Ghetto Gastro Presents Black Power Kitchen

The team from New York City collective Ghetto Gastro serves up vibrant recipes, interviews, paintings, and photographs in this piquant “culinary manifesto about the nature of Black food.” The opening section emulates a food tour of the Bronx and features the chopped stease, a chopped cheese sandwich made with plant-based meat, butter, and cheese. Also on offer are the potent and sweet pre-batched street drinks known as nutcrackers, distinguished “by their short, capped plastic bottles, sold at barbershops, concerts, or summer parades,” here made with cognac. The second chapter riffs on Black cuisine’s African influences with options like king jaffe jollof, a spicy rice dish with roots in West Africa, while a collection of dishes inspired by the authors’ travels draws from various global cuisines with dishes like saltfish takoyaki, a twist on Japanese street food. Next come fare that shouts “Black resistance and rebellion,” including chili lime liberation pasta featuring a ramen seasoning packet and other ingredients that are usually available from prison commissaries, and Black power waffles made with black cocoa powder and chocolate syrup. The authors’ mothers are interviewed in a chapter on nourishing comfort foods, before a final, playful section on fruit and vegetable treats. Meals served up with ideals make this a dynamic and delicious cultural celebration. (Oct.)