¾ cup (150 g) sugar
Combine the wet ingredients—coconut milk, eggs, oil—in a mixing bowl. Combine the dry ingredients—cornmeal, flour, starch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar—in a separate bowl. Pour the dry mixture into the wet mixture and mix well. Bake in a greased cast-iron skillet at 375°F (190°C) for 30 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Corn bread is an easy-to-make African American staple dish.
Mayi Moulin ak Fèy
Mayi Moulin ak Fèy, Haitian grits with spinach, is one variation on the breakfast porridge that is the staple food to start the day across the Diaspora. The rural farmers of Haiti say that mayi moulin is what makes them strong. Breakfast porridge can be made with cornmeal, millet, amaranth, rice, oats, or any other grain. Porridge can be prepared savory or sweet.
Active time: 12 minutes | Total time: 12 minutes | Yield: 3–4 servings
½ medium onion or 3 scallions, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 large tomatoes, diced
1 cup (30 g) spinach, finely chopped
2 tablespoons coconut oil or butter
2 cups (480 ml) water
1 hot pepper (optional)
1 cup (140 g) coarse cornmeal (or other grain)
2 teaspoons salt
Salt and pepper
1 avocado (optional)
Sauté the onion, garlic, tomatoes, and spinach in the oil until the tomatoes dissolve. Add the water and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the hot pepper (if using), but do not crush it. Then add the cornmeal to the boiling water, stirring constantly to avoid sticking and clumps. Continue to stir intermittently until the cornmeal is cooked, about 8 minutes in total. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the hot pepper. Serve with fresh avocado, if you like.
Variation: To make a sweet version, replace the onion and vegetables with chopped fruits and nuts, such as apples, raisins, dates, peaches, almonds, walnuts, and/or sunflower seeds. Add an additional cup of water or milk to replace the tomato. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, and sweetener to taste.
Sweet or Savory Roasted Roots
From candied yams to baked potatoes, roasted roots are staples of the Black Southern kitchen. A savory version and a low-sugar sweet version are provided. We always keep some baked roots on hand for quick meals. They work well as salad toppers and sides.
Active time: 12 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes | Yield: 6–8 servings
Sweet Version
3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into half-moons
1 cup (240 ml) apple cider or 1 cup (240 ml) water with 4 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon salt
⅓ cup (80 ml) coconut oil or ⅓ cup (75 g) butter
Savory Version
4 cups (570 g) chopped root vegetables (sweet potato, carrot, potato, turnip, and/or parsnip)
⅓ cup (80 ml) coconut oil or safflower oil
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
3 teaspoon curry powder
Toss all ingredients in a bowl to thoroughly coat the roots. Spread the mixture in a single layer on a baking pan and bake at 375°F (190°C) for 30 to 45 minutes or until the roots are tender and golden. For the sweet version, keep the baking pan covered for the first 25 minutes of the cook time.
Cabbage Salad
What kind of Southern Black family reunion does not involve some coleslaw? This light, healthy, versatile recipe works perfectly for that cookout and as an everyday side.
Active time: 15 minutes | Total time: 15 minutes | Yield: 6–8 servings
½ head green or red cabbage, very thinly sliced (ideally with a mandolin)
3 carrots, sliced with a mandoline
1 medium red onion, sliced with a mandoline
½ cup (120 ml) apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons chopped dill or parsley
Toss all ingredients in a large bowl and ensure that the dressing thoroughly coats the vegetables. Cabbage salad keeps in the refrigerator for 3 days.
Peanut version: Add sesame oil, carrots, and peanuts.
Mint version: Add chopped mint and thinly sliced radishes.
Caribbean version: Add mango and crushed cashews.
Fruity version: Add chopped apples and dried cranberries.
Fruit Cobbler
Grandmommy’s peach cobblers were the highlight of holiday meals. While the decadent cakes and pies of the Black South make our hearts swoon, the fruit-based cobblers are most adaptable to a healthy lifestyle and should be our go-to dessert.
