Product Description

In the first cookbook to encompass the full spectrum of Latin American cooking all across America today, Himilce Novas and Rosemary Silva offer 200 enticing recipes that have been drawn from the home kitchens of Americans with roots in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Jamaica, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala, and nearly every other corner of Latin America.

Spicy, colorful, and full of surprises, Latin flavors are the latest rage with Nuevo Latino chefs from New York to Los Angeles. But here the exotic is translated into wonderful everyday dishes that home cooks can easily master.

For starters, Novas and Silva give us luscious Chilled Roasted Sweet Red Pepper and Coconut Soup or Orange-Scented Roasted Pumpkin Soup and appetizers known as antojitos ("little whims")--Bayamo's Fried Wontons with Chorizo and Chiles or a Costa Rican Black Bean and Bacon Dip.

For main courses, there are hearty delights like Piri Thomas's Chicken Asopao or a Heavenly Potato Pie with Minced Beef, Raisins, and Olives.

Center stage in many a meal are the rice and bean dishes with countless delicious variations on the theme, like Gallo pinto, Red Kidney Beans and Rice, and "Jamaican coat of arms",  also called Rice and Peas (which are actually small red beans).

And to satisfy the Latin appetite any time of day, also included here is a rich array of tamales, empanadas, and other turnovers, like Little Brazil Shrimp Turnovers stuffed with shrimp and hearts of palm.

From Cristina, the Cuban American talk show hostess in Miami, to U.S. Representative Henry B. González of Texas, from film producers and opera singers to young students and grandmothers, the authors have gathered, along with the family recipes and their origins, stories of the past and of the good times celebrated in America. Novas and Silva also offer invaluable information on Latin American chiles, on the earthy appeal of plantains and tubers like yuca and taro, and on other special foods that give these dishes their unique character, along with mail-order sources for hard-to-get ingredients.

An exuberant one-of-a-kind cookbook that will add a new dimension to the American table.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1637319 in Books
• Published on: 1997-10-21
• Released on: 1997-10-21
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: 9.60" h x 1.20" w x 7.00" l, 1.52 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

From Amazon.com
If you've an unquenchable hankering for Latin American fare--say Cuban Salsa de Perro (Dog Sauce), Colombian Cazuela de Mariscos (Seafood Stew), or the Haitian confection of Bananas with Rum Butter Cream--you'd be advised to turn to Latin American Cooking Across the U.S.A. by Himilce Novas and Rosemary Silva. The authors explain the history of each dish, its typical presentation in its land of origin, and how to go about preparing it in an American kitchen. It's a wonderful resource for a wide audience, whether you have Latin American roots and want to cook the meals you remember from grandma's house, have traveled in Latin America and want to recreate the dishes you loved on vacation, or merely have a taste for the cuisine of Latin America and want the option of cooking it up at home. The authors collected a fine array of recipes--200 in all--a thorough sampling of soups, appetizers, and salads; entrees with poultry, fish, or meat; various rice, bean, and vegetable concoctions; plus turnovers, breads, desserts, and drinks--all versions of traditional dishes culled from individuals living in the United States so as to translate easily into American home meals. Replete with family stories and culinary history, the recipes are intriguing to try, easy to make, and resonate with the various flavors of Latin America. --Stephanie Gold

From Library Journal
These two excellent new collections featuring contemporary Latin American cooking in the United States complement each other nicely. Tausend, coauthor with Susanna Palazuelos and others of Mexico the Beautiful (LJ 11/15/91), traveled throughout the country seeking the simple, traditional dishes that second- and third-generation Mexican Americans are cooking for everyday meals, recipes from their mothers and grandmothers. With Ravago, former chef/owner of Austin's Fonda San Miguel, she presents a broad selection of mouthwatering recipes, for both more familiar dishes such as Crispy Chicken Tacos and unusual ones like Pork and Purslane Stew. Tausend writes well, and headnotes include background on the various dishes as well as on the contributor. Highly recommended. Novas and Silva's more wide-ranging book draws on the diversity of Latin American cooking from 26 different nationalities in this country. Although the authors include homey, traditional dishes, they offer more sophisticated and elegant recipes from both home cooks and chefs, often in the cross-cultural nuevo style: New Southwestern Gnocchi di Patate, for example. The knowledgeable headnotes give culinary and cultural context for each recipe, often describing similar dishes from other Latin American countries, and more "exotic" ingredients are identified in glossary sections scattered throughout the book. Highly recommended. [There is also a Spanish-language edition, La Cocina Latinomericana en Los Estados Unidos, ISBN 0-679-44803-9.?Ed.]
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Ingram
Latino flavors are the latest rage from New York to Los Angeles. Here is the first book to encompass the full spectrum of Latin American cooking in the U.S. today, offering 200 enticing recipes, drawn from the home kitchens of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican, and other South and Central American families. Both a culture and a culinary adventure. 57 photos & drawings.