KIDS' CLUB, YOUTH GROUP and CABURE

October 8, 2011 

After a major storm, God allowed the sun to shine so the 2 Saturday events I was looking forward to wouldn't be cancelled - our 2nd kids' club and youth group. 

We had a great kids’ club with new faces.  Praise God for the two women who are heading this up and for David who is willing to lead the kids with music.

After kids’ club, my friend, Nilsa came over to make cabure dough.  When the youth came over later that evening, we wrapped the dough on broom sticks and cooked them over hot coals.

 Liz shared with the youth about running the Christian race. 

Then we shared s’more fixin’s that my family brought from the US.  Since we cannot get any of the ingredients in country, it was the youths’ first.  They loved them.

Cabure

10 eggs

3/4K cornmeal

1K starch

Milk

lard

Mix together and form into large balls

SOPA PARAGUAYA

A friend of mine gifted me some homemade cheese so my family could try sopa Paraguaya (a very typical dish here).  Sopa Paraguaya reminds me a bit of corn bread, but it is denser and with sautéed onions.

Like most typical dishes in Paraguay, it calls for cornmeal.  Cornmeal is in abundance because almost everyone grows and grinds their own corn.  Since I don’t have a field, I always have to ask different friends if I could help them pick, shuck or grind corn in exchange for a kilo or two.      

This time, we were given corn kernels.  After it was boiled and dried, Liz and I went to a friend’s house to grind and sift it.  It took so much arm and shoulder strength that I was very thankful my friend and her kids were all willing to take turns.

Sopa Paraguay

4 eggs

2K cornmeal

3Tbs starch

4 onions

Salt to taste

1 ½ C lard

milk

Cook onion with lard and salt

Mix cornmeal, starch, onion mixture and enough milk until soft

Pour in a 9x13 dish, bake at 350 for 45 minutes

SATURDAY, JUNE 18th

We had a great mobile clinic this morning in a small colonia about 10 km away called Noguera Kue.

It was a dusty day.


Jeff welcoming patients into the clinic


Seeing patients



Jeff sharing a bible story with the patients before treating them.




Brea at work


Rachel at work


Patients drinking terere while waiting


The waiting patients


Here's what my kids did during the mobile clinic.


Jordan and Micah


Seeing patients


Jenny taking a blood pressure


Taking a terere break


The girls in front of the mobile clinic


At 3:00 I welcomed youth into my home.









This past week a couple of the students have attended a funeral for a baby born premature. They had seen the mother in clinic earlier in the week. One girl attended a burial and another girl participated in the annual prayers for a dead grandpa.

The girls attended another San Juan festival. Much of the same went on as last weekend.

The girls have been enjoying running together in the afternoons. Running – for exercise - is not something people do around here so the girls get tons of looks from those passing by. Brea’s host sister stays on the track with them offering terere as they come around!

In clinic the girls have been doing tons of OB ultrasounds. They quickly realized that teen pregnancy is a HUGE problem here. Jeff’s been letting them pray over these patients. On OB ultrasounds, they’ve been also able to see twins and a molar pregnancy.

The students have all been enjoying baking with their families and learning how to make some of the traditional Paraguayan dishes. <!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Here’s a recipe for empanadas:

EMPANADAS

For the dough, mix 1 egg, flour, a pinch of salt, a little oil and some water until dough is soft and rollable. Roll in to 15 thin circular sheets.

For the filling, sautee ground beef, chives, chopped onion, grated garlic and salt.

Fill dough shells with 2Tbsp of filling and seal shut with fork. Fry for 3-4 minutes in oil.

SATURDAY, JUNE 11th

Saturday at 6:30 we watched a pig being slaughtered. It got a lot of ooooohs and eeeeews out of the girls. Jeff wanted me to take mental notes because he’s planning to kill one of our pigs (not Vern). I ordered a back leg and some pork chops. Ginny ordered an ear (which she boiled and ate). I also took some pork skin home for the students to practice their suturing skills later this week. None of the pig parts are wasted. The fat is boiled down to cook with, the skin is used in a specific dish, blood sausage is made with the intestines, the head and feet are boiled and then munched on, and the liver, heart, etc are chopped up and put into soup.








Rachel posing next to the pig's head.


Virginia preparing to cook the organs.


Using a saw to cut uo the meat.



Today is San Juan Day, a dual holiday from Spain celebrating the summer solstice (pagan sun worshippers) and St. John the Baptist’s Day (religious). During a two week window even the smallest of towns will celebrate with a festival. Tonight we joined the festivities at the high school. Guys dress in white poncho type shirts, sheets/rags wrapped around their legs and their head and face covered with material (holes were made for the eyes and mouth) and act crazy. First, they played “pelota tata” (fire ball) where they drenched a ball in kerosene, set it on fire and played soccer. Next, several Kambas (as they are called) tried to climb a pole covered with soap. Then the “toro kandil” (flaming bull) made an appearance. A kamba with tent-like structure over him chased other kambas. Protruding from the tent was a pole with horns on fire. The Kambas then had a mock dance competition. And then we watched “Judas kai” (the burning of Judas).

Jordan helping her host sister, Ani, prepare caburre for the school fundraiser. Rachel went over to help too. Here's the recipe:
<!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE

CABURRE

Equal parts corn meal and flour (about 1.5 kilo)

Pig fat

Grated cheese

3 eggs

Anise

Salt

Add Milk and water until it becomes a dough consistency

Knead well and roll into baseball sized balls.

Cook on a broom stick over an open fire.