Recipe: Sample Recipes from The Florida Keys Cookbook by Victoria Shearer

SAMPLE RECIPES FROM:

The Florida Keys Cookbook by Victoria Shearer
Think of the Florida Keys and think of a food paradise: fresh from the sea stone crabs, yellowtail snapper, and sweet shrimp; fresh from the dooryard garden key limes, mangoes, avocados, and papayas. Toss in the influence of a variety of ethnic food traditions - from Afro-Caribbean and Cuban to Spanish, Asian, British, German, and Italian - and the result is a diverse and vibrant culinary scene. The cooks of the Florida Keys have been transforming local ingredients into memorable meals for generations, and now so can you. The Florida Keys Cookbook is a fascinating combination of food history, local lore, and mouthwatering recipes from restaurant chefs and home cooks. With more than 175 recipes, fun archival photographs, and lots of engaging anecdotes, this cookbook lets you capture a taste of the Keys and celebrate its flavors in your own kitchen.

Mangia Mangia Balsamic Vinaigrette on Baby Greens
Says Chef Eliot Barton of Mangia Mangia restaurant in Key West: "This is the only dressing available at Mangia Mangia. Though simple to make, it is delicious and through the years many customers have requested that we sell the dressing. Well, the mystery is now revealed." He recommends using high quality vinegars and olive oils and adds: "The little bit of water reduces acidity but retains the fine flavor of the vinegar. Inexpensive vinegars are already too diluted. Look for vinegars in the range of 6 percent acidity."

Rosemary Roasted Boniato Fries
Cuban sweet potatoes are called boniatos. They look similar to the American sweet potato only on the outside. The flesh, however, is white instead of yellow and their flavor is quite different. Less sweet than the orange sweet potato, boniatos have a nutty flavor and a subtle, spicy sweetness that is easily overwhelmed by heavy seasoning. Because the white flesh discolors quickly, boniatos should be peeled under running water.

Tres Leches (Three Milk Cake, using cake mix)
The Cuban-American community has adopted as its own this unusual cake, which actually originated in Central America. Tres Leches is a classic yellow cake that, once baked, is saturated with more than 4 cups of liquid a mixture of three kinds of milk. The result is a remarkably light, sweet, moist confection.

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