Meryl Grandy

One of the most Lovely Boat Cruise Destinations

January by way of December you will find often stunning destinations for your boating wants. So irrespective of whenever you program on going boating make sure to consider the following destinations. You are able to take pleasure in gorgeous climate and sights year round.

Very first up is Plymouth Harbor, Dominica in January. This gem of an island has a big level of protected rainforest. However, it is possible to also discover hospitable locals and a lot of eco-friendly activities. For a modest charge it can be a superb idea to employ a individual guide to assist you pay a visit to all the hidden sites this island has to offer.

Subsequent in February is the Spanish Virgin Islands. Here you will find a exclusive blend of fishing villages, 5 star resorts and historical cities. A lot of in the modest anchorages about these islands enable you to get pleasure from activities and relaxation with no a whole lot of interruption from other people. The Spanish Virgin Islands is made up of Puerto Rico and nearby islands like Culebra, Culebrita, Vieques and Palomino. There are plenty of activities to select from regardless of whether you desire activities or simply need to lay back and unwind.

Then in March there is certainly Mazatlan, Mexico. At this time from the year you will get pleasure from blue skies and calm seas. You can also catch a glimpse of sunbathing California sea lions. In fact, springtime in Mexico is nearly best for boaters. The greatest activity throughout this time is Marlin fishing. Even so, there are plenty of water activities to appreciate throughout your go to here. There are also plenty of quiet beaches for all those who just wish to sit back, relax and take pleasure in the scenery.

Fourth is Man-O-War Cay, Bahamas in April. This really is a cool and quiet location. The pace is laid back, but you will find still a lot of activities to maintain the adventurous sort busy. You can commit you time around the water or going to tiny villages with a lot of shops along blacktop streets. Sailing around the water here and enjoying the sunset is possibly a single from the very best views you'll be able to ever see within your life.

In Could there is Southport, North Carolina. Right here you will find historic houses with friendly locals. There are plenty of superb restaurants to enjoy and lovely internet sites to visit. The truth is numerous of the cities along this state are registered with the National Historical Society and are listed as several of the leading locations to retire.

Lastly there's Greenport, New York in June. This town is positioned on the most easterly tip of New York and is positioned close to Extended Island Sound. You will find numerous maritime museums and marine stops to go to. There are plenty of waterside restaurants, antique shops and artists' galleries to appreciate.

Should you do not want to keep overnight in your boat then there are plenty of quaint bed and breakfasts to get pleasure from. Take somewhat sailing excursion about here and also you will discover tiny waterfront towns where you'll be able to rent bicycles or other indicates to transportation to truly explore the lovely land of either New York or tiny outlying islands.

(Yep, I've lost it.  You laugh.  Bookmark this.  You'll need it one day!)

Life on a boat will make you clever.  Grocery stores aren't always handy.  They may not have what you want or it's an astronomical price.  Space is also an issue (on boat's & rv's) so you learn SUBSTITUTIONS.  Mayo is eggs & oil.  Salad dressing is vinegar & oil.  Instead of baking powder, vinegar & baking soda.  Sub applesauce, gelatin or chia for an egg when baking.  Add some lactose-intolerance issues in there, and WE ARE HAVING FUN!  

As a kid, we always had evaporated milk & condensed milk on hand in case any baking broke out.  Later in life, I have shied away from preservatives & sugar so I use these as little as possible.  (Although, I will say you can use evaporated milk in place of sweetened condensed milk if you want to decrease the sugar in your pumpkin pie.  Just don't tell your family.  I've found few appreciate, "IT'S LOW IN SUGAR!" at a holiday meal, even if they claim they're on a diet.  Whisper it to those whose actually avoid putting it on their plate.  You may make their day.)

We have lots of canned milk on board.  It was an early fear of running out of cream for our coffee.  Heaven forbid we resort to POWDER (have you read the ingredients?   Corn Syrup Solids & Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil.  GROSS)!  So when I saw a Puerto Rican Christmas recipe for Coquito I ran to the galley--if that's possible on a boat.  I had coconut milk (curry, soups, baking), evaporated, sweetened condensed, creme de coconut (for fruity Caribbean drinks) & dried coconut.  Recipes varied, so I did some research to try to make it happen with what I had (Christmas winds!).

By the way, here in Culebra, an infatuation of sorts with Coquito has developed in our anchorage.  Despite a daily ferry, one store has sweetened & evaporated but not coconut.  Another has coconut, sometimes.  The third has evaporated but not sweetened condensed.  I feel the hoarding of provisions returning!

For my friends who are interested, (and have less time/bandwidth on their hands), here's way more than you want to know about canned milk and it's variations!

