coconut flakes onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
2. Bake the coconut for about 10 minutes in a 350F oven until toasted, stirring frequently to ensure even browning and so that it does not burn.
3. Remove the toasted coconut from the oven and set it aside.
4. Melt the caramels, milk, and salt in a double boiler by placing the caramels in a medium saucepot set over a large saucepot of simmering water.
5. Cook, stirring, until the caramels are fully melted.
6. Remove the saucepot from the heat and combine ¾ of the caramel with the toasted coconut in a large bowl.
7. Carefully spread the remaining ¼ C of caramel atop the cooled cookies then press on a portion of the coconut mixture.
8. Let the cookies cool for 30 minutes.
9. If the caramel-coconut mixture thickens too much at any point while pressing it onto the cookies, return it to the double boiler and warm it until it’s spreadable again.
10. Melt the dark chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave.
11. Dip the bottoms of the cookies in the chocolate and place them on a wax paper-lined baking sheet.
12. Use a fork to drizzle the tops with chocolate.

Let the cookies sit until the chocolate hardens fully.

They might not look exactly like the Girl Scout cookies, but they are homemade and they tasted REALLY good! Love this recipe!