QUAD tt

05/01/2026

King Cake in the Caribbean; https://tastetrinbago.com/king-cake-in-the-caribbean/

King Cake is a pastry originating in Western Europe that is eaten on the final day of Christmas known as Epiphany, which is the feast day that commemorates the visit of the three kings to the nativity of Jesus Christ. The cake is round, made from a sweet dough, and is often decorated with frosting and fruit. The cake is popular in Catholic countries, and has become associated with the New Year in some parts of the New World colonized by those countries. This has resulted in King Cake becoming popular in different parts of the wider Caribbean region.
In Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras, King Cake is known as Roscón de Reyes or Rosca de Reyes. This dessert likely became popular in Latin America in the 1930s, as it only appeared in cookbooks around that time. Historically, candied Acitrón cactus was used as a decoration in Mexico. This is now a protected plant species, so several substitutes are used, including the jícama, also known as the Mexican turnip. Across Latin America, Roscón de Reyes is flavored with orange peel, decorated with red and green candied fruit, and eaten while drinking hot chocolate.
In the Francophone world, there are two styles of King Cake. The Galette style is made with a flaky puff pastry, and traditionally filled with an almond flavored custard. The Gateau style, which is more common in south France, is made with a brioche dough, and decorated with candied fruit. The first style made its way to French Guiana where it’s known as a Guinan Galette, or Creole Galette and often flavored with coconut or guava.
King Cake from New Orleans on the other hand, is more influenced by the second style, and is often described as a cross between a cinnamon bun and a coffee cake. Instead of the traditional Christmas colors, New Orleans King Cake is decorated in the colors of Mardi Gras, which are purple, green, and gold, and it has become one of the city’s many culinary attractions.
Part of the culture of eating King Cake is looking for a trinket called a Fève that is hidden in the cake. In New Orleans, it’s known as the King Cake Baby, and it represents baby Jesus. In other traditions however, it may be the figure of a king, or there may even be more than one figure in each cake. In the past, a fava bean was indeed instead of a figurine, which is actually where the term Fève comes from. Whoever finds the Fève is crowned the king or queen. In New Orleans and French Guiana, that person is responsible for buying or baking the next cake. In Latin America, the tradition is different, and whoever finds the figurine is responsible for hosting a tamale feast on the second of February, which is a feast day called Día de la Candelaria or Candlemas.

01/01/2026

Soup Joumou on New Year's Day & Haitian Independence Day; https://tastetrinbago.com/soup-joumou-recipe/

On the first of January every year, Haitians celebrate both New Year’s Day, and the anniversary of Haitian Independence. The occasion is marked by serving a squash soup known as Soup Joumou that is made in large batches and shared among friends and family. Made from a variety of squash called the “giraumon” or “French turban”, the soup promotes social cohesion, as the preparation of ingredients is a community effort where even children are involved, and because the soup is served to everyone.

According to local lore, this dish was prepared by enslaved Haitians for their masters during French Colonial control, but they were not allowed to eat it as they were deemed too uncivilized. That changed on January 1st 1804 however, when the first Empress of Haiti, Marie-Claire Heureuse Félicité began the practice of distributing the soup across the newly independent country.

Some years earlier, during the siege of Jacmel in 1800, Félicité convinced Jean-Jacques Dessalines to open a road into the city. Jacmel was surrounded by the troops of Toussaint Louverture to the north, while also blockaded by the United States Navy, and residents had little access to food or medicine. When the road into the city was opened, Félicité led a procession into Jacmel and arranged for food to be cooked in the streets. A hearty soup proved to be perfect, as it could be easily made in large batches, and it could be fed to the wounded and the weak.

When Napoleon’s troops were finally repelled and Haiti declared Independence on the first day in 1804, Félicité spent the first week of January distributing Soup Joumou across the island, and ultimately started a tradition that is now included on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List. The soup served as a powerful symbol, as it could be made from lesser cuts of meat, tropical tubers, and other humble ingredients, but it was also a luxury dish that was formerly forbidden. It also demonstrated that everyone could make a contribution to the dish, and that everyone could eat from the same pot.

Today, Haitians enjoy Soup Joumou on New Year’s Day, and on the second day of the year, which is a national holiday called Ancestry Day.