Fresh, organic milk of course, is my first choice.  In my past life, I bought raw goat milk from the farmer's market for my yogurt.  I have even scored raw cow milk at the Luperon cruiser bar in the Dominican!  Don't tell me canned milk is bad for me. I already know.  I LIVE ON A BOAT!  With fridge space at a premium & groceries farther apart in the Bahamas, we have resorted to...

Italian-based Parmalat

Boxed milk:  Parmalat (or Indulac in Puerto Rico) is ultra-high temperature, pasteurized milk sold in Tetra-Paks so it doesn't need to be refrigerated.  It's usually found in the baking or cereal aisle.  We carry an assortment of skim, whole, lactose-free (for the cat, I swear) and coconut/almond ("How do you milk an almond?"  Carefully) in this form.  It's readily available and reasonable in this part of the world.  You rarely see locals buying fresh milk (power outages are common in the islands) on top of the fact, it all seems to LEAK!  Yuck.

Evaporated milk:  In the US, this is Carnation.  It's Puerto Rico, it's Goya.  According to Wikipedia, "Evaporated milk, known in some countries as unsweetened condensed milk, is a shelf-stable canned milk product with about 60% of the water removed from fresh milk...The product takes up half the space of its nutritional equivalent in fresh milk. When the liquid product is mixed with a proportionate amount of water, evaporated milk becomes the rough equivalent of fresh milk...".

Sweetened condensed milk is evaporated milk with sugar added.  According to Wikipedia, it requires less processing since the added sugar inhibits bacterial growth.

Powdered milk: We also carry this for creamer emergencies (learned this trick on a sailing forum.  No corn syrup solids.  No sugar!), baking, yogurt (see The Boat Galley link below), or to reconstitute for cereal. Check out TheBoatGalley.com for the best brand:    https://theboatgalley.com/great-powdered-milk/

Media crema:  is canned 1/2 & 1/2, that can be used to make sour cream (or whipped cream if you can find a tetra-pak) because Carolyn said so!  https://theboatgalley.com/10-great-media-crema/

Coconut milk, in the refrigerated section.  Many stores are starting to carry this in the States.  My preferred milk alternative for cereal or smoothies.  Might be too thin for baking.

Coconut milk, shelf-stable tetra-pak in the baking or cereal aisle.  Same as above.  Check the price.  The same company makes this & it frequently went on sale in my "organic" aisle.

Coconut milk, canned.  I carry this for curry, butternut squash soup, or for cornbread instead of buttermilk (see Dominican corn bread recipe below OR add 1 tsp vinegar to 1/4 cup milk).  Usually thicker than above

Coconut cream:  I've never seen this, but I mention it because it can be confused with cream of coconut (see below).  Coconut cream is what you get when you skim the cream off the top of fresh coconut milk or some canned milk (Native Forest, yes.  Goya, no)

Creme of coconut or Coco Lopez:  Invented by a agricultural professor at University of Puerto Rico, it is usually found in the alcohol mixers section.  It's sweetened coconut milk, famous for being the main ingredient in Pina Coladas

Puerto Rican forums argue over the traditional recipe which is basically "Open three cans" or maybe four.  Does it have eggs?  Which kind of rum?  "That's not how mi Abuela did it."  I always try to start with the most basic & traditional recipe (if I can't try the original in a restaurant) then play with variations to suit our tastes.  Variations abound in this recipe including adding Coco Lopez (sweeter & thicker?) and swapping white rum (coconut or spiced & delete vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg). El capitan was skeptical of the coconut flavor, but we ARE in the Caribbean and it was mild.

2 cans Goya coconut milk (1 can coconut, 1 can coconut subbed for evaporated milk)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

8 oz rum (Bacardi or Don Q but we prefer Brugal Anejo)

Vanilla 1 tsp-2 oz

Cinnamon 1/2 tsp

Nutmeg, optional 1/4 tsp

Blender for 2-3 minutes until it foams (whisk or shake in a jar with a lid)

Pour into jars or pitcher with a lid (shake before opening)

Refrigerate overnight or 24 hours before serving.

Dominican corn bread
sub coconut milk for evaporated milk
http://www.dominicancooking.com/875-pan-de-maiz-cornmeal-bread.html

I make 24-hour, lactose free yogurt on the boat with the YoGourmet maker: http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.info/knowledge_base/detail/yoghurt-how-to-make-with-yoghurtmaker/

The Boat Galley thermos & dried milk yogurt:   https://theboatgalley.com/milk-yogurt-cheese/

Other options include using the oven or a slow cooker. Lot's of ideas on the internet

Homemade coffee creamer:  1/2 & 1/2, evaporated milk or canned coconut milk.  Sugar/honey/maple syrup to taste.  Vanilla/cinnamon optional

References:

TheBoatGalley.com (do a search for milk)

Amazon.com

The Boat Galley Cookbook (great recipes & substitutions for those internet-challenged days)