Rightfully the author dedicates this book to "Isabel", the native of St. Kitts who always called herself proudly "A British Object." She was an inspired cook, and many of the delicious dishes and thirst-quenching drinks that appears in this volume are of her concoction. All of them were perfected through the years by Mrs. Dooley from Isabel's explanation of a "pich of dis and a lump of dat."
Other recipes in the book are prized cookery secrets of the first families of Puerto Rico. Many of them were brought from Spain and have been handed down from mother to daughter for generations. Others are Puerto Rican dishes enriched by the blending of the knowledge of the Spanish Senoras and the native cooks.
All of these recipes are easily adaptable to modern American kitchens. New ways of preparing vegetables and unusual soups; methods for making cheaper cuts of meats tender and savory; the preserving of fruits in jams and jellies--all are in this delightful and intriguing volume of recipes of the fascinating island on the Atlantic and the Caribbean. Many other delectable foods such as caramels made from honey, banana bread, and cocoanut fritters, abound on the pages the author has prepared for us.
It has been said that in lieu of a visit to another land, the preparation and eating of its foods can make its atmosphere one's own. With this book, it is at least possible to go to Puerto Rico "the food way"; and many an otherwise dull day in the kitchen may be brightened through its use.
Puerto Rican Cook Book was first published in 1948.
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