European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 22, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Pepper jamaican assault on american taste buds Bojoh Demers United press International p Peppery jamaican cuisine is massing for an assault on american taste buds with a Host of chefs and food purveyors convinced it s none too soon. In cuisine capitals from new York and Washington to Houston and Miami trendy restaurants Are beginning to introduce Jerk pork and Chicken meat patties and pumpkin and Pepper pot soups. In january the search for jamaican products in the United states got a Good bit easier with special taste of Jamaica celebrations at Bloomingdale sin new York Washington and Miami. Americans have had an interest in spicy regional cuisine for a number of years said Derryck Cox senior commissioner for the Jamaica Trade Mission. Mexican followed by cajun and Southern style dishes have created a major Impact on american dining preferences. Now South of the Border is taking on a new  probably the most popular part of the promotion was a series of demonstrations by two renowned Island Cooks Home economist Enid Donaldson known As the Julia child of Jamaica for her appearances on National television and Samuel Buchanan of resort Jamaica. The two very different talents displayed the variety and indeed the potential of jamaican cooking with Donaldson stressing traditional Down Home dishes and Buchanan showing How flashy the same sort of food could be. Donaldson who lives in the capital of Kingston said the response of shoppers during her visits was phenomenal Complete with up to 700 people fax x i jtmwx9�iul Lumu 130 sea ass aft p&ml4i tasting jamaican spices during a single Day in new York. The spices were sold out by the second Day of the promotion she said. Our food is spicy she said and because of the spices it is different. We use the same beef and pork the same Chicken. But with these spices we take it away from the  with a department store playing Host it s hardly surprising that products received a great Deal of attention both before and after the visits by Donaldson and Buchanan. Jamaica s Blue Mountain Coffee attracted quite a few tasters especially since it has been rare in the United states and usually has carried a Price tag of $20 a Pound. As it turns out the japanese buy 90 percent of All Coffee grown in the Blue mountains making the rest of the Globe suffer from withdrawal. In return that Eastern nation is pumping considerable investment into the jamaican Coffee Industry to increase production. This has climbed steadily in recent years going from 2.8 million pounds in 1980 to a projected 4 million pounds this Spring. Another favorite in this age of the Chocoholic is the confection offered by Highgate food products ltd., the largest of three jamaican chocolate manufacturers. Although chocolate is most often associated with High brow places like Geneva and Brussels the Cacao Plant is native to tropical America and has been processed with vigor in five of the Island s 14 parishes since 1957. Highgate chocolates have been exported throughout the Caribbean and to Jamaica s old colonial masters in great Britain. In the United Sampler of tasty native cuisine Bojoh Demers United press International like Many native cuisines Jamaica cooking developed using the ingredient Sand skills closest at hand. Fortunately forts growing audience there was a abundance of both. Two different culinary practitioners visited the United states in january As part of the taste of Jamaica promotion by Bloomingdale s. The recipes for spicy pumpkin soup coat of arms Rice and peas and Coconut Cream Are by Enid Donaldson a Home economist. The Rio Cobre crepe is from by Samuel Buchanan executive chef at resort Jamaica in runaway Bay Jamaica. Spicy pumpkin soup 2 pounds soup meat 2 stalks scallion chopped 1 sprig thyme finely chopped 1 whole Green hot Pepper 2 pounds pumpkin 1 Clove garlic minced Viz Pound Yam Ginger to taste place the soup meat in four quarts of water and boil until it is almost cooked. Add pumpkin Yam and remaining ingredients except Ginger boiling until the pumpkin is soft. Remove pumpkin crush it and return it to pot. Take out the Pepper and discard. Taste and add Salt if needed. Add crushed Ginger to taste and serve. Serves six. Rio Cobre crepe 1 Pound red peas or kidney Beans 1/4 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup chopped scallion 1 Teaspoon finely chopped thyme 1 Teaspoon finely chopped garlic 1/2 cup Coconut milk 1 quart beef Stock 4 ounces cooked Bacon a cup Corn starch Viz pint milk 1/2 cup flour 2 whole eggs Viz Teaspoon baking powder Viz Teaspoon Salt in a Saucepan Cook the red Beans in Stock until soft. Add onion scallion thyme garlic Coconut milk and Bacon then simmer for 10 minutes. Season to taste with Salt and Pepper and thicken with Corn starch. To prepare the crepes Combine milk with flour in a bowl to produce a paste. Add eggs baking powder and Salt mixing until smooth. Pour a thin layer of this mixture into a heated Skillet or crepe pan. Cook for three to four minutes on each Side. Fold the bean mixture into the crepes and serve hot As an appetizer or main dish. Makes 12 crepes. Coat of arms Rice and peas 1 cup red peas or kidney Beans 1 quart Coconut milk 1 Clove garlic minced 2 stalks scallion finely chopped 1 sprig thyme finely chopped 3 cups raw Rice 3 Teaspoons Salt 1 Tablespoon sugar add Beans which have been soaked overnight to the Coconut milk. Cook Over medium heat until the Beans Are tender but not Mushy. Add the scallion thyme garlic Salt sugar and Rice. Cook Over medium heat stirring once or twice until Rice is cooked to desired texture. It May be necessary to add water to produce Well cooked Rice. Coconut Cream 1 envelope in Flavoured Gelatin 1 pint Coconut milk 1 can condensed milk Viz Teaspoon Salt 1 Teaspoon Nutmeg soften the Gelatin in a cup Coconut milk then add 1/2 cup More Coconut milk. Heat Over Low heat add the remaining Coconut milk condensed milk and Salt stirring until dissolved. Strain. Pour into individual