Active time: 15 minutes | Total time: 50 minutes | Yield: 6 servings
8 peaches, sliced, or 6 apples, peeled, cored, and cut into wedges
1 tablespoon lemon juice
⅓ cup (80 ml) apple cider
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (50 g) oats
1½ cups (170 g) raw nuts or seeds, chopped (pecans, cashews, almonds, peanuts, sunflower seeds)
2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
4 tablespoons butter or coconut oil
Yogurt (optional)
For the fruit filling, toss together the fruit, lemon juice, apple cider, half of the spices, and the salt. In a separate bowl combine the oats, chopped nuts, the remainder of the spices, the sweetener, and the oil. Spread the fruit into a shallow baking pan. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the fruit. Bake the cobbler at 350°F (180°C) until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden, 35 to 45 minutes. Serve with yogurt.
Variation: Cook the topping separately on a baking sheet at 325°F (170°C) until crispy but not burned. Use as a crumble on fresh fruit.
Food Preservation
Fall evenings at Soul Fire Farm are about stocking up for the winter. As Fannie Lou Hamer said, “When you’ve got 400 quarts of greens and gumbo soup canned for the winter, nobody can push you around or tell you what to say or do.”6 Our kitchen is filled with piles of red hot chili peppers and garlic, filling the air with pungent fire and getting ready to become hot sauce. On the rug are bowls of maize and pods of beans waiting to be casually shelled while we chat after dinner. The cars serve as makeshift drying ovens, filled with racks of herbs and greens that infuse the seats with the aroma of their airborne oils. Sauerkraut bubbles out of its jars on the counter, freezer bags are laden with berries, and tomato sauce boils down in the Crock-Pot. Every year we try to beat our record for how many days we can hold out between last harvest and first trip to the supermarket for vegetables. So far we have managed to make it to January before the craving for the flavors outside of our region overtakes us. Having a full larder must be part of our collective survival strategy. We are beholden to those who feed us and would much prefer to be beholden to ourselves and one another rather than the industrial food system. In this section we share our tried-and-true food preservation strategies.
UPLIFT
Food Preservation of West Africa
Jean Nduwimana, a farmer in Eastern Burundi, sifts the ash from his fire three or four times to remove residues and debris. Then he places the ash into a paper carton and stacks his tomato harvest in neat rows amid the ash. With this technique, Mr. Nduwimana keeps his tomatoes fresh for five to six months.7 He is part of a long legacy of African farmers who developed innovative methods to preserve the harvest.
In Ghana farmers immerse fresh cassava root in 195°F (90°C) water for three to five minutes to slow microbial action and extend the storage life of the crop by two weeks. Alternatively, they bury the roots in moist soil to extend their freshness. When an even more stable food product is desired, these farmers prepare gari by roasting grated and fermented cassava in large pans over open fire
s. They peel, wash, and grate the roots, then pack the pulp into jute bags. These bags are stacked on wooden racks for three to four days and pressed to remove the starchy juice. The pulp is dried in the sun and roasted in pans. The farmers also make kotonte by slicing cassava roots and setting them out to dry in the sun. Similarly, hot peppers and okra are blanched in hot water and then dried on mats in the sun.
Ghanaian farmers preserve fish through smoking, drying, fermenting, and salting. For example, whole mackerel, cassava fish, and seabream can be arranged in layers separated by sticks in smoking ovens. The smoke is generated by burning wood chips, sugarcane chaff, and coconut husks at low temperatures for a full day. To preserve fish by salting, farmers place crude salt in the gut cavity of the fish then arrange the fish in wooden barrels with more salt sprinkled on each layer. After two to three days, the fish are spread out to dry in the sun. To make “stink fish” to flavor stews, the fish is left to ferment for 9 to 48 hours before salting.
