2 comments about Modern Zanzibar Cuisine.

1. "Modern Zanzibar Cuisine" is not only a lot of tasty and thrilling recipes. The anecdotes that accompany many of the recipes take one on a historical and geographical tour along the Swahili coast where I, in my younger years, spent so many happy days.
   Torbj. Sundblom



2. These islands have always attracted me so much. such a mixture of cultures! it can only bring fresh ideas to the most important activity in life: cooking.
   this book is a very good guide, although, for us in Europe, it's not easy to find the real ingredients. and one recipe I have been looking for is not in the book! PRAWNS IN ZANZIBAR SAUCE!, a so called national dish. in addition the book is full with old pictures of the Island and its people. another reason to open it as often as possible. nice purchase. thanks.Modern Zanzibar Cuisine

1 comments about A Season in Morocco: A Culinary Journey.

1. I recently purchased this book, the colours on the cover make it look so lovely. The recipes inside look pretty authentic, I asked my moroccan friend and she said they seem pretty good, so far we've tried one recipe and I'm looking forward to trying more very soon.

2 comments about Princess Pamela's Soul Food Cookbook.

1. I inherited this cookbook from my mother and have found it to be my favorite! Lots of old-fashioned, down home recipes that are guaranteed to make your mouth water and bring back fond memories. Easy to follow. I was in search of another copy for my daughter, but she will have to wait! The best ever!



2. I inherited this cookbook from my mother and have found it to be my favorite! Lots of down home recipes that are guaranteed to make your mouth water and bring back fond childhood memories.

1 comments about Wines and Vineyards of South Africa.

1. Arrived in time for Xmas and husband loved it! We spent our honeymoon in South Africa enjoying the wine regions, so the book reminded us of our time there.

5 comments about The African-American Child's Heritage Cookbook.

1. This cookbook is not just a kids cookbook. Furthermore, the recipes in this cookbook actually taste like real food. The instructions are easy to follow and easy to see. Perfect for talking on the phone or watching t.v. while you cook. The format of displaying the ingredients is excellent. I have taken this cookbook with me to the grocery store instead of making a list. The types of pots and pans and cooking utensils you need is also listed (just in case you don't have a super duper kitchen) This is a great cookbook for someone who does not know how to cook or needs a reference for some of their favorite recipes like mac and cheese, greens, etc. Recipes are for all meals. Breakfast lunch and dinner. Buttermilk biscuits, cracklin bread, spaghetti, real southern fried chicken, hush puppies, a must have for a good cookbook collection.



2. I originally purchased the book to help me teach my daughter how to cook some of the foods of our culter. After browsing the book, I found a recipe for Teacakes. My grandmother used to bake teacakes and I love them. I tried the recipe and I loved them.And what I really liked was that they remained soft, which my grandmothers didn't. I have also tried the recipe for the dirty rice and found it to be really good. I've tried many of the recipes and they are all really good.



3. I had such high hopes when I ordered this book (as an intended gift for my younger brother), however, I was very disappointed. I thought it would be similar to other children's cookbooks with colorful pictures and detailed explanations--it has neither. While the idea of this cookbook is definitely a good one, this presentation is awful.

   Additionally, the first "recipe" is for Kool-Aid which this book says is a good drink. Personally, I find Kool-Aid lacking in nutritional value. Also in the beverage section is a recipe for "Adult" eggnog which includes alcoholic beverages. I hardly think this is an appropriate recipe for a children's cookbook.




4. I happened to purchase this book at the library. I got it for a dollar!!! I was so impressed with all of the recipes. I am caucasion and I am interested in learning how to cook ethnic foods. I also like to do so with authenticity. That is what made me purchase this book. I absolutely love it! I have learned to cook so many new recipes. My children love it as well. I highly recommend this book to anyone of any color or ethnicity. It is simple and the recipes are outstanding. I found recipes that I had heard about, but I did not know how to cook. Many of them I had not even tasted before buying this book.



5. The African-American Child's Heritage Cookbook
   
   I purchased 2 of the cookbooks as Christmas gifts for granddaughters ages 10 & 13 in both households the mothers agree they too will be using this book as much if not more than the daughters. I will need to order more copies, other adult members as well as a few other grandchildren want a copy of their own, I too will need a copy this book is very well lay out for any age to use from beginner to experienced. This cookbook not only tells the ingredients needed, also the tools. One son-in-law said some of the recipes reminded him of his chiid- hood, he wants his own personal copy. The historical information that is included in this book is very enlightening for all ages. It's a must have!

2 comments about Ja!: African spices, marinades and relishes add zest to a boring food life.

1. I am interested in African food, and when I saw the title to this one I was excited about finding a reference book that would give me a new insight to spices, marinades and relishes. I assumed it would be a substantial book, covering such a huge range of information, but when it arrived it turned out to be pathetically thin, with only slight and general information about spice mixes and so on. The lists of spices themselves are not richly complex but very similar to those that are easily found elsewhere. This book contains NO recipes and NO advice as to how best to cook with these spices. Useless! It certainly does NOT add zest to a boring food life. I was quite cross that I'd even bothered to buy it.