31/12/2025

Black Eyed Peas and Rice / Hoppin' John as a New Year's Tradition in the Caribbean and the American South; https://tastetrinbago.com/black-eyed-peas-and-rice-as-a-new-years-tradition-in-the-caribbean-and-the-american-south/

Across the Caribbean, different types of rice and peas are eaten throughout the year. There is one dish however, that is connected to the New Year, and consumed during this time; Black Eyed Peas and Rice.

Rice was always central to the West African diet, and many West Indian myths tell of captive slaves hiding rice grains in their hair so that they could fend for themselves if they ever become free again. The histories of different maroon groups in South America suggest some truth to these stories and account for why rice remained an important food for Maroons in the Guianas. Over millennia of trial and error, the rice growers of West Africa had developed intercropping systems that maximized yields and minimized the risk of potential pests by planting several crops. An important element of those intercropping systems was a legume that has a center of origin that overlaps with African rice; vigna unguiculata, more commonly known as the cowpea.

The most common cultivar of the cowpea is the black eyed pea, a historically important ingredient in the cuisine of the American south.

Hoppin’ John is a dish made with black eyed peas and rice, flavored with onions and pork and typically eaten on the first day of January since it is said to bring prosperity in the New Year. Author of High on the Hog, Jessica B. Harris says that “the pea with the small black dot is considered especially lucky by many cultures in West Africa” and that this view has persisted in the new world. John Egerton, the author of Southern Food says that these legumes have a “mystical and mythical power to bring good luck” and are commonly associated with money.

This dish is also popular on the Caribbean coast of Colombia where it is known as Arroz de Fríjol Cabecita Negra. It is uncertain how it became popular there, but it was likely introduced by slaves passing through Cartagena, which was once one of the largest slave ports in the new world. In Trinidad and Tobago, black eyes peas and rice is a New Year’s Day tradition even though many people eating this dish on this day are unaware of the reason behind it. This tradition likely persisted locally in folk memory, but it was also reinforced by the presence of slaves known as “Merikins” who bought their freedom by fighting for the British against the Americans during the war of 1812.

At the end of this war, these slaves were paid with plots of land in south Trinidad where they could live as free men. In recent years, a variety of red rice thought to be extinct was found growing in the land that was given to these slaves indicating that they brought their crops and cuilinary culture with them. David S. Shields, the chairman of the Carolina Gold Rice Foundation described the rice growing in the hills of south Trinidad as “the most historically significant African diaspora grain in the Western Hemisphere.” Shields and his foundation is partially responsible for bringing African rice back on the market as Carolina Gold Rice. They are also involved in promoting Sea Island Red Peas, a lesser known landrace of vigna unguiculata similar to the varietals used in the earliest recipes for black eyed peas and rice in America. In the south, these recipes were all passed on orally until Sarah Rutledge, the daughter of a prominent Charleston family included a recipe in her 1847 cookbook, The Carolina Housewife. While that is the first written recipe, it is impossible to ever know who actually invented Hoppin’ John. The dish is virtually identical to some versions of Thieboudienne and Jollof Rice and likely developed over a long period of time in West Africa before crossing the ocean and being creolized as Hoppin’ John and Carolina Red Rice.

23/12/2025

Coquito and Kremas: Christmas Coconut Punches; https://tastetrinbago.com/coquito-and-kremas-christmas-coconut-punches/

All across the Caribbean, creamy alcoholic beverages are an important part of Christmas celebrations. The most widespread of these is Ponche Creme which is common all across the Southern Caribbean. Less common across the region is Coquito, a beverage only associated with a single island, Puerto Rico. Due to the presence of a large and influential Puerto Rican diaspora across the United States, many Americans now see Coquito as the quintessential Caribbean Christmas beverage.

In recent years, a Haitian drink similar to Coquito called Kremas has become increasingly popular in places with large Caribbean populations like New York City and Miami. This is because of changing perceptions of Haitian culinary culture across the United States, as well as the growing popularity of a Haitian white rum known as Clairin. The only major difference between Kremas and Coquito, is that the first one uses Haitian Rum while the other uses Puerto Rican Rum. There are also recipes for similar drinks across the rest of the Caribbean, that only differ on the type of rum used. This wide array of coconut milk cocktails across the Caribbean suggests that beverages using both milk and coconut milk existed all across the region shortly after the Columbian exchange, and they only developed national identities based on the use of local rum in more recent times.

