A Taste of Cuba - A Journey Through Cuba and Its Savory Cuisine, Includes 75 Authentic Recipes from the Country's Top Chefs

From the leading photographer of Cuba, A Taste of Cuba is a stunning culinary and visual journey through Cuba that presents 75 authentic, never-before-shared recipes from the world’s most inventive chefs.

In a country shrouded in secrecy, a mouthwatering, but little-known food scene thrives. A Taste of Cuba offers unprecedented access into the kitchens of Cuba’s top chefs, where the country’s most delectable dishes are created and where the chefs share for the very first time, their brilliant techniques, inspiration, and best recipes.

Renowned Cuba photographer Cynthia Carris Alonso and her Cuban husband, José Luis Alonso, take you with them on their ride through Havana and around the country, as they stop in Cuba’s twenty top paladares—private, family owned establishments. Inside you’ll see how Cuban chefs are world-class, resourceful, and inventive, adapting their dishes based on the changing ingredients available on the market. Between visits with the chefs, you’ll walk the streets of Cuba, experiencing its vibrant, colorful culture and seeing its lush landscapes up close.

A Taste of Cuba offers seventy-five original recipes supplied by Cuba’s top chefs, tested and translated for an American kitchen by chef Valerie Feigen, allowing you to make staples such as ropa vieja, frijoles negros, and maduros—stewed beef, black beans, and sweet plantains—as well as for more elaborate dishes, such as eggplant caviar, fish tacos, and ham croquettes. It shares the recipe for La Cocina de Lilliam’s life-changing bread, sweets such as dreamy alfajores con dulce de leche, Cuba’s famous coffees, mojitos, and juices, and Ernest Hemingway’s papa doble daiquiri of legend.

List of contents

PREFACE

CHAPTER ONE: OLD HAVANA

Ivan Chefs Justo

• Fish Croquettes with Plantains


• Fish Filet Over Chickpeas


• Fish Ceviche

Al Carbon

• Grilled Al Carbon Chicken


• Chicken with Rice


• Yuca with Garlic Sauce


• Meringue Cookies


• Four-Milk Cake


• Dulce de Leche

Los Mercaderes

• Lobster with Pineapple

Hotel Saratoga

• Olga's Butter Cookies

CHAPTER TWO: CENTRAL HAVANA

La Guarida

• Puree of Vegetable Soup


• Eggplant Caviar in Tomato Coulis


• Fish Tacos with Fried Yam Taco Shells


• Boniato and Plaintain Chips


• Grilled Fish


• Ravioli


• Three-Milk Dark Chocolate Cake

San Cristobal

• Grilled Chicken with White Rice, Black Beans, and Sweet Plantains


• Grandmother's Garden Salad


• Fillet of Fish Florida with Orange Sauce


• Havana Temptation: Steak Strips with Grandmother's Demi-Glace Sauce


• Green Papaya in Simple Syrup with Cheese

CHAPTER THREE: VEDADO

Café Laurent

• Café Laurent-Style Fried Plantains


• Caramel Cake

California Café

• Cuban Sandwich


• Chard and Egg Stir-Fry


• Tropical Shrimp

El Atelier

• Salmon Roll with Eggplant


• Tomato Terrine with Prosciutto


• Almond Pesto Sauce


• Smoked Salmon with Pesto Cream Cheese


• Duck à l'Orange


• Ratatouille


• Leg of Lamb


• Octopus Salad


• Malanga Fritters


• Surf and Turf

El Litoral

• Serrano Ham Croquettes with Four-Cheese Sauce


• Four-Cheese Sauce


• Fried Beef


• Sweet Guava Shells with Cream Cheese and Guava Syrup


• Lime Meringue Pie

El Cocinero

• Japanese Salad


• Mini Cheeseburgers

CHAPTER FOUR: MIRAMAR

La Cocina de Lilliam

• Homemade Bread


• Tuna Bruschetta


• Seafood Paella


• Fish Stock

Élite

• Mixed Green Salad


• Bruschetta


• Fisherman's Pasta

CHAPTER FIVE: JAIMINITAS ("FUSTERLANDIA")