In many cases the food preservation methods increase the nutritional content of the product. After smoking the fish, 100 percent increases occurred in the riboflavin, thiamin, and niacin content (compared with a dry-weight basis). While unprocessed cassava contains toxic cyanogenic glucosides, processing the cassava into gari hydrolizes these compounds.8
Preserving in Soil and Ash
Hardy vegetables can be stored for months in the soil and retain their freshness and vitamin content. Candidates for soil storage include root vegetables like potatoes, carrots, parsnips, turnips, beets, and sweet potatoes, as well as cabbage, brussels sprouts, and celery. Dig a hole 8 inches (20 cm) deep and wide enough to accommodate the amount of root vegetables to be preserved. At the bottom of the hole spread sand and wood ashes to keep out slugs. Place wire-mesh hardware cloth at the bottom and around the edges of the hole to stop rodents. Remove damaged or rotten parts of the vegetables before stacking them in the hole. Place a small bundle of twigs upright in the center of the vegetables to encourage ventilation. Pile the vegetables to a height of 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) above the level of the ground, then cover the mound with 8 inches of straw. Use the soil you dug out of the hole to cover the straw, further encouraging airtightness and insulation. The last step is to cover the air shaft made by the twigs with a piece of plastic or metal to keep out rain. You can remove vegetables from the pit throughout the winter, so long as you reconstruct the insulative barrier each time. Some farmers like to dig a separate pit for each vegetable. Personally, I like to layer vegetables such that I can open the pit once every two weeks and have a ready assortment of the vegetables I am likely to use.
Drying
If you have access to a hot radiator, woodstove, electric drying, or ambient climate that is hot and dry, preservation by food drying is a suitable method for you. One of our favorite dried foods to make is vegetable bouillon powder. We use celery, carrots, garlic, onion, basil, peppers, and tomato, though almost any vegetable or herb can be included. Finely chop or pulse your desired herbs and vegetables and place them in the dehydrator for one to two days until completely desiccated. In lieu of a dehydrator, you can use an oven at 140°F (60°C), or spread the ingredients on a screen hung over a hot radiator or woodstove. The resulting powder is shelf-stable and makes an excellent base for soups and stews.
Fruits also dry very well, retaining their nutritional value and flavor. Larger fruits, like apples, peaches, and strawberries, should be thinly sliced and soaked in water with lemon juice before drying. No processing is necessary for smaller berries. Spread the fruits in a single layer in the dehydrator and dry for one to two days or until your desired texture is achieved. Chewy dried fruits retain some moisture content and have a shorter shelf life than crispy dried fruits.
Fermentation
The miracle of lactic acid fermentation is that it is the only food preservation method that actually increases the nutritional value of the food. The vegetables are grated or chopped, combined with non-iodized sea salt, and packed into a tight space with no air. Lactic acid bacteria thrive in the saline environment and multiply, producing lactic acid. The resulting acidity prevents undesirable, pathogenic bacteria from colonizing the food.
Foods made with fermented grains are indigenous to Africa, including kenkey, kunuzaki, injera, ogi, and many more.9 To make banku, a sourdough dumpling from Ghana, place whole maize and salt in a pot and cover with water. Allow it to set for two to three days, then drain the water and blend the maize in a food processor. A thick, pasty dough will form. Roll the dough into fist-sized balls and put them into a pot of boiling water. Cook for 20 minutes and serve with stew. A similar method can be used for any grain or soft legume. When using rice, lentils, or sorghum, the resulting dough is thinner and should be cooked on a hot skillet like a flatbread rather than boiled like a dumpling. Fermented dough keeps in the refrigerator for up to one month.
Dehydrated vegetables make an excellent bouillon powder for winter soups and stews.
Fermenting vegetables is also an effective way to preserve the harvest and provide fresh, raw nutrition in the winter. The best vegetables for lactic acid fermentation are cabbage, turnips, radishes, carrots, cucumbers, and green beans. Cabbage is the easiest vegetable for beginners. Combine the sliced cabbage with non-iodized sea salt at a ratio of 1 pound (0.5 kg) of vegetables to 1 teaspoon of salt. Use your hands to massage the salt in the cabbage. Let it sit and brine while you sterilize the jars in boiling water. Note that a standard quart-sized canning jar holds about 2 pounds (1 kg) of vegetable. Pack the brined cabbage tightly into the canning jar, pressing out air as you go, so that the cabbage fills the jar up to the bottom of the rim. Then pour the liquid brine over the cabbage to completely fill the jar. Place the lid on very loosely. Arrange the filled jars on a pan and place them at room temperature for three days. They will bubble and release liquid as a result of the hardworking bacteria completing the fermentation. Top off each jar with a brine of 1 teaspoon of salt per 4 cups (960 ml) of water. Then place the lids on tightly and transfer the jars to a cool basement or refrigerator. The same method can be used for other vegetables. To jazz up your ferment, try adding garlic, dill, mustard seeds, caraway seeds, juniper berries, or other spices.