The earliest examples of milk and coconut milk being used together can be found in Sri Lanka and southern India several thousand years ago. In these regions, cattle and coconut trees were recognized for the many useful products that they provided; material for clothing, fat for cooking, and milk that could be used in beverages. The first Europeans to establish themselves in these parts of Asia were the Portuguese. They recognized the importance of coconuts, and by the sixteenth century had established coconut plantations in West Africa, South America, and the West Indies. Coconuts easily float from coast to coast via ocean currents, and they thrive on sandy beaches, so the coconut palm spread across the entire Caribbean a few years after introduction.

By this time, sugarcane and cattle were already present in the region, as both had been brought to Hispaniola by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage. It is unclear exactly when sugarcane was brought to Puerto Rico, however it seems that cattle was introduced by the island’s first governor Juan Ponce de Leon with fifty cows, and four bulls in 1512. From that year, until 1516, over 150 cattle were transported to the island, resulting in a healthy breeding population.

As agriculture developed in the seventeenth century, it became possible to find dairy milk, coconut milk, spices, rum, and sugarcane syrup across many islands of the Caribbean. This naturally led to the emergence of beverages using these ingredients all across the region. These beverages would have been the precursors to Coquito and Kremas, and would have been made using recipes that were passed down orally.

“As with much of history in cultures that pass down orally, it’s hard to track the origins of coquito, Puerto Rico’s rum punch that’s served during the holidays.” writes Illyanna Maisonet in her book Diasporican. She then continues that “the most common story goes that the first coquito was created with pitorro”, which is a Puerto Rican term for moonshine made from sugarcane. This suggests that Coquito emerged during the prohibition era when rum consumption in Puerto Rico was banned, leading to the rise of illegally produced pitorro. Even today, pitorro production persists in Puerto Rico, and consumption is especially popular during the holiday season. Other than prohibition, the turn of the century also saw other cultural inputs from America that shaped modern Coquito.

The first of these was the importation of canned milk from the United States. Food historian Cruz Miguel Ortiz Cuadra says that after the American occupation; “merchants began to arrive in Puerto Rico who became importers and distributors of canned products, among which were evaporated and condensed milk“. Prior to this, the use of dairy milk or coconut milk in a recipe was an indicator of social class since the former was considerably more expensive than the latter. Of the difference between dairy milk and coconut milk, Cuadra sees them as “one for the well-to-do, and one for the poor; one that pertained to more urbanized environments, the other to coastal and rural regions.” Milk packaged in cans was more affordable than fresh milk, and it also had the benefit of a longer shelf life. Another American influence on Coquito was eggnog, which was already a popular beverage during the holiday season in the United States. American control of the island did not lead to eggnog becoming widespread, but rather it resulted in eggs becoming a part of several Coquito recipes.

Over time, investment and industrialization in Puerto Rico lead to canned coconut products being produced locally by large companies. The 1940s saw the emergence of Coco Lopez Cream and Coconut Goya Coconut Milk. The former is a key ingredient in the Piña Colada, while the latter is used in a broad range of Puerto Rican dishes. Both are used in Coquito recipes along with condensed milk and evaporated milk.

By the end of the 1940s, a generic Caribbean coconut beverage had completed its evolution into Puerto Rican Coquito. This is supported by the first written recipe for Coquito appearing in a 1952 cookbook called Cocine A Gusto.

The history of Kremas in Haiti likely followed a similar trajectory as condensed milk and evaporated milk became popular within that country in the early twentieth century. Today, recipes for Kremas and Coquito are very similar, although the former almost always calls for lime zest and almond extract, while the latter doesn’t. The definitive difference now is in the type of rum used. Coquito calls for Puerto Rican rum, which is made from molasses, and aged for at least three years. Haitians also call for local rum to be used, and whether that rum is Barbancourt or Clairin, it’s made from sugarcane juice instead of molasses, and in the case of Clairin it’s completely unaged.

