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Michael Bennett's Cookbook Underneath a Cloudless Sky

RESCULPTING SOUTH FLORIDA’S EXOTIC TROPICAL PANTRY WITH A METROPOLITAN VISION

UNDERNEATH A CLOUDLESS SKY…BOOK OVERVIEW

Expected release on the first of January, 2010

COOKING ON THE NEW AMERICAN RIVIERA MELDS AND CREATES A CULINARY FUSION CUISINE BASED ON FIVE DIFFERENT SOUTH FLORIDA COOKERY HERITAGES. CHEFS HAVE FUSED THE TROPICAL EXOTIC FOOD PANTRY WITH MULTIPLE CARIBBEAN AND AMERICAN (NORTH, SOUTH AND LATIN AMERICAN) CULINARY HERITAGES, RESULTING IN A WONDROUS BOUNTY OF DINING CHOICES FOR THIS GASTRONOMIC EXCURSION.

THE BEST TRAIT OF THIS NEW CUISINE IS ITS COMPLEXITIES OF TASTE, WITH ITS EXTREMES IN BOLDNESS. DISTINCT INDIVIDUAL CULTURAL FLAVORS FROM THE CARIBBEAN AND LATIN AMERICA ARE UNITED WITHIN EACH NEW RECIPE. A CHEF WILL TELL HIS PATRONS THAT HIS FOOD EXPLODES ON THE PLATE, AS WELL AS ON THE PALATE.

A CHEF DAILY WILL INFUSE HIS MENU WITH VARIETIES OF CROSS-CULTURAL TASTE AND COOKING TECHNIQUES. WHILE ELEVATING THE DINING EXPERIENCE TO A HIGHER LEVEL OF A “METROPOLITAN” SOPHISTICATION.

THE USE OF AN ECCENTRIC PANTRY OF SPICES AND FRESH HERBS FOR BOLD FLAVORS ARE INTERTWINED INTO THIS FUSION COOKERY. JUST AS A FINE WINE DEVELOPS DIFFERENT CHARACTERISTICS, DIFFERING BECAUSE OF SOIL CONDITIONS AND CHANGES OF MICRO CLIMATES, SO DO MANY OF THE TROPICAL FOODS HARVESTED IN SOUTH FLORIDA . OF COURSE, WITH 800 MILES OF COASTLINE, SEAFOOD IS USED WITH GREAT REGULARITY. CHEFS HANDLE SEAFOOD AS IF IT NEVER LEFT THE OCEAN.

HOPEFULLY, MY PASSION WILL SOON BE ONE THAT YOU WILL EXPLORE MORE AND MORE THROUGHOUT THE NEXT FEW HOURS, DAYS AND WEEKS....

Passion is...
by The Tropical Cuisinier!
…what is or has been important in ones own life.
…it drives us for more.
…it encourages for the betterment of ourselves.
…it overrides other motives for its own fulfillment.
…it discourages stagnation.
…it drives us to pursue the seemingly once unattainable.
…it unrealistically fullfills one’s life with obtainable platitudes.
…it overrides or blurs out important real life issues, concerns and needs.
Aspirations for greatness develop from…
Passion!




AND THE JOURNEY BEGINS….
(INSIDE LEAF OF BOOK)
YOUR OPENING OF THIS BOOK STARTS THE JOURNEY TO THE TROPICAL REGIONS OF THE WORLD. THIS JOURNEY WILL START ON A PREMISE THAT YOU ARE LOOKING TO COOK SOMETHING NEW FOR DINNER. YOU ARE ABOUT TO EMBARK UPON A JOURNEY OF FREEDOM. THE REAL JOURNEY BEGINS AS YOU FLIP THROUGH THE PAGES OF TEXT.

WE WILL BEGIN BY SETTING THE SCENE. IMAGINE A BEAUTIFUL “CLOUDLESS SKY”. THE PANORAMA IS TROPICAL AZURE SKIES TOUCHING AN EVEN MORE BEAUTIFUL, CRYSTAL-CLEAR, BLUE-GREEN SEA. YOU ARE NOW TRANSPORTED TO AN ISLAND NATION AND I WILL BE TAKING YOU ON A WHIMSICAL JOURNEY WITHIN THIS BOOK.

