Foodelicious: Sugar Nut Squares

I always thought that everyone knew everything I knew, I kind of had this idea that what I know is not so out of the ordinary, like I thought duh!!!! Everyone knows cassava but honestly am not sure if an Australian in Melbourne who has no idea that Africa now has a new state would know about cassava, I still doubt that the middle aged African in the deepest Bungatira village (my Grand papa’s village home) is aware that even the Scottish don’t patiently line up for food during rationing that is if they even know Scotland exists.

I thought I am not ignorant and to a number of us when you tell us we are ignorant, we feel so insulted yet as a matter of fact ignorance is so so oh normal. It just means I still have a lot to learn and we all agree that learning has no end.

In early 2010, I realized that ignorance has different levels and I am on a certain level. 2 of my family friends from America Peter and Rob came to Uganda for the first time gosh I really miss those days; hi Rob, hi Peter. Anyway so they came and I made them this huge breakfast that I thought was way too much for them but I forgot they are Americans and they eat large, that was my first cling cling to realizing I was ignorant but remember I knew that fact, It just skipped my mind at a wrong time.

Then I go, there is bread, jam, blueband and tea…but where are the teabags? #^&&(*()ha-ha this is Indian spiced tea; my African tea made with the touch of Indian spicing, then Peter goes “How do you make this tea and am like, milk, tea leaves and water. Cling Cling I was ignorant a second time, there are so many ways of making tea other than boiling and so many people out there have never boiled milk to make tea like my friend Mallkierr in Germany J

Oh and there was roasted ground nuts and then Peter again, “what are ground nuts?” and I have this duh!!-look on my face…that is Gnuts and Peter again, “what are Gnuts?” ahuh cling cling am ignorant again. Peter does not know Gnuts because he knows Pea nuts and I foolishly thought everyone knows gnuts. Thank goodness Peter and Rob were not allergic to nuts, I really don’t think I would love to face the whole American security for questioning.

So you see when I thought am not Ignorant and Peter asks too many questions as Rob quietly waits for Peter to dig in first just in case hahaha….

Okay so… today we are going to prepare Sugar Nut Squares using ground nuts or Jugu as my grand mum calls it. Jugu; a Swahili word for Gnuts.

What ingredients do I have?

2 double handfuls of roasted gnuts with the husked removed and blown away
1 full cup of sugar(this is where you use a woman’s measurement i.e Instinct ; you know that small voice that tells you to add a little bit more and that’s when you know it is actually enough)
I full lemon not cut but well washed
A saucepan, I have an aluminum saucepan
A stirring rod/spoon, wooden works best
Wooden chopping board
A knife for cutting the squares
A bowl of cool water

Where do I start, follow and end?

Place the pan on a moderate heat
Add all the sugar and stir as it melts and browns to look like honey
Add the gnuts and keep stirring to mix and get the honey looking sugar all over the gnuts (coat the gnuts with the honeyed sugar)
Sprinkle some water on the chopping board to avoid sticking
Turn the saucepan upside down onto the chopping board let the hot mixture onto the board
Without allowing it the cool
Deep the lemon in your cool water and flatten the mixture onto the board but rolling the lemon hard with your palm. The lemon is meant to give the squares a flavor
Keep dipping the lemon in water as you roll to avoid sticking although this usually does not happen
With your knife in your own sizes, cut out your squares
Place aside to cool and enjoy as a snack