Ultimately, Coquito and Kremas have similar ingredients, similar stories, and they fulfill the same role; Helping the Caribbean diaspora to remain rooted in their traditions and culture around Christmas time.

23/12/2025

Christmas in the Southern Caribbean Means Ponche Creme; https://tastetrinbago.com/christmas-in-the-southern-caribbean-means-ponche-creme/

The history of Ponche Creme.

Sabajón, Sabayon, Zabaglione, and Zabaione are all regional names for a type of custard made in the western Mediterranean. Regional variations exist; for example in Tunisia, it is flavored with rose water, pistachio or almonds, while in Italy, it is fortified with marsala wine. This dessert was supposedly invented by a Franciscan Friar called Paschal Baylón who used eggs, sugar, and wine to create a nourishing dish that was easy for bedridden patients to consume. The various names all originated from the words “Saint Baylón” in different languages. It is possible that Colombian Sabajón came directly from monasteries in southern Spain and retained the original name. In Venezuela however, the beverage came to be called Ponche Crema.
Traditional Ponche Crema is made by slowly simmering sweetener and milk so that some light caramelization occurs in a manner similar to how Dulce de Leche is made. Egg yolks and rum are then tempered into the thickening liquid and the heat is reduced. Recipes changed over time, so in most Ponche Crema, condensed milk provides the sweetness, and also contributes to the thickness. A convenient method of making Ponche Crema in Venezuela is to blend an already prepared flan with some white rum. This makes it easy to only mix a single glass when a guest requests some instead of an entire batch. Not only is it convenient, this method is also very cost effective, since even a powdered flan mix could be used.
Commercial versions of Ponche Crema are also popular in Venezuela. The first of these was produced by a company in downtown Caracas called Licorería Central in the early 1900s. This brand might actually be the oldest commercial cream liqueur, predating Sangster’s Rum Cream and Bailey’s Irish Cream by over sixty years.
Ponche Crema also traveled from mainland South America to several nearby Caribbean islands. Among them was Curaçao, where a businessman originally from a nearby Venezuelan coastal city developed a commercial product called Ponche Caribe based on his family recipe. He also developed a green hued Pistachio Ponche Crema using pistachio essence and butter. Pistachio Ponche Creme is now very popular in the ABC Islands, and practically everyone selling Ponche Crema there offers it as an option, from large liquor companies to small vendors selling a few bottles seasonally.
Ponche Crema also crossed the narrow passage from Venezuela to Trinidad where it gained several new names. An advertisement in a 1931 issue of the Sunday Guardian refers to the drink as Ponche de Crema and describes it as being as “palatable as milk and honey” while the chorus for the Lord Kitchener calypso goes “drink a rum and a Punch-a-Crema.”
French Creole which was at one time the most popular language spoken in Trinidad resulted in Ponche de Creme becoming a popular term. In Trinidad, Ponche Creme also became thinner, with several recipes now calling for the entire egg instead of just the yolk. This change was due to the influence of eggnog recipes from the United States where whipped egg whites were often folded back into the beverage before serving, but also as a cost cutting measure since it used less eggs. The definitive change that differentiates Trinidadian Ponche Creme from the Venezuelan version is the use of Angostura Bitters. Recipes for Trinidadian Ponche Creme might vary on the type of rum or the blend of spices, but they all call for a few generous dashes of aromatic bitters.
Ponche Creme was initially popular with Venezuelan migrants who came to work in the cocoa estates, and they also developed Cocoa Ponche Creme by infusing the beverage with cacao nibs, or by adding cocoa butter to the condensed milk. Vegetarians also used pumpkins as a thickener instead of egg, and created the beverage now known as Pumpkin Creme.
From Trinidad, Ponche Creme traveled even further north to Tobago, Barbados, and Grenada. Recipes remained the same, with the only difference being a preference for the local white rum of each island. This means that the same recipe for Ponche creme might result in a different tasting drink if it’s made in Trinidad or Grenada due to how different the rum is in those islands.
All across the southern Caribbean, Ponche Creme represents something unique. A time-honored Christmas drink that has developed a cultural identity that is unique to every individual location.

20/12/2025