An African American Cookbook (Paperback)

by Phoebe Bailey (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
An African American Cookbook: Traditional and Other Favorite Recipes is a wonderful collection of traditional recipes and food memories, as well as contemporary favorite foods. All of the dishes celebrate lusty African American eating; the traditional foods reflect the ingenious, resourceful, and imaginative Africans who made them.

    Included are Pastor’s Famous Ribs, Shortbread, Cracklin’ Cornbread, Okra Gumbo, Smoked Turkey and Black-Eyed Peas, New Orleans Red Beans and Rice, Cabbage with Collard Greens, Peach Cobbler, and Sweet Potato Pudding.

    Coupled with these old-time dishes are today’s favorite recipes— Yogurt and Chives Biscuits, Braided Easter Bread, Pecan Cake, Five-Flavor Pound Cake, Primavera Pizza, Shrimp Bake, Roast Turkey with Oyster Cornbread Stuffing, Cajun Cassoulet, and Minestrone with Tortellini.

    Woven among the 400 recipes are rich historical anecdotes and sayings. They were discovered or lived by this cookbook’s contributors, many of whose ancestors participated in the Underground Railroad or lived nearby where it was active.

    Presented in an easy-to-use format for cooks of all traditions, this is a cookbook rich in history and rich in easy-to-prepare, wonderfully tasty food.

    Author Phoebe Bailey’s congregation in historic Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was a station on the Underground Railroad. Today they, and their own Harambee Historical Services (meaning "pulling together to build" in Swahili), offer Underground Railroad re-enactments and a buffet of traditional African American food to their many visitors. This cookbook celebrates those historic activities, when this church fed and then helped to spirit enslaved Africans to safety.

From the Back Cover
An African American Cookbook: Traditional and Other Favorite Recipes is a bountiful collection of favorite foods and the memories that go with them. All of the dishes celebrate hearty African American eating; the traditional foods reflect the ingenious, resourceful, and imaginative Africans who made them. Woven among the 400 recipes are rich historic anecdotes and sayings. They were discovered or lived by the cookbook's contributors, many of whose ancestors participated in the Underground Railroad, or lived nearby where it was active. A cookbook rich in history and rich in easy-to-prepare, wonderfully tasty food! Remembering the Underground Railroad . . . Author Phoebe Bailey's congregation in historic Lancaster, Pennsylvania, has a long history with Underground Railroad activity. Today they offer Underground Railroad reenactments and a buffet of traditional African American food to their many visitors. This cookbook celebrates those historic events, when this church fed and then helped to spirit enslaved Africans to safety.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Good Books (August 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561483524
• ISBN-13: 978-1561483525
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #402,280 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #14 in	Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Regional & International > U.S. Regional > African American
  #37 in	Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Meals > Breakfast

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars History and Food, What a Combination!, July 18, 2005

By	J Keistler "[e-mail]" (Lake Jackson, Texas USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I'm not black, I'm white, but I enjoy cooking and cuisine generated from hard times and a lack of waste. While I have other cookbooks focusing on the history of cooking by black cooks in this country, what makes this little book particularly interesting is the sprinkling of history throughout. No, it's not comprehensive and doesn't pretend to be. However, like doughnuts and coffee, the two just go well together. Some of the recipes, particularly desserts, rely too much on processed foods I wouldn't want to make. The meats and vegetables are better. Still, it's a nice little book and I'm glad to add it to my shelf.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tasteeeey!!!, September 17, 2006

By	dodd9702 (Cambridge, MA) - See all my reviews

This is my most consistent in terms of taste of the 5 cookbooks I own. All the recipes I have tried so far have been GOOD and those who have eaten them have given them rave reviews. Some of the recipes aren't completely written, for example, one says, "Cook for 45-60 minutes." and it is not clear whether this means in the oven, in the frying pan, and at what temperature. There are enough of similar kinds of recipes though to figure these errors out.

For those who never learned how to cook like grandma or moms, this is the book to learn. You can also substitute ingredients, such as nonfat milk for whole milk, to make the food a bit healthier. You can also substitute smoked turkey for hamhocks and salt pork. However, sometimes you have to splurge and go for those to get that old school taste. :)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Every household needs this book!, January 13, 2006

By	AB "dakartony" (USA) - See all my reviews

I got this book as a Secret Santa gift. After one night in the kitchen, I went nuts with all the recipes. They are all written so simply! They don't take too many ingredients. And I use my judgement on how healthy I want to cook. If I want a lower-fat meal, I just use a bit of butter/oil.

It has recipes from all over the world, Scandenavian cookies, potato pancakes, Jewish Apple Cake, pork friend rice, not too mention traditional Soul Food dishes. Also, I have a lot of experience in West African cuisine, and the traditional dishes are very similar.

You don't need to be of a certain race/culture to use this book! Most dishes are ready from 30 mns to 1 hour.