• Fusterlandia Cake

CHAPTER SIX: VIÑALES PINAR DEL RÍO

Finca Agroecologica el Paraiso

• Anti-Stress Drink


• Flan

CHAPTER SEVEN: CIENFUEGOS

Villa Lagarto

• Green Plantain Chips


• Vegetable Soup


• Shredded Beef


• Roasted Pork with Rice Mixed with Beans

CHAPTER EIGHT: TRINIDAD

Sol Ananda

• Shredded or Pulled Pork


• Glazed Fruits

Davimart

• Mixed Seafood Grill


• Grilled Fish


• Chocolate Covered Bananas

CHAPTER NINE: COJIMAR

Ajiaco Café

• Vegetable Empanadas


• Ajiaco Stew


• Fresh Fruit Cocktail


• Frozen Mojito


• Rice Pudding with Mojito Granita

CHAPTER TEN: CUBAN BEVERAGES

• Classic Daiquiri


• Hemingway Daiquiri


• Classic Mojito


• Simple Syrup


• DuPont Special


• Cuba Libre


• Cubanito Cocktail


• Vigía Cocktail


• La Guarida Coffee

RECIPE INDEX

About the author

Cynthia Carris Alonso is an acclaimed photographer, a writer, and the author of Passage to Cuba. Since 1992, she has regularly traveled to Cuba, documenting its news, musicians, and culture for music recording companies and publications such as Newsweek, Vanity Fair, BusinessWeek, and People en Español. Alonso has appeared as a Cuba consultant on national television, in print, and on radio. Her images have exhibited throughout the United States and in Canada and Brazil. She lives in New York City with her husband and daughter.

Summary

From the leading photographer of Cuba, A Taste of Cuba is a stunning culinary and visual journey through Cuba that presents 75 authentic, never-before-shared recipes from the world's most inventive chefs.

Additional text

“In A Taste of Cuba the connections between food and family history and cuisine and culture are made in vivid detail. I felt as if I were taking a coast-to-coast journey through the land of my roots, sampling dishes that reminded me of my own family dinners, the aromas and savory spices and sugary sweets. This book is more than its recipes, it is a story of how a people express themselves with their cooking.”
—Soledad O’Brien, CEO of Starfish Media Group & Host of Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien

“A Taste of Cuba brings Cuba’s culinary culture to life in ways never seen before in print. Carris Alonso provides a unique blend of historical perspective while taking you on a journey through Cuba’s neighborhoods, popular restaurants, and delectable dishes.”
—Tom Popper, President of insightCuba

“Great food transcends political ideologies and connects people in wonderful ways. A Taste of Cuba is a great example of this. Through delicious recipes, pictures and insights, A Taste of Cuba connects all of us to the heart of Cuba through the spirit of Cuban people, Cuban culture and its food.”
—Jeremy Merrin, Founder & CEO, Havana Central Restaurant Group

“For me it is a pleasure and an honor that a person full of so much compassion and love for Cuba, has dedicated part of her book to my recipes and restaurant in Cuba.”
—Carlos Cristóbal Márquez, Owner and Chef, San Cristobal Paladar, Havana

“A Taste of Cuba highlights a part of Cuba that many believed was asleep: Cuba’s cuisine, which is a unique mixture of aboriginal, African, European and American styles. I am very greatful to be a part of A Taste of Cuba. Let this be the beginning of many closer relations between the people in Cuba with the people abroad.”
—Niuris Higueras, Owner, El Atelier Paladar, Havana

“Highly recommended! A magnificent option for everyone who would like to cook quality Cuban food and learn about the gastronomic revolution taking place on the island of Cuba.”
—Enrique Nuñez del Valle, Owner, La Guarida Paladar, Havana

Product details

• Authors: Cynthia Carris Alonso
• Publisher: Apollo Publishers IPS
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 31.05.2018
• EAN: 9781948062008
• ISBN: 978-1-948062-00-8
• No. of pages: 304
• Dimensions: 230 mm x 264 mm x 22 mm
• Weight: 1194 g
• Subjects: Guides > Food & drink > International cuisine; Kuba, Reiseführer, Cooking / Wine, HISTORY / Caribbean & West Indies / Cuba, TRAVEL / Caribbean & West Indies, COOKING / Regional & Ethnic / Caribbean & West Indian