Going Bananas

If you've talked with us, you know that one of the hardest adjustments has been not having access to quality fruits and vegetables. Yes, I think we were very spoiled having lived next to the Central Valley where there is the largest single concentration of fruit and nut farms and vineyards in the United States. Surprisingly, not much of anything is grown on Guam. (I was told it was because the locals got fed-up with having to start over again after every super-typhoon--don't know if this is the real reason.) Anyhow, pretty much everything is shipped to Guam; this means wilted lettuce (I'm talking sometimes wilted to the point that it would be in the dumpster in California), oranges that sometimes look nice on the outside but once opened are dry and juice-less, and often bruised and old tasting apples, etc. And, to add insult to injury, the cost of these items are often triple the cost in the States. So, the Sorenson clan was THRILLED when Lola, a native of Guam who attends our church (also the sister to Bill Sablan, my volleyball buddy in California) brought us some Manila bananas. Oh my goodness! These bananas (the 3" long ones on the right in the picture) tasted like strawberries!!! They were delicious! A few days later she brought us some "cooking bananas" also from her neighbor's tree (the larger bananas on the left). Lola told me to either cut them in half and put them in a pan of coconut milk and simmer until the coconut milk evaporates or to use them for banana donuts. I'll let you know how those turn out!

P.S. Thanks, Bill, for encouraging your sister to share the fresh bananas with us. You need to hurry up and visit so we can play volleyball with the locals!!!