THE STORIES WITHIN THIS BOOK WILL RELATE WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE IN THIS EXOTIC NATION… IT IS A CULINARY NATION PREDOMINATED BY EXOTIC FOODS AND BOUNDLESS CULINARY FREEDOM. YOU WILL EXPERIENCE THE FREEDOM TO INVENT COMBINATION'S OF TASTES AND CROSS-CULTURAL CULINARY WIZARDRY NOT CONSTRAINED BY “REGIONAL” COOKERY STEREOTYPES.

A TROPICAL JOURNEY REALIZED….
AN EXPEDITION MIGHT START AT THE AIRPORT. OURS DOES NOT. WE ARE GOING TO TRAVEL SANS JET PROPULSION.

HERE IN SOUTH FLORIDA , CHEFS ARE NOT BOUND BY ANY REGIONAL CULINARY PREFERENCE. SINCE THIS AREA OF THE COUNTRY IS FULL OF IMMIGRANTS FROM ALL OVER THE CARIBBEAN, IT ONLY MAKES SENSE TO RESTAURATEURS TO OFFER MENUS THAT FEATURE FOODS OF THE CARIBBEAN . WE ASSESS THE COOKERY PREFERENCES OF OUR LOCAL SOUTH FLORIDA INHABITANTS AND THEN STYLIZE MENUS FOR THEM.

THIS JOURNEY HAS TAKEN ME AND OTHER CHEFS TO TROPICAL REGIONS OF THE WORLD ON THE PLATE. IT IS THE PLATE THAT IS OUR AXIS OF TRAVEL. THIS IS HOW I HAVE CULTIVATED THE MENU STYLING OF THIS BOOK. IT IS CULINARY JOURNEYS WITHOUT RESTRAINTS~WITHOUT BOUNDARIES…


UNDERNEATH A CLOUDLESS SKY
IS A COMPILATION OF RECIPES COLLECTED FROM MY CULINARY JOURNEYS THROUGH SOUTH FLORIDA AND CARIBBEAN . I HAVE BROUGHT THESE RECIPES TO YOU THROUGH YEARS OF EVALUATION AND PLANNING. BEING FROM SOUTH FLORIDA, I WAS IMMERSED INTO THE CARIBBEAN HERITAGE THROUGH COOKING. I ADMIRED THOSE COOKERY TRADITIONS SO MUCH THAT I RELOCATED MYSELF AND MY FAMILY TO THE TROPICS.

AFTER SPENDING SOME TIME IN THE CARIBBEAN, I HAVE RETURNED WITH A GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW EVERYDAY COOKING HAS EVOLVED INTO WHAT IS KNOWN TODAY AS CARIBBEAN FUSION (CARIBB-ICAN) COOKING.

THE AREA THAT ENCOMPASSES THE CARIBBEAN BASIN IS A TROPICAL PARADISE THAT HAS FEW CLOUDY DAYS. THREE HUNDRED PLUS DAYS A YEAR YOU ARE TREATED TO BEAUTIFUL BLUE SKIES, WARM AND COMFORTING AS THE FOOD THAT YOU WILL ENCOUNTER THROUGHOUT THESE PAGES.

PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN LUCKY ENOUGH TO TRAVEL TO THE TROPICS WILL BE FAMILIAR WITH MANY OF THESE COOKERY TECHNIQUES AND FOODS. THOSE THAT HAVEN’T TRAVELED TO A PLACE WITHOUT CLOUDS, CAN VISIT THROUGH THE STORIES AND RECIPES WITHIN THIS BOOK.

FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT.

NOT SO! FAMILIARITY BRINGS COMFORT AND REASSURANCE, WHILE TRYING NEW THINGS, I WILL TRY TO BRING AS OF YET UNFAMILIAR EXOTIC FOOD AND COOKING TECHNIQUES INTO FOCUS FOR YOU. AFTER READING THIS BOOK YOU WILL BE COMFORTABLE USING FOOD YOUR MOTHER WOULD HAVE NEVER CONSIDERED COOKING.

