Bun and Cheese

Buns and small cakes are extremely popular in Jamaica. People eat them for lunch, breakfast, or a snack. They are basically a sweet bread with various ingredients to flavor them. Spice (they never tell you exactly what kind, but I think it's allspice, cinnamon, and nutmeg), raisins, fruit flavor, and cheese are some common fillings. For Easter time, though, nothing beats the Easter bun and cheese.

Easter bun and cheese is the quintessential food for the holiday. Now, I used to think that it was only eaten on Easter weekend. But I was wrong. People eat it for up to an entire month before Easter. And some people eat it everday. The bun is basically a sweet, dense bread, with raisins and the aforementioned spice. There are different kinds, but I have found the HTB brand (Haflway Tree Bakeries) to be very good. The cheese has to be Tastee cheese, which is pasteurized process cheddar that comes in a tin. You open it with a can opener. It is very hard and, unlike Velveeta, will not melt no matter how long I put it in the toaster oven for. I actually like the bun and cheese, and have had it for breakfast and lunch.

You can order your own Easter bun and cheese here.

-Shane

p.s. Isn't it funny how they have Easter Bun in Jamaica and in the States we have the Easter Bunny? I think they must be connected somehow, perhaps the lack of bunnies in Jamaica explains it.
- Kaelyn