Mmmmiami: Tempting Tropical Tastes for Home Cooks Everywhere

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America's gateway to the Caribbean is one of the most diverse cities in the States, and has produced a delightful melange of foods to satisfy so many different palates. Fortunately for those of us living in colder climates, tropical and subtropical foods are increasingly common on grocery shelves, and Mmmmiami is our guide to turning those mangoes and Scotch-bonnet peppers into delicacies we could once only read about. Written by cooking teacher Carole Kotkin and Miami Herald food editor Kathy Martin, it provides clear, simple directions for 150 dishes, from the simple (good old Key Lime Pie) to the sublime (Coconut Mahi-Mahi with Passion Fruit Sauce). The wide array of flavors is especially wonderful and startling to those used to monocultural cooking; Miami cuisine is the product of many generations of interbreeding and hybrid vigor. Not to worry about tracking down the elusive pigeon peas, though--if the full range of tropical tidbits hasn't quite reached you yet, the authors kindly provide alternatives. Twenty-five menus round out this well-organized book, inspiring respectful salivation in the landlocked. --Rob Lightner


From Publishers Weekly
Cooking school teacher Kotkin and Martin, food editor of the Miami Herald, provide clear, flexible recipes (most of them of medium difficulty) perfectly suited to home cooking in this tribute to the foods of Miami. Miami's melting pot is influenced by many tropical cuisines?including those of Cuba, Jamaica and Haiti?and the authors fuse such Caribbean influences with fare from other parts of the world: Potato and Black Bean Pancakes with Cilantro-Goat Cheese Sauce were inspired by Hanukkah latkes. Clever, unfussy presentations abound (Black Bean and White Corn Soup is two soups presented in a single bowl). There are plenty of piquant dishes (Florida White Chili with white beans and chicken meat) and refreshing salads such as Baby Greens and Arugula with Fat-Free Papaya-Mint Dressing. Historical information (Arawaks, Caribbean natives of several centuries ago, were early Florida barbecuers) is presented with helpful tips on selecting, storing and handling ingredients. Variations are abundant and worthwhile. For example, a recipe for the ubiquitous Arroz con Pollo comes with eight suggestions, ranging from making a soupier dish to incorporating beer rather than wine. The chapter with salsa recipes is a standout. Agent, Jane Dystel. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Thanks to the phenomenon of South Beach, an influx of immigrants, and the work of an increasing number of talented chefs and restaurateurs, Miami has become a culinary mecca far beyond its earlier, simpler reputation for stone crab and key lime pie. Kotkin and Martin have gathered together a book of recipes that reflect the excitement of the new South Florida cuisine. Old and new combine in such dishes as potato and black bean pancakes with cilantro-goat cheese sauce, where Jewish latkes marry with Cuban black beans and contemporary goat cheese. Escovitch fish and jerk chicken reflect the influence of the local Jamaican community. Conch fritters provide an anchor in more traditional Floridian fare. Availabilty of hitherto unfamiliar tropical fruits and of other fresh vegetables on a year-round basis give Miami's cooking a unique source of flavors and textures that can't be duplicated easily elsewhere. Mark Knoblauch


Book Description
Caribbean food is the hot new sensation--here is what to do with mangoes in Minneapolis, papayas in Peoria. Miami chefs put the city on the culinary map in the 1980s by drawing on Cuban, Jamaican, Haitian, Peruvian, and Salvadoran cooking in a zippy fusion cooking style called New World Cuisine. Here two Miami food pros show how to incorporate these exotic produce and seasonings into everyday cooking and entertaining. Try Yuca Puffs or Coconut Shrimp in Island-Spiced Batter or main course entrees such as Roast Chicken with Savory Guava Glaze, Macho Steak, and Cashew Crusted Pompano. There are recipes for soups and stews, salads and dressings, side dishes, salsas, chutneys, and sauces, as well as twenty-eight tempting desserts including Free-Form Mango Tart, Carambola Upside-down Cake, and individual Chocolate-Cuban Coffee Souffles. The ingredient guide gives directions on buying, storing, and preparing tropical produce. Menu suggestions include wine choices.



About the Author
A Miami resident for more than forty years, Carole Kotkin has been teaching cooking since 1976. She is director of the Ocean Reef Culinary Center in Key Largo, Florida. Kathy Martin is food editor of The Miami Herald. She has lived in Miami for more than eighteen years.


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Cooking school teacher Kotkin and Martin, food editor of the Miami Herald, provide clear, flexible recipes (most of them of medium difficulty) perfectly suited to home cooking in this tribute to the foods of Miami. Miami's melting pot is influenced by many tropical cuisines--including those of Cuba, Jamaica and Haiti--and the authors fuse such Caribbean influences with fare from other parts of the world: Potato and Black Bean Pancakes with Cilantro-Goat Cheese Sauce were inspired by Hanukkah latkes. Clever, unfussy presentations abound (Black Bean and White Corn Soup is two soups presented in a single bowl). There are plenty of piquant dishes (Florida White Chili with white beans and chicken meat) and refreshing salads such as Baby Greens and Arugula with Fat-Free Papaya-Mint Dressing. Historical information (Arawaks, Caribbean natives of several centuries ago, were early Florida barbecuers) is presented with helpful tips on selecting, storing and handling ingredients. Variations are abundant and worthwhile. For example, a recipe for the ubiquitous Arroz con Pollo comes with eight suggestions, ranging from making a soupier dish to incorporating beer rather than wine. The chapter with salsa recipes is a standout. Agent, Jane Dystel. (Oct.)


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