Regional cuisines: from South Florida, the Deep South, the Central Plains, and the rockies

Vegetarian Journal, May-June, 2004 by Nancy Berkoff

RICE, BEANS, TROPICAL FRUIT, ROOT VEGETABLES, nuts ... There are so many ingredients available in the different regions of the United States, used in so many flavorful ways. Regional American cuisine reflects the variety of native products combined with the resourcefulness and traditions of the people settling its valleys, mountains, coastlines, or prairies.

Regional cuisine used to be defined broadly as Eastern, Southern, Central, and Western. We know better. Just as the scenery varies from town to town, so do ingredients and cooking techniques. Don't like the food here? Just go on over to the next town! There are too many subregional American cuisines to count. And in addition to regional and subregional cuisines, there are the culinary cultures of American cities. Most metropolises offer a variety of cuisines that vary from neighborhood to neighborhood. Just think about barbecue sauces. There are styles from Chicago, Kansas City, North and South Carolina, Louisiana, and Santa Rosa, to name a very few.

This article will give you just an introduction to some of the sub-regional cuisines of the bountiful United States. It will get you thinking of how to use the regional and seasonal ingredients in your area.

FLORRIBEAN

Floribbean cuisine incorporates foods, flavors, and ingredients from the Caribbean, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Latin America, and Cuba, with dashes of Africa, India, and Southeast Asia not too far in the distance. It is truly New World cuisine.

One of the reasons for this is the region's rich history. South Florida has a tropical climate and an inviting coastline that has attracted settlers for hundreds of years. The Spanish explored the region and introduced European spices to the native cuisine. Slaves from Africa brought eggplant, yams, okra, and sesame seeds. Workers from the Bahamas contributed seasoned rice and pea stews. New England railroad workers brought chowders.

The British had control of Florida for a while in the 1700s and introduced baking and steaming into the Floribbean repertoire. There was a large Jewish influx to the Miami area in the 1920s; you could get a good rye bread and a bowl of borscht! The Cuban migration in the 1950s heavily influenced the local cuisine, adding to the dietary landscape such items as saffron-scented rice, strong coffee, and crusty bread, to name a few. Today, flavors from Haiti, Nicaragua, Brazil, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Cambodia are available in the cities of Florida.

Also, there are many kinds of foods available in Southern Florida. In addition to traditional crops, tropical and Latin American fruits, vegetables, and starchy vegetables, such as taro or yucca, are grown. And there's always the indigenous swamp cabbage, or "hearts of palm" as it's known in the gourmet stores.

FLORIDA FRUIT SALAD
WITH AVOCADO-LIME DRESSING

(Serves 4)

This recipe takes advantage of seasonal fruit and creamy
avocados.

DRESSING

1 cup peeled and pitied ripe avocado
1/2 cup vegan sour cream or silken tofu
3 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 Tablespoon apple juice concentrate
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce

Place all dressing ingredients in the canister of a blender or food processor. Process until smooth. Chill until ready to serve.

SALAD
2 cups tern or cut romaine or red leaf lettuce
1/2 cup peeled and diced avocado tossed with 2 Tablespoons orange
juice
2 firm bananas, sliced (about 1 cup) and tossed with 2 Tablespoons
orange juice
1 cup fresh pineapple chunks (Drained canned pineapple is fine.)
1 cup fresh or frozen, thawed mange chunks
1/2 cup fresh papaya chunks
1/2 cup diced flesh orange
Toasted sliced almonds for garnish
(optional)

Place lettuce on a serving platter. Arrange fruit in a colorful pattern. Just prior to serving, pour dressing over fruit and garnish with almonds, if desired.

Total calories per serving: 267 Carbohydrates: 42 grams Sodium: 18 milligrams

Fat: 12 grams Protein: 5 grams Fiber: 8 grams

HEARTS OF PALM SALAD

(Serves 4)

Hearts of palm is the 'dressed-up'
name for Florida swamp cabbage.
Although it is sometimes possible
to find refrigerated bags of hearts
of palm, most of us will use the
canned product.

One 1-pound can or 2 cups drained
of palm
1/2 cup diced green bull popper
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup diced flesh oranges
1/4 cup vegan mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Lettuce leaves (as desired)
2 Tablespoons chopped pecans (optional)

Slice hearts of palms crosswise, as you would a banana. Place hearts of palm in a salad bowl and toss with remaining ingredients, except for lettuce and pecans. Allow to chill for at least 20 minutes.

When ready to serve, line a serving platter with lettuce. Top lettuce with salad mixture and garnish with pecans, if desired. Serve cold.

Total calories per serving: 126 Carbohydrates: 14 grams Sodium: $34 milligrams

Fat: 8 grams Protein: 4 grams Fiber: 4 grams

DEEP SOUTH

When you think of Deep South cuisine, you usually think of pumpkin or sweet potato pie, cooked greens, red beans and rice, cornbread, and peach preserves. The roots for these dishes began long before European explorers or settlers arrived on the scene, though. Deep Southern cuisine was originally Native American. It included the succotash of the Powhatans and dried berries of the Algonquians, along with squash, pumpkin, and corn grown in the region.