Cookbook Review | The Latin America Kitchen By Elisabeth Laurd

This book was hand-picked for review, from The Hermit Poet’s International Cookbook Collection.

Hermit Poet’s notes:

With a shoreline in almost every country, Latin America is blessed with fresh seafood like the vibrant ‘ceviche’ from Peru and popular deep fried small sardines from Brazil. Both to die for with a cold beer!

Latin America is also the land of ‘haciendas, gauchos, and chimarrão’.

Totaling 23%; Brazil, Argentina and Mexico rank among the top 10 countries in beef production in the world. From the grill to your plate ‘Churrasco’ is a medley of meats served with a multitude of side dishes. Some places claim to have the entire cow on the spit, coming to you one piece at a time.

Latin America indigenous culture originated from the great civilizations of the Maya, Inca and Aztec. Today, there are 800 different indigenous groups. 45 million people! Mexico, Peru, Guatemala, Bolivia & Ecuador have the largest indigenous population and consequently the highest food influence.

Book Review:

The Latin America Kitchen focuses on ingredients, explaining: how to grow, appearance, taste, buying, storing, followed by medicinal and culinary uses for each ingredient. The recipes incorporate the ingredients with images depicting the final product. Easy to follow step by step recipes depicting meals throughout Latin America.

The book is organized in food groups: vegetables, chilies, (starches, legumes & gains), (eggs, dairy & cheese), (poultry & meat), nuts, the pantry, fruits and 30 pages dedicated to ‘Fish and Shellfish; fully illustrated, with enticing food images. The introduction contains color photographs documenting daily life in countries like Brazil, Guatemala, Argentina and many others.

The book is easy to handle using a book stand while cooking.

Hermit Poet’s favorite recipes:

With a few changes to adjust to personal taste!

Flan de Pina | page 203

Mariscada do Baiana | page 137

Estofado Argentino | page 121

Book information:

The Latin American Kitchen: A Book of Essential Ingredients with over 200 Authentic Recipes paperback by Elisabeth Laurd with photography by Francine Lawrence.