TODAY, PEOPLE WANT MORE OF THE GOOD LIFE. COOKING IN THE HOME HAS BECOME A WEEKEND SPORT FOR THE GOOD LIFE ENTHUSIAST. MOTHER BRINGS MEMORIES OF COMFORT, OF HOME COOKING AND THE FOODS SHE USED. THIS BOOK SETS OUT TO MAKE NEW MEMORIES. IN THE PAST, YOUR MOTHER HAD MOST OF THE DAY TO PREPARE THE EVENING DINNER. TODAY, THERE IS NEVER ENOUGH TIME. ALSO, THERE WASN’T AN EFFICIENT METHOD OF TRANSPORTING FOOD FROM TROPICAL REGIONS OF THE WORLD TO YOUR LOCAL SUPERMARKET. TODAY IT IS COMMONPLACE TO SEE MANGOS, PAPAYA, STARFRUIT, BONIATO, PLANTAIN AND COCONUTS SITTING ALONGSIDE APPLES AND ORANGES .

IN YOUR MOTHER’S DAY EVERYONE COOKED LIKE JULIA CHILD~IF THEY WANTED TO CREATE A GOURMET FEAST. TODAY, EVERYONE WANTS TO COOK LIKE A CELEBRITY AMERICAN CHEF. THAT CHEF IS MOST LIKELY USING THE FRESHEST FOOD AVAILABLE AND PREPARING IT IN A STYLE THAT BLENDS THE COOKERY METHODS OF VARING CULTURES. THIS IS HOW I HAVE WRITTEN THIS BOOK. I HAVE TAKEN THE VARIOUS COOKERY HERITAGES OF SOUTH FLORIDIANS AND MELDED THEM TO CREATE EXCITING NEW RECIPES.

ALONG WITH DEVELOPING A NEW COOKERY STYLING, I HAVE DEVELOPED A NEW COOKERY STATEMENT. FLORIDA ’S FIVE FLAGS FUSION FOOD (FFFFF). BY COMBINING COOKERY WAYS AND TROPICAL COOKING INGREDIENTS, FFFFF IS EXACTLY WHAT HAS EVOLVED.

UNDERNEATH A CLOUDLESS SKY FEATURES THE COOKERY AND THE LIFESTYLES OF THE NEW AMERICAN RIVIERA .



USING THIS BOOK........
IN WRITING THIS TEXT, I ASKED MYSELF WHAT SHOULD BE RELATED TO YOU ABOUT COOKING ON THE NEW AMERICAN RIVIERA .

I’VE TRIED TO MAKE IT EASY FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND WHY FOODS ARE PREPARED IN THE MANNER WHICH I HAVE CHOOSEN. WHAT I AM TRYING TO DO IS MAKE THE RECIPES LIGHTER. THIS BOOK WAS ESPECIALLY WRITTEN FOR THOSE OF US WITH A LITTLE MORE ADVANCED CULINARY SKILL, WHO FIND TRUE ENTERTAINMENT IN EXPLORING AND USING NEW FOOD.

BY READING THE UNDERLYING TITLE OF THIS BOOK YOU CAN ALREADY ASSUME THAT WE WILL BE USING EXOTIC, SLIGHTLY HARD TO FIND FOOD. MOST IMPORTANTLY, I HAVE USED FOOD EXCLUSIVELY GROWN OR FOUND IN THE CARIBBEAN REGION. INFACT, THESE STAPLES MIGHT BE DIFFICULT TO FIND IN A SMALL TOWN GROCERY STORE. BUT, PEOPLE LIVING IN METROPOLITAN AREAS WITH CARIBBEAN ETHNIC COMMUNITIES SHOULD HAVE NO PROBLEMS PROCURING THESE INGREDIENTS.

MOST RECIPES WITHIN THE BOOK REPRESENT THE MELDING OF OUR SOUTH FLORIDIANS ’ HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL COOKERY PRACTICES. EACH RECIPE WAS DEVELOPED FUSING THESE FIVE INDIVIDUAL SOUTH FLORIDA CULTURAL COOKERY HERITAGES. MANY INDIVIDUAL RECIPES EARMARK FOOD THAT REPRESENT EACH OF THESE INDIVIDUAL AND SEPARATE CULTURAL COOKERY HERITAGES.