The author grates cabbage on a mandoline as an initial step in fermentation. Photo by Emet Vitale-Penniman.
Preserving in Vinegar
While vegetables know how to collaborate with bacteria to make their own acid, some people prefer the taste and convenience of pickling vegetables directly in vinegar. Pikliz is a ubiquitous Haitian side, a spicy and sour raw vegetable pickle. In many Haitian homes a jar of pikliz resides on the counter as a permanent fixture. To make pikliz, thinly chop cabbage, carrots, and onions and pack them into a clean glass jar. Add enough distilled vinegar to just cover the mixture. Then add spices to taste: thyme, whole cloves, lime juice, salt, and hot peppers. Cover and shake the mixture and allow it to sit at room temperature for at least three days before consuming. Use a clean spoon each time you remove some pikliz to jazz up your meal. Experiment with other vegetables to make pikliz, especially cucumber, sweet pepper, fennel, radish, turnip, cauliflower, green peas, green beans, cooked beets, or boiled eggs.
Canning
Canning produces shelf-stable vegetables, fruits, soups, and even meats, but requires some specialized equipment. Use brand-new canning jars and lids, as used jars are likely to be weaker and crack. Obtain a large canning pot, canning rack, and jar tongs. While almost any food can be canned, acidic foods are much easier. Our staple canning recipes are tomato sauce and hot sauce.
To make “Soul On Fire Hot Sauce” combine 2 pounds (1 kg) of hot peppers with seeds, 20 cloves of garlic, 1 tablespoon of salt, 9 tablespoons of vinegar, and 9 tablespoons of sugar in the food processor. Cook the mixture over medium heat for about five to seven minutes, stirring frequently. Pour the hot sauce into sterilized canning jars and wipe the rims with a clean towel before putting the tops on. Boil the jars in the hot-water bath for 2
0 minutes. Remove the jars and place them on a towel. As they cool, the lids will seal, making a pop sound and becoming concave. Sealed jars are shelf-stable and can store up to one year.
Similarly, you can make tomato sauce by cooking down tomatoes, onions, peppers, summer squash, basil, and any other vegetables and herbs you have available. Once the sauce loses much of its water and has the desired consistency, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice or vinegar per quart or liter to ensure shelf stability. Pour the sauce into canning jars and boil in the hot-water bath for 40 minutes.
The author cans tomato sauce under the guidance of elder Mama Isola. Photo by Jonah Vitale-Wolff.
Freezing
Freezing fruits and vegetables retains much of the flavor and nutrition of the original crop. Fruits, including berries and cherry tomatoes, require no special processing to freeze. Simply spread them out on a tray in a single layer until frozen. Then transfer the fruits into a freezer bag, carefully pressing out as much air as possible. When freezing vegetables, the first step is blanching, which stops the enzyme actions that cause loss of flavor, color, vitamin content, and texture. Blanching also removes bacteria from the surface of the vegetables. Submerge your chopped vegetables in a pot of rapidly boiling water for one to two minutes for tender vegetables like peas and greens or three to four minutes for chunky vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower. Then remove the vegetables and immediately transfer them to ice water. Drain the vegetables and freeze them on a tray in a single layer, then transfer them to a freezer bag. In our opinion, the tastiest frozen vegetables are corn, peas, edamame, and dark leafy greens. Note that you can also freeze, rather than can, sauces, salsas, and pestos.
Our freezer is well stocked with a variety of pestos made from herbs, greens, and garlic. Photo by Neshima Vitale-Penniman.
No Money, No Time
Even for those of us who can navigate the bureaucracy and be approved for government food benefits such as WIC, SNAP, and subsidized school meals, the average benefit is still meager at about $4 per person per day.10 Given that commodity foods are subsidized by the USDA, the least expensive options in the grocery store are packed with refined starches and sugar. Systematic shifts are imperative to uproot food apartheid. As we do that organizing work, we can also take immediate steps toward our personal food sovereignty. In this section we explore strategies for making a dollar and an hour stretch in service of our physical health.
Farming While Black Page 33