containers Sprinkle with Nutmeg and place in refrigerator to set. Serves six. Tourists picnic on the Beach at Frenchman s Cove Jamaica. New York times photo states though it took the duty free import concessions Unity the Caribbean Basin initiative to really fling open the door. Any display of jamaican food or any discussion of it must pay tribute to allspice and each of the Bloomingdale s sessions did just that. Also called Pimento this omnipresent taste enhancer reminds Many of Mace cinnamon Nutmeg and Clove All in one compact package. It is not a blend of anything however just a very powerful spice that has captivated taste buds since the arrival of Columbus. Allspice is used to flavor Jerk pork and Chicken soups fruit pies sausages and even icy summer punches. The spicy contingent was represented by pick Peppa sauce already a familiar addition to tables and bloody marys in the United states. Tropical fruit preserves and meat glazes sparked a great Deal of interest among Consumers especially since they provide an easy entree into the world of jamaican cooking. These included Orange marmalade laced with rum Coffee Orange liqueur or Ginger and a tropical tamarind flavor Glaze for meats. The Glaze is actually produced in Clarkston ga., by a jamaican born woman with tamarind purchased from her Homeland. In All the Coffee chocolate spices sauces and housewares showcased at Bloomingdale s provided an intriguing backdrop to the proliferation of jamaican style and jamaican cooked dishes on menus across the United states. To Buchanan who devises innovative menus at his resort in runaway Bay the whole thing could t happen to a nicer Island. Jamaican food is locally produced and it has a local flavor said the chef. It s As tasty As any other cuisine in the world and we try to prepare it fresh not from the refrigerator. I think people Are catching on to   , salade Chiffon ape Pate be Perigord rotate Crecy Boeuf a la Bourg Vignonne mousse Alphonse and 1969. Number Manhattan hotline for desperate diners the rastafarians known for wearing their hair in dreadlocks have influenced Jamaica s cuisine. By Joan Hanauer United press International Here s a new hotline in new York for desperate restaurant diners. Tourists from out of town and new yorkers looking for new dining experiences can Call the new York restaurant hotline and guide for suggestions based on Type of food Price and location. The hotline is the brainchild of Bruce Kallenberg 45, a native new yorker who has spent the last 12 years living in los Angeles. If his idea catches on in new York he plans to expand within a year to other american cities Chicago Washington Boston los Angeles san Francisco for starters and possibly even overseas to London Paris and Tokyo. I m a Bachelor and i eat almost every meal out Kallenberg said. I picked new York to try this because there Are 10,000 restaurants in new York but still whenever somebody says where do you want to go for dinner tonight everyone draws a Blank. They go Back to the same restaurants they be been going to for the last 15 years. This will give them new  the system is designed to work on any push Button Telephone and goes like this. New York City which really Means the Borough of Manhattan is divided into four sections East and West sides above and below 59th Street. Call the number for the area where you wish to Dine. A recorded voice will ask you to push the number on your Telephone corresponding to the kind of food you want american 1 Continental 2 italian 3, or ethnic 4. Next the caller is Are asked to push either the 1-Button for moderate or the 2 Button for More expensive dining. Kallenberg said $25, exclusive of drinks or wine was the dividing line Between moderate and expensive although moderate in an ethnic eatery probably would be cheaper than in a Continental restaurant. In the category of your Choice the recorded voice will go on to describe three restaurants that have signed up with the hotline Complete with address menu descriptions credit cards accepted and the Telephone number for reservations. The recording ends by wishing the caller a la Julia child Bon  within three or four months Kallenberg Hopes to be Able to Call Forward customers directly to the reservations desk of the restaurant of their Choice. The hotline is an advertising gimmick for the restaurants of course but Kallenberg said he tries to make sure he signs up Good ones. We Are trying to be As selective As we can As to the restaurants we choose he said because we want people to eat there and have a Good experience so they will keep using the  right now the system inaugurated last dec. 5, handles 96 restaurants. Kallenberg started out giving restaurants one month free then charging $250 for the first month s listing and $300 thereafter. The turnover is such he said that if you were to Call a month from now about half the restaurants would be new ones. He Hopes that by May or june he will be Able to offer a whole new slate. Ideally he said no restaurant would be listed for two consecutive months. He envisions the Day when he will be Able to offer a new list every month but he does not want to have More than 1,500 on the new York hotline because part of what he is offering the restaurants is a touch of exclusivity. If and when he expands to other cities with smaller restaurant populations he would sign up fewer restaurants. When his Call forwarding scheme goes into effect he will be Able to base the charge to restaurants at least in part on the number of Calls forwarded. He also Hopes to develop a complaint line where restaurant goers could Register gripes. In the future he May Branch out into other types of food and into classifications such As Brunch restaurants family restaurants and romantic atmosphere. He said his priority right now is to set up distribution Points for Wallet sized cards giving the hotline number with a wine list on the reverse Side. The wider the distribution of cards the More Calls he anticipates. Page 14 the stars and stripes saturday March 22, 1986 the stars and stripes Page 15