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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 11, 1982)
Portland Observer, February 11, 1982 Page 11 Earllno Wilson prepares a dinner featuring her special Spicy Oven- Barbecued Chicken and Souped-Up Macaroni And Cheese followed by her own Deep-Dish Peach Cobbler. She likes meals that are easy to prepare, yet take advantage of a variety of foods, spices and sty lee of cooking. (Continued fro m page I I ) roni and cheese, and a delicious peach cobbler. C harles, who has developed a hobby o f bread making, contributed his own cornbread. The meal and its preparation re flected a wide range o f tastes and ideas applied to tra d itio n a l foods from different parts o f the work}. It was typically eclectic. That is, typi cally New York. New Y o rkers who do not live there are fond o f pointing out that M anhattan and New York City are not all there is to New York. There is, for example, Long Island. At the north end o f Long Island, about ninety minutes or so from M anhattan, are the Hamptons, the *20s and *30s playground o f the fabled, idle rich. The Hamptons arc a long way from H arlem in every sense o f the word. This area o f afflu en ce and old money is not one in which you would expect to find a Black heri tage, but it is there, and it reaches back belbrethc birth o f the country. The northern end o f Long Island, particulary M ontauk and Sag H a r bor, was one o f the centers o f the early American fishing and whaling industries. Black freem en, bondsmen and runaway slaves were part o f those industries even before the Revolution. By the 1820s, Black sailors were a com mon sight on ships w orking in and out o f the ports and bays around the island. Some ships were captained by Blacks and a few had a ll-B lack crews. Some o f these men settled their families in the port towns and vil lages. By 1 8 4 0 ,there were enough Black residents in Sag H arbor and the surrounding country to form their own congregation o f the A M E Zion Church. W ith the help o f local In d ian s, they bu ilt a clapboard house o f worship that stands to this very day. Right across the road is the church graveyard. A visitor there can almost read the history o f Sag Harbor's Black community on the ancient grave stones. To d ay St. D avid A M E Z io n church has seven full-tim e parish ioners, who are served by a travel ling minister. They and their fellow residents o f Sag Harbor arc working to have the church building declared a national historic landmark. In the late '40s and '30s, Sag H ar bor became a favorite summer play ground and residence for well-to-do Black professionals and business people, most o f them from New York City and the Washington-Bal tim ore area. M any o f these people bought or built summer homes in the village and the surrounding countryside. Some later retired to Sag H a rb o r, creating an a fflu e n t new community o f Black residents. kets does not usually meet her stan dards. " Y o u can get some fine things here, but to get the really good sea food, you have to go down to the piers and get it fresh o ff the boat. I just don’t have the time for that, so 1 don't serve it too often.” It is a very rewarding hobby for Dorothy Barcliff. It seems somehow to nourish a great Black and Indian tradition, at the same lime it points to what may well be the wave o f the future. H eading home from New Y ork there was tim e to ask just what it was that made Black cooking in the Big A pple d iffe re n t from what he had found elsewhere in the country. In the final analysis, it seems New York cooking is distinguished by a range o f in d iv id u al styles rather than any regional characteristic. Black cooking in New York is more a reflection o f the interests and per sonality o f the cook than o f the re gion in which he or she happens to live. A m ong these, D o ro th y B a rc liff developed a special interest in the food and the cooking o f the area. A retired educator from Washington, D .C ., Mrs. B arcliff finds Sag H a r bor a place o f constant discovery. In recent years, many form s o f plant and anim al life have disap peared from the area as a result o f population growth and residential and recreational development. But Mrs. Barcliff has discovered a place where the wild beach plum is m ak ing a comeback. She picks the plums for wine and jelly, but she steadfastly refuses to tell anyone where she finds them. " I f I did that, there'd be a flock o f people in there next season, and that might be the end o f them,” she said. M rs. B a rc liff has researched the eating and cooking habits o f the local Indian tribes, some o f whom still live in the area. The original