Book overview
This is the second edition of Mama Doonk's Gullah Recipes. It contains 25 plus bonus recipes and additional antidotes. Theresa Jenkins Hilliard is a proud of her Gullah heritage. She has been sharing her history and culture through Gullah Storytelling and Presentations for many years. She was born on Edisto Island, SC where she spent her early childhood under the guardianship of her beloved grandmother, Susan Jenkins, affectionately known as Mama Doonk for whom this recipe book is name. She would stand on the makeshift wood stool and watch her grandmother prepare the family's meal since she was a tiny tot. It was then that she developed an interest in cooking. She always had a million and one questions, such as; What's that? Where did that come from? Why are you putting that in the pot with this? How did this grow? Her grandmother never got tired of answering her questions, no matter how many or how silly they were. Her grandmother was proud of her curiosity. When her grandmother tasted a dish while cooking, she wanted to taste it as well and her grandmother always obliged. Mama Doonk always involved her in the preparation of the meals by assigning her to tasks that did not involve the use of the wood cooking stove. She would assign a task that would take her outside under the pecan tree away from the hot stove. This was her grandmother's way of teaching her and helping her interest to grow. She soon began cooking at an early age under her grandmother's tutelage. She has been preparing Gullah dishes for at least sixty years. What began as a scrapbook of recipes for her children culminated into "Mama Doonk's Gullah Recipes" Book named for her grandmother. Theresa later moved to the historic Maryville/Ashleyville neighborhood in the West Ashley area of Charleston, on the site where Charleston was founded in 1670, to live with her mother Molly who moved to Charleston during the Great Migration of the 1940s to work as a cook for a wealthy south of Broad Street family. Under her mother's tutelage, Theresa's love for cooking continued to grow. Food is the focal point of every Gullah celebration. Theresa always prepared helped to prepare the celebratory meals with her mother and aunt. This book includes dishes prepared by her grandmother, her mother, and her aunt, as well as some of Theresa's favorite dishes that she has prepared during the years. You will find her grandmother's rabbit, opossum, and raccoon stew, shrimp and grits, corn fritters, okra soup, and mouthwatering homemade biscuits. She includes her mother's corn muffins and roast duck, as well as, her Aunt Edna's, squash casserole and easy pound cake. Her ancestors were all great cooks. This book gives you a glimpse of history when food were from the land, sea, wood, fields and trees, long before all of the modern conveniences of "store bought" food. Their food was literally from the field to the plate long before it became popular. Theresa adds some antidotes that will make you chuckle as you reminisce. This 2nd edition of Mama Doonk's Gullah Recipes includes over 25 of Theresa's favorite go-to recipes for all occasions. Take a step back in time with her. This book will jog the memory of some and give others a peek into the past. "Hunna en had good eatin' 'til ya' grease ya' mouf' wid Gullah food." (You all haven't had good eating until you've eaten Gullah food). Theresa's descendants were members of a distinctive group of people known as Gullah-Geechee. Theresa stands on the shoulders of three very special women whose teachings have made a significant impact on her life. This 2nd edition is dedicated to her beloved grandmother, Mama Doonk, her most treasured mother Molly and her dear aunt, Edna, as well as many other ancestors who meant a lot to her. Their recipes and memories will live on forever between these pages.