EACH RECIPE IS A GUIDE IN MELDING SWEET AND SOUR, HOT AND COOL, SOFT AND CRUNCHY ~TASTE AND TEXTURE ~TO DEVELOP AN UNCOMMON “TASTE-VARIANCE”. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH WHEN FUSING COOKERY ELEMENTS AND THEIR TRADITIONAL COOKING METHODS. DOING THIS CAN BE AS EASY AS TOSSING A SALAD—MIXING SOFT BABY GREENS AND A CRISP WAFER OF FLAT BREAD. THEN WITH THE ADDITION OF AN ACIDIC SWEET SOLUTION (VINAIGRETTE) YOU GET AN ENTIRE PRESENTATION. THE SINGLE BEST THING ABOUT THE RECIPES IN THIS BOOK IS THAT THE RECIPES HAVE BEEN SELECTED FOR THEIR POPULARITY IN ACTUAL RESTAURANTS WHERE I HAVE WORKED AS THE CHEF.

FOR GENERATIONS, AMERICAN CUISINE COPIED THE REGIONAL FOOD OF FRANCE . NOW, THE NEW AMERICAN REGIONAL COOKING TECHNIQUES LEAD THE WAY IN PROFESSIONAL KITCHENS. IN SOUTH FLORIDA , WE HAVE CREATED ANOTHER AMERICAN-REGIONAL COOKING STYLE.

BEING THE FIRST PERMANENT SETTLEMENT IN AND OF NORTH AMERICA ( ST. AUGUSTINE ), FLORIDA AND THE CARIBBEAN ISLANDS HAVE A TREMENDOUS INFLUENCE IN THE COOKING STYLES ACROSS AMERICA TODAY. BESIDES FOOD AND THEIR INDIVIDUALISTIC DISSIMILARITIES, THE WAY IN WHICH AMERICANS COOK TODAY HAS CHANGED. TODAY FAT AND CHOLESTEROL ARE LIMITED IN THE MODERN AMERICAN DIET. USING LEAN PROTEIN ENTREES AND LIMITING THE USE OF ADDITIONAL FATS IS THE BASIS OF HOW I WROTE MOST RECIPES FOR THIS BOOK. REGRETTABLY, FATS USED IN A RECIPE ADD A “RICH” TASTE TO FOODS. I HAVE MADE UP FOR THIS REDUCTION OF FAT BY ADDING ADDITIONAL FLAVOR ENHANCERS. LESS ISN’T ALWAYS BETTER BUT, LESS OF A BAD-FOR-YOU INGREDIENT IS CERTAINLY PREFERABLE.

IN THIS BOOK, USING ADDITIONAL FATS IS KEPT TO A MINIMUM. I AM NOT TRYING TO WRITE A DIETETIC BOOK, JUST A HEALTHIER ONE THAN YOUR MOTHER WOULD HAVE USED. THIS BOOK WASN’T ONLY WRITTEN BY A CHEF THAT WORKS EVERYDAY AS A CHEF BUT, IS WRITTEN BY SOMEONE WHOSE WHOLE LIFE REVOLVES AROUND FOOD, JUST AS YOUR MOTHER’S LIFE USED TO REVOLVE AROUND KEEPING HER FAMILY SUSTAINED AND COMFORTABLE.

FURTHER HINTS...
AS CREATURES OF HABIT, MOST PEOPLE RESIST CHANGE. WE ARE UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THE UNKNOWN. I HAVE DEVELOPED A METHOD OF MINIMIZING THE RISK OF COOKING SOMETHING WRONG. I HAVE USED A METHOD OF PAIRING THE UNKNOWN WITH SOMETHING MOST OF YOU WILL BE COMFORTABLE COOKING. IN THIS BOOK WE ARE GOING TO GUIDE YOU THROUGH CHANGE WITH ADVENTUROUS EXCITEMENT.

AS CREATURES OF HABIT, WE GET COMFORTABLE COOKING THE SAME THINGS OVER AND OVER AGAIN. IT JUST BECOMES EASIER TO COOK TONIGHT’S DINNER WITH LITTLE TIME INVESTED OR WASTED STEPS. THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH THIS THEORY IS THAT THE AVERAGE HOME COOK HAS A REPERTOIRE OF TEN FAVORITE DISHES. THERE ARE ONLY SEVEN DAYS IN THE WEEK-THAT SHOULD BE PLENTY-RIGHT? WELL FOR MOST AMERICANS, REPETITION OF THE HOME COOKED MEAL IS THE NUMBER ONE REASON FAMILIES GO OUT TO EAT.

