OP: Comidas Tipicas Dominicanas
Impresora Arte y Cine, 1965. Paperback. Very Good. First printing.
Ligia De Bornia (1918–1999) was an educator and five-time cookbook author. Her first book, La Cocina Dominicana (1959), was one of the first Dominican cookbooks to standardize traditional recipes with measurements, quickly turning it into a beloved and wildly popular bible for home cooks.
De Bornia’s second book, which we offer here, is an expansion on the first—both do the important work of having written documentation of everyday cuisine. However, Comidas Tipicas Dominicanas (1965), between being issued bilingually and starting with popular rum cocktail recipes, seems to be somewhat more oriented toward sharing Dominican cuisine with outsiders as well.
After the drinks, De Bornia launches into a robust and serious pork section, beginning with whole barbecued pig, for which killing and hanging instructions are given, then other preparations for tripe, pig’s feet, sausage, and blood pudding. The organization after that is somewhat haphazard, but includes things like:
- Aguaji, or green plantain soup
- Fried fish stewed in coconut milk with onions, herbs, and tomato paste, topped with green bell pepper
- Goat sancocho—stewed with white yautia (a root vegetable), green plantain, yams and sweet potatoes, auyama pumpkin, garlic, and green herbs
- Fried yucca and cheese balls
- Chayote squash and egg salad with French dressing
While the translation can be clunky and typos are the rule more than the exception, there is a lot here to discover with a careful eye. We’re pleased to offer the first printing of this scarce book. Very Good, overall. Some toning to the paper wrappers and foxing about the edges. Paperback. 132 pages, 8” x 5.25”. An important resource for a private or institutional collection.