2. This cute and entertaing book makes a non-cook wanna lear how to use the secret stuff that makes food taste good. Thank You.

1 comments about The Soul of Southern Cooking.

1. The Soul Of Southern Cooking is a wonderful combination of recipes and stories that evoke a time when black families had to make-do in the midst of hard times, yet were able to develop and enjoy a variety of delicious meals with a culinary tradition popularly referred to as "soul food". From Homemade Hog Head Souse; Neckbone and Macaroni Stew; Delta Fried Catfish; and Sunday's Fried Corn; to Boiled Chicken Feet and Legs; Stovetop Roast Beef; Celery Seed Dressing; Ten-Minute Oven Pecan Brittle; and Mrs. Hunter's Southern Tea Cakes, The Soul Of Southern Cooking fully lives up to its title and will prove a welcome and unique addition to the family cookbook collection.

1 comments about I Was Never Here and This Never Happened: Tasty Bits and Spicy Tales from My Life.

1. I have been trying to learn something about the people and culture of Ghana, and have ordered several books from Amazon. This was one of them. Wow, what a book this turned out to be! The author's style was engaging and she painted such vivid pictures of her childhood in Ghana. There were folk tales, lyrics of traditional songs, even recipes woven in with her own story. I am not from Africa, nor am I even Black, but her story and her emotions are so universal that it is easy to identify with much of what she has to say, and sympathize with what is foreign to me. Some parts had me laughing, some brought a tear, other stories made me gasp in shock. I highly recommend this book to anyone, although I suppose it will appeal more to women than to men. This may be one of the best books I have read.

5 comments about The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook: The Global Migration of African Cuisine.

1. After first buying a copy of the Peppers, Cracklings and Knots of Wool Cookbook, reading parts of it, and trying several of the recipes, I bought a second copy. One copy goes in my kitchen forever! The recipes are fabulous taste treasures that defy adequate description. My family and I simply could not believe how good these meals taste. I did have to search at findng some of the ingredients to the more intricate recipes. The end results were well worth any effort. Since I tend to make a huge mess when cooking and my cookbooks suffer from it, I decided that I needed a second copy of the book. The second copy now occupies a prominent place on the bookshelves in our family room.



2. It's about time that Africa has been placed on the culinary map. I always knew that Africa had influenced other peoples but to learn about Africa's culinary and cultural connection to Southeast Asians, Mexicans and others is simply a revelation (one such revelation was learning that ancient Cambodians wore their hair in cornrows and ate black-eyed peas!). I will never read another cookbook without comparing it to "The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook." It is revolutionary in concept and content. This book not only offers great recipes, but it is also a great source for African and African American history and insight on a number of issues. No cookbook I have ever read has inspired me more than this one. I highly recommend this book, not only to avid cooks, but also to avid readers of history as well. "The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook" should be mandatory reading from now on for anyone attempting to write anything on African culinary history.



3. It's a fine book. As a rank amateur & no Africanist, (with little reading in the African diaspora), I'd say it was swell in its coverage. As a cook, though, sometimes I think she uses too much coconut cream in the recipes. Surely it's not available everywhere. But (I say as someone who has no particular liking for cake) you have never, never, never in your life had such a coconut cake.



4. In American colonial and antebellum literature there are many references to the black slaves' "natural genius" for cooking. At the same time, cookbook writers and other gastronomic experts state that Africans had no culinary traditions or cuisine of their own; they learned it all from contact with Europeans. There is a contradiction here. It is this book's goal to document African cuisine and especially to demonstrate the unacknowledged and unappreciated African influence on culinary traditions outside of Africa.

   Of course, "The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook" has chapters on African influences in the cuisine of the Southern U.S., the Caribbean, and Brazil. It should be obvious that the food traditions that came to the Americas with enslaved Africans had a significant effect. (Should be obvious, though is still unacknowledged and unappreciated.)

   What is surprising and a bit controversial is Spivey's hypothesis of African influences in ancient times in the Americas and Asia. Spivey takes it as a given that Africans sailed to and traded with the Americas in ancient and medieval times. The real extent of this contact (if any) and its effects on cuisine may be lost to history. At this time, most scholars are unconvinced -- however, this could change with time. The question remains: When there are similarities in the cuisine Mesoamerican people and West African people, is it may be due to specific historical contact between the two? or it could also be a case of two separate cultures making the best possible food in similar environments with similar gastronomic possibilities? Spivey clearly prefers the former and ignores the later. There is the need for more research here; this book is just getting the ball rolling. (The possibility of Old World peoples visiting the Americas before Columbus is well presented in "The Diffusionists Have Landed" in "The Atlantic Monthly" magazine; January 2000.)

   Spivey's book is also part cookbook, and the recipes are excellent. It should be mentioned that these recipes are more based-on-tradition than actually traditional. In some cases it seems that Spivey invents recipes based on the theory of historical contact between African and non-African cultures. For example, "Chocolate Lamb and Beef Sauce" which combines the African peanut-stew and the Mexican molé sauce traditions. Does Spivey believe that ancient Africans made this after their voyages to America? Is there any historical text that mentions such a dish? Or did this recipe come into being with her book? Either way, it sounds delicious.