settlers o f Sag H a r bor were much influenced by the In dians, who lived o ff what the land and the abundant waters could pro vide. This was no less true o f the Black fam ilies who m ade th e ir homes in the area. As a result, they developed a cooking tradition that was almost untouched by the exper ience o f slavery. It coincided with what is generally though o f as the soul food tradition only to the ex tent that it made use o f the same ba sic foods. M rs. B a rc liff demonstrated this for guests at a luncheon in her Sag Harbor cottage. She served cod fish caught early that morning o ff M on tauk P o in t, and two versions o f hom iny, the tra d itio n a l soul food grits and an In d ia n version called samp. Samp is the whole hominy grain, and it looks like popcorn. It is dried, cracked, soaked over night and slow-cooked until soft. M rs. B ar c liff adds zest to the dish with some sharp cheddar cheese to create her samp au g rat in. For com parison, she served the more traditional grits flavored with Cheez W h iz pasteurized process cheese spread. The differences in the taste and texture o f the two dishes were a re freshing surprise. M rs. B a rc liff prepared the cod fish with her own special seasoning o f m ayonnaise, capers, a little grated onion and "sage and thyme fresh from the garden.” She grows many o f her own herbs and vegetables. She picks others w ild in the woods and dunes that surround Sag H a rb o r. She makes her own wines and relishes with fruit and berries from her own garden. Cooks in New York have a world o f foods, herbs, spices and condi ments from which to choose. They are limifed only by their spirit o f ad venture and experiment. There was one final afterthought on the journey home. In the course o f our research, we had tasted peaches, plantains, avocados, toma toes, hominy, spaghetti and maca roni, bu, not once— in the city that calls itself The Big A pple— had we encountered an apple o f any kind, not even a little green one. (Please turn to page 12) _ 1 weeks to Save2CK on Quaker Com Bran From now until March 21, w e’re lightening up the price on light, crisp, delicious Quaker Corn Bran. Just clip out the coupon below, and save 20<. © 1082 The Q uaker Oat* Company 20C 4587 RfTAIHR As M r 4 weeks to s Save 200 on Quaker Com Ran ON 12 OR 16 OZ. SIZES ¿89V © 1 <> N 2 T h e Q u a k e r O ats Company. OFFER EXPIRES MARCH 21,1982 FAST MARKET 1301 N.E. Dekum St Coupon Days Open 7 days a week. Hrs. 7 am-11 pm Phone 285-1331 N o R ip -O ff Prices Saia starts Fab. 10th Fab. 17th. IS 7-Up —Root Beer Wild Irish Rose Wine 6 pack cans 12-pz. 750 ml *1.99 *1.99 + Dep. is coupon with this coupon Sale starts Fab. 10th Fab. 17th. 11 Pepsi & Mountain Mission Macaroni & Cheese Dinner 1 Liter 2 fo r 990 pSà + Dep. 3 for 990 7 % O Z. With this coupon Sels starts Feb. 10th Feb. 17th. IS Sale starts Feb. 10th Feb 17th. 19*2 Boones Ferry Wine 750 ml. Celia Bianco -a Roseto ■» * a A _ Apple Country Strawberry Wild Mountain _ _ 1.5 Liter M.59 Lam brusco With this coupon Dove Dishwashing Liquid | sdU w w ith this coupon Top Ramen Oriental 22-f|. oz. N o o d le Soup 990 3 -o i peck 4 for 990 With this coupon Sale starts Feb. lOth-Feb. 17th. 19* With this coupon Sale starts Fab. 10th Feb. 17th. 19*2 North Stokely Fruit Cocktail Earline Wilson grew up in Balti more, where there is a great seafood tradition. She has fond memories o f fish and crab dinners at home, but (he seafood available in local mar- C olum bia Btvd. 16 oz-cana School Menu Kool-Aid...On A Stick BHANO SOFT UHINK MIX Frozen Sucker« 1 envelope KOOLAID" Unsweetened Sofl Drink Mia. any Navor 2 /3 cup sugar 1 quart watar qq a Sale starts Feb 10th Feb 17th. 1982 Sals starts Fab. 10th Fab 17th. IS Dorothey Barcliff aarvas a lunch for guests that includes her ov Sag Harbor Cod Fillets and Golden Grits. With this coupon Dissolve soft drink mix and sugar id water Pour into plastic ic e c u b a travs ot small paper cups Freaze until almost hrm Insert wooden stick or spoon into each Freeze until tlrm Makes about 20 February IS: Happy Birthday. February 16: Sausage pizza, cel ery chunks, m ixed vegetables, strawberry birthday cake, milk. February 17: Country style steak, whipped potatoes, carro t coins, bran m uffin, applesauce, milk. February 18: Oven fried chicken, french fries, carrot rounds, bulgur roll, orange half, milk. F eb ru ary 19: M exican taco, shredded lettuce A to m ato , whole kernel corn, apple wedges, brownie, milk. 2 fo r 990 With this coupon Saia starts Fab 10th Fab. 17th. 1982 Cat Litter 10 lbs. 2 for 990 li Portland Btvd. A in sw o rth Kllllngaworth St. A lbartagt With this coupon Sals starts Fab 10th Fab 17th. 19*2 1 South rfcf 9 ? 5
