recipe itself is a couple of years old, at least.

The "Tricks," a.k.a.the accompaniments, can include wele (cowhide stew), boiled chicken eggs, gari (finely grated and air dried cassava), shito (a traditional hot-pepper condiment made using smoked prawns and/or crayfish), raw vegetable salad, sliced avocado, tomato and white onion slices, spaghetti (called "talia" in Ghana), and/or dodo (ripe fried plantain)..

If this sounds like an epic meal-it is!Imagine eating all that for breakfast at 6 a.m. on your way to work?An affordable feast, it is usually served in banana or plantain leaves at Chop Bars (roadside eateries) and restaurants.

But for me, there is an added fervor and excitement when waakye is purchased in the less aesthetically and environmentally pleasing clear polyethylene bag from innumerable bustling street food vendors, at half the price and double the deliciousness.As a caterer who has spent 10 years in the street food and festival arena, I have always marveled at the street vendors for the stamina and ambition of this food service..

There is an added fervor and excitement when waakye is purchased in the less aesthetically and environmentally pleasing clear polyethylene bag from innumerable street food vendors, at half the price and double the deliciousness..

The more widely known and lauded.But of all things, it was the chopped celery that took the meal over the top.

It tasted like extra-strength celery, amped-up celery, celery times a thousand.Each perfectly diced square was crunchy and burst with fresh, green flavors, slightly herbal with just a hint of bitterness.

I felt like I was eating celery for the first time.Or at least, this celery was nothing like the sad stalks I keep in the refrigerator to use while making soup or stock.. You Should Quick-Pickle Your Vegetables.