Seasonal Cuisine

In St.Vincent and the Grenadines the season that is associated the most with seasonal cuisine is Christmas. There are the various drinks such as sorrel and ginger beer. Sorrel is a flowering plant, and the red flowers are used to make the sorrel drink. The flowers can be used fresh or in its dried form. The flowers are boiled until the color has faded and   the water is bright red. The water is then sweetened to taste with sugar. Some people add white rum to give it a kick, or ginger to enhance the flavor. Ginger beer isn’t really what it sounds like and it is not even a carbonated drink. The ginger root is peeled and grated. Boiling hot water is poured over the ginger, and it is left overnight. The ginger solution is then strained and sweetened. A few cloves are added for that bit of spice.

Another seasonal food that is associated with Christmas is ‘black cake’. This is a type of fruit cake that is literally black in color. Traditionally, dried fruits , such as raisins, currants, prunes , and mixed peel, are left to soak for as long as several months in rum and/or wine or sherry, before the cake is baked. The fruit is blended to allow for different levels of consistency. At baking time one can add cherries and /or almonds to the mixture. After the potent fruit mixture is added to the cake batter, food coloring (‘browning’) is then added to produce the black color. When the cakes are baked, (no one bakes just one black cake) more sherry/wine is poured on them. They are then left to cool and soak up the alcohol, so that the cake is moist. Some folks baked their cakes in enough time to send to relatives overseas, other at least by Christmas Eve. Black cake is well preserved and can last for extended periods of time.

Last but certainly not least is the Salted Ham. This is cured ham so it is quite salty. Many persons boil the ham with herbs and spices before baking it. Others simply soak the amount of ham needed in cold water, overnight.  It can later be baked for lunch or fired as bacon for breakfast.

The Christmas celebration would not be the same without these foods.