5. As a fan of ethnography and food folkways, I found this book interesting. The first thing that jumped out at me was the author's note of thanks to Embassies of Laos, Peru, and India... Intriguing? African cuisine migrated to India? To Laos? The second thing that jumped out at me was the first recipe, which called for "egusi seeds." No worries - there is nearly 100 pages of glossary, sources of ingredients, and bibliography. The third thing that you notice is the author's penchant for railing against those Eurocentric writers who discredited African foodstuffs and cuisine, and denied the Africanism of Egypt and the Olmecs. Even if you never prepare a single recipe, this book serves as a source of African culinary and social history. Nearly every recipe is followed by a bit of history and the story of African migratory influences. Chapter 1 focuses on "Eastern Ethiopians" and Dravidians (the Southern Indians including speakers of Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada) -- participants in the lucrative spice trade for centuries. Highlights for me included "Mississippi Masala Rice"; "Sesame Yam Patties"; "Doro Wat", a chicken in pepper sauce; and "Lamb and Beef Dar Es Salaam" with 7 spices and 3 meats. Chapter 2 is on the Sons and Daughters of Kambu, or those Ethiopian-Indians who migrated and influenced Southeast Asian, Khmer,and Cambodian societies. While highlighting the similarities in certain rituals in Southeast Asia and Africa, the recipes include: Spicy Fish in Peanut Sauce, Afro-Khmer Shrimp and Spicy Rice, Black-Eyed Spring Rolls, and Khmer Sweet Black Eyed Peas (like Hoppin' John, it reminded me of the film "Catfish in Black Bean Sauce"). Chapter 3 is on "Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool" or African cuisine found in Mexico and Central America. The "knots" refers to African hair. While the author discusses African influences, as well as an Almec-Africa connection, her recipes include: Masar Spicy Roasted Turkey; Yam and Plantain Fruit Pudding; Balimaya Pek Corn Dumpling Stew; and Hunabqu Omon Corn and Masa Soup. Chapter 4 presents the story of Africa in Peru and the highlands, titled "Zancu, Sweet Potatoes and Beer." Recipes include: Garden Patties with Onion and Cassava Cream Gravy; Zancu; and Yugeno (a cocktail known as the Peruvian blowdart). Chapter 5, titled, "Body and Soul" The Miscengenation of Cuisine and Culture in Brazil and Cuba," focuses on Brazil and Cuba, while Chapter 6 focuses on America, Haiti, Maroon settlements, and other Caribbean islands. The author, fond of cakes since childhood, include several cake recipes including a Chocolate Coconut cake and a Coconut Cake. "Brazen Tomatoes" will catch your attention. I enjoyed the final two chapters the most. Chapter 7 is a study of the migration of the African American cooks from the American South to the North of the country, and Chapter 8 is titled "Flapjacks and Blue Notes." Recipes include those for dinner rolls; smothered steak; Dr. Carver's peach leather; Booker T's fried chicken; lamb chops in thyme and mushrooms; and a very large variety of flapjacks.

4 comments about A Taste of Africa.

1. I was in Africa recently and then I saw this book and I had to buy it! I made sudza, the staple in Zimbabwe, and it tasted like it did in Zimbabwe. There are some other really good recipies in the book too but i think sudza, made right is the best. I would definatly recomend buying the book and giving it a try!



2. Dorinda Hafner, the engaging host from the PBS cooking shows, has written a companion book. Arranged by country, it has African diaspora recipes from the continent, the Caribbean and the Americas. The recipes are simple and you don't have to be a gourmet chef to cook them. It's a great introduction to the variety and richness of African cooking.



3. Dorinda Hafner of Ghana has authored cookbooks and is featured in a television series about African and African-inspired cuisine. "A Taste of Africa: With over 100 Traditional African Recipes Adapted for the Modern Cook" is a very good introduction to African food for anyone who knows kitchen basics. The recipes are mostly easy and quick, and are made with readily available ingredients. Each recipe has a short introductory text. Recipes are arranged by country; this book contains recipes from each of ten African countries: Ghana; Ivory Coast; Mali; Morocco; Egypt; Ethiopia; Kenya; Tanzania; Zimbabwe; and Nigeria. African-based recipes from five other countries and one city are also included: Brazil; Trinidad and Tabago; Martinique and Guadeloupe; Jamaica; Cuba; and New Orleans. Thoughout the book are boxes containing short features on African history, legends, foodstuffs. A short glossary and bibliography are included. Very well illustrated with photographs of the prepared dishes.



4. An interesting collection of African recipes; by necessity just a sampling, of course. The recipes tend to stick to the coast, e.g. nothing from Central African Republic. Recipes from the Caribbean and Louisiana as well, I was pleased to find. Though I have not, as yet, tried them all, most (though admittedly not all) at least sound appealing; then again, that may be do to my finicky palate. The format is very pleasant, and I appreciated the cultural notes regarding cuisine and local legends.