I WILL GUIDE YOU THROUGH A NATURALLY ARRIVED SYSTEM OF EXPLORING NEW FOODS. WHEN I FIRST STARTED EXPERIMENTING WITH THE FOODS FOUND WITHIN THESE PAGES, I WAS ALSO A NOVICE. IT TOOK MANY YEARS OF FAILING BEFORE I FOUND HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY MIX AND MINGLE CERTAIN FOODS ON THE PLATE TO DEVELOP A BALANCE IN TASTE THAT I HAVE DEEMED A “TASTE-VARIANCE”. THE TASTE-VARIANCE IS WHY YOU ARE LOOKING AT A NEW COOKBOOK. EVERY PERSON LOOKING FOR A NEW COOKBOOK IS LOOKING FOR ADVENTUREOUS GUSTO FOR THEIR TASTEBUDS. I WILL PROVIDE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN HOW TO MAKE SOME “TASTE-VARIANCES” THAT MANY PEOPLE IN AMERICA WILL NEVER HAVE THE GOOD FORTUNE TO EXPERIENCE. YOU WILL WITH LITTLE EFFORT BE ABLE TO DAZZLE YOUR GUESTS WITH EXOTIC FLAVORS AND PAIRINGS THAT THEY WILL TALK TO THEIR FRIENDS ABOUT FOR YEARS TO COME.

I HOPE YOU WILL ENJOY READING THIS BOOK AS MUCH AS I HAVE ENJOYED WRITING IT.

THE TROPICAL CUISINIER!

CONTENTS
PREAMBLE.......................................................................................

CHAPTER ONE-BOUCHEES
AN INTRODUCTION..............
FLORIDA’S FUSION CUISINE, AN INTRODUCTION....................................................................
IN THE BEGINNING .........................................................
FLORIDA, CULINARY WASTELAND OR DREAMLAND ...................................
SOUTH FLORIDA, THE NEW AMERICAN RIVIERA………
RECIPES .......................................................pgs 34-50

CHAPTER TWO-SALADS
THE REDLANDS .....................................................
THE MORNING MARKET..............
RECIPES .......................................................pgs 59-67
-THE ZIP ...........................................
SALAD ESSENTIALS ..............................................
SALAD MAKINGS ......................................................
RECIPES ......................................................pgs 77-85

CHAPTER THREE-LE REPERTOIRE
THE NEW AND DIFFERENT......................................................
HOW TO DUPLICATE FFFFF .................................
SIGNATURE DISHES...............................................
DECO ...........................................................
RECIPES .....................................................pgs 96-111

CHAPTER FOUR-TASTE
PARADIGMS IN FLAVOR ...............................
TASTE, A SCIENTIFIC LOOK............................................................
YIN AND YANG .......................................
RECIPES …………………………………….pgs 122-155

CHAPTER FIVE-SHELLS AND SCALES
HINTS ON BUYING SEAFOOD .................................................
SOUTH FLORIDA AQUACULTURE ...................................................
SHELLFISH, FOR SEAFOOD LOVERS........................................
STONERS, A FLORIDA SPECIALITY..............................................
RECIPES……………………………….….pgs 171-199

CHAPTER SIX-FEATHERS AND BONES
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SOUTH FLORIDA CHEF ..........................
RECIPES .................................................pgs 209-227

CHAPTER SEVEN-STARCHY THINGS
RECIPES ................................................pgs 231-249

CHAPTER EIGHT-FYI GLOSSARY
TYPICAL COOKERY ESSENTIALS ....................................
NEW SOUTH FLORIDA CULINARY TERMS ................................
TROPICAL COOKERY PROVISIONS ...............................................
EARLY FLORIDA AGRICULTURE .....................................
SEASONAL AVAILABILITY, COMMON “TROPICAL’S” ........................................
THE KAMPONG ...............................................
AVAILABILITY “RARE’ TROPICAL’S.....................................
CULINARY USES:
HOW TO USE TROPICAL’S ..............................................
COOKING TECHNIQUES .............................................
SPECIAL DINNERS:
SEASONAL MENUS ....................................................
SOUTH FLORIDA CULINARY EVENTS ......................................................
BIBLIOGRAPHY ..............................................