Spirit of the Earth: Native Cooking from Latin America

by Martin Jacobs, Beverly Cox

A new cookbook celebrates the contributions of Latin American cultures such as the Inca, Maya, and the Aztec to world cuisine introducing 125 recipes for everything from Pompano in Garlic to Spicy Peanut Chowder, all using ingredients native to the American continent.

Genres: Cookbooks, Food and Drink

240 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2001

Reviews

[K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cookbook. It focuses on the cuisine of pre-Colombian Latin and South America. I don't often review cookbooks, but I really liked this one, and found that it stands out in several ways.

First, it's part cookbook, part history lesson. The book is divided into three general sections--Aztec, Mayan, and Inca cuisines--and begins each section with a short overview of the culture, its history, and some of the influences on the food (trade, conquest, etc.) Nothing more than a page or two, but enough to give the recipes some context, and enough to make one curious to find out more.

Two, the food is delicious. I borrowed the book from the library, and we made three, maybe four recipes before it had to go back (not bad for some busy work weeks). Bolivian shrimp chowder, Peruvian corn soup, and the book's signature recipe on the front cover: Ooban. Turns out, ooban (which I may well be spelling incorrectly, so apologies if that's the case) are these delectable little rolls of corn flour and black bean filling. They're steamed like tamales and served with a tomato-based sauce. They are difficult to make, but DELICIOUS. When I checked the book out, the librarian commented on how good they looked (cover photo, remember?) and I'm happy to say that they are super-yummy.

The only downside is how complicated the recipes are. Since this is, in many ways, ancient food, one can't always just run out to the store and buy what's needed. So often, a recipe will refer to one or two other recipes in the book--1 tablespoon of this spice blend from page 27, corn flour dumplings, prepared as on page 53, that sort of thing. It suggests shortcuts where appropriate, but that's not always reasonable. So making some of these requires some dedication, even if the results are very, *very* worthwhile.

Anyhow, it's a great cookbook, and I will keep my eyes open for it in the stores. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in Latin or South American cooking, any history buffs, anyone who's curious about food origins, or just anyone who wants to try tasty and new (old?) foods.

[Stacie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, I don't think I'll ever order Mexican Food out ever again. This book has every thing. Big colorful photos. Easy instructions. Some things are not appealing to me and I will probably never try making. My only gripe is that the book is really large and over sized. I hate enormous cook books that are awkward to store. I will probably copy what I want and pass along.

Chocoatl (Mexican Hot Chocolate) ****AWESOME!!!!
Chicken Enchiladas with Green sauce ** Did not take long to make and I made up so many I could pack for lunch for work.

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome cookbook. Thanks Kel!