MAIN INGREDIENTS
Cassava pone is a sweet, moist, and gummy dessert made from cassava root, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, coconut, sugar, nutmeg, butter, and milk. Not much is known about the origin of this dessert, but it's believed it first appeared somewhere on Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago or in Guyana, although most probably at all of these territories at the same time.
Today, cassava pone is so popular that it is regularly the first dessert to sell out at bake sales, and it is said that if you ask any local about pone, you are almost guaranteed to be regaled with a cherished childhood memory.
Soursop ice cream is a Caribbean dessert that is especially popular in Trinidad and Tobago. It is made with ripe soursop, water, cornstarch, condensed milk, salt, and sometimes a few splashes of bitters. After the combination has been churned, it is then stored in the freezer until firm in texture.
This unique ice cream variety is enjoyed throughout the year.
MOST ICONIC Soursop Ice Cream
Goolab jamoon (also spelled gulab jamun) is a festive Trini treat that was developed under the influence of Indian cuisine. Milky and sweet, these fritters consist of milk, flour, ghee, water, and ground cardamom. Fried until golden brown and then drained, the fritters are glazed with a sweet syrup consisting of sugar, water, and ginger.
Goolab jamoon is especially popular during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights.
Achingly sweet, extra hard, dense, and crunchy, benne balls are popular Tobagonian treats made with brown sugar and benne, which is an African word for sesame seeds. These treats are extremely simple to prepare - brown sugar is heated, combined with sesame seeds, and then the concoction is rolled into a ball and left to set.
Benne balls are especially popular at street stalls which are located near the beaches, making these sweets an ideal beach treat – just watch out for your teeth while consuming them!
An integral part of Caribbean cuisine in festive times, especially around Christmas, black fruit cake is a unique dessert filled with nuts, dried fruits, warm spices, and burnt sugar syrup - giving it a rich and bitter chocolate flavor and a typical deep black color.
Although the cake has numerous variations regarding the ingredients, rum is always mandatory. Black fruit cake has roots throughout the Caribbean, dating back to the 17th century when English settlers brought over their tradition of the English pudding, which was modified by the slaves and their descendants into a decadent rum cake over the years.
Sawine is a Trini dessert that is traditionally prepared on Eid ul fitr, a Muslim holiday. It is made with vermicelli noodles, almonds, sugar, milk, cinnamon, and raisins. The vermicelli are first parched until golden brown, then cooked in milk until the concoction thickens.
Other ingredients are then mixed in the pot, and sawine is ready for consumption. This festive dessert can be served hot, cold, or at room temperature.
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Conkies is a traditional dish of the West Indies that's especially popular in Barbados, and Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago (where it's called paime). It's made with a combination of cornmeal, spices (cinnamon, nutmeg), grated pumpkin, coconut, sweet potatoes, raisins, flour, sugar, butter, and sometimes eggs.
The mixture is wrapped in banana leaves, then steamed until it solidifies. Conkies are served on their own as a dessert or as a side dish accompanying fish cakes or fried fish. They can also be served for breakfast with a cup of tea or coffee on the side.
Soursop ice block is a unique Trini treat that is especially popular on extremely hot days. It is made with soursop pulp, water, condensed milk, and a small amount of bitters. The ingredients are simply blended together until smooth, then transferred to ice trays to freeze.
After being frozen, this tasty ice cream is ready for consumption.
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.