Last weekend I spent a lovely time at Treasure Beach, St Elizabeth, for the Calabash Festival. The serenity of the seaside village brought so much mental calm to my spirit. The spoken word, poetry, art and music I experienced uplifted and fed my soul. It was so good to just chill out and be amongst a crowd that was so positive. I ate simple country delights such as boiled corn, mannish water, and brown-stewed fish. I gorged on coconut water, fruit such as sweet oranges and watermelon to refresh and rehydrate me in the serious heat. People were sweating and fanning away but were courteous and smiling at each other.

The couple of days I spent on the rugged South Coast took me back to my summers spent in the Mediterranean, and the wonderful treats I consumed on hot, lazy afternoons. On my return to Kingston, I wanted to recreate that vibe at home for my family and decided to prepare an Italian-influenced meal because I began to crave those light and fresh flavours. Mediterranean cuisine is known to be one of the world’s healthiest. Out of all the countries which border this sea, the food of Italy has got to be one of the most popular worldwide. I love the Italian concept of La Dolce Vita, the good life. Italians believe in family, laughter and good food which mirrors the outlook of many Jamaicans I know across class and racial lines islandwide.

Sometimes as Jamaicans we overlook the beauty which is right in front of us and allow ourselves to only be consumed by the negative. My thoughts and prayers are undoubtedly with my brothers and sisters of West Kingston. Like many, the event touched me profoundly to the point where I was very upset. This week I choose to remember and value the magical qualities of Jamaica which guided me to move here four years ago. I don’t have to live here, and can live anywhere I want, but I chose this country and I hope as an individual that I can be a part of the solution in my little way. I won’t be one of those people who join in the Jamaica-bashing chorus because despite some of our collective challenges there is still a lot of good here. Anyway this is a food column, not a political one, but it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge the present turmoil in our beautiful island home.

So while in Italy a family may join together over salad and pasta, and here in Jamaica we may come together over fried fish and festival, the sentiment remains the same. Food is love and good food brings communities together.

Italian-Style Salad

Basically, this is a generic salad with different flavours of Italy thrown together and dressed with a simple home-made balsamic vinaigrette or if you can’t be bothered, you can use a ready-made Italian dressing. Peperoncini are small pickled hot peppers used in salads and found in the condiments aisle of some supermarkets.

1 large head of Lettuce, roughly torn

1/2 Red onion, thinly sliced

1 can of Artichoke hearts, drained and halved

A few pitted medium Black Olives

Handful of Sun-dried tomatoes

1/2 Red Sweet, pepper, sliced

1/2 Green Sweet Pepper, sliced

2 Salad Tomatoes, cut in wedges

A few Peperoncini

1 small can of sliced mushrooms, drained

Method

Chuck all the ingredients together in a large salad bowl and toss.

Serve with dressing on the side and some nice crusty bread.

JuicyChef’s Sardine and Anchovy Antipasto

Basically I threw this together from items in my pantry, fridge and limes from the tree my Grandmother planted. A colourful and healthy start to a meal, or quite satisfying on its own with bread.

3 Tins Sardines in oil, well drained

1 Tin of rolled Anchovies

1 Tbsp Capers

2 Roasted Sweet Peppers (1 yellow, 1 red)

10 Green Olives

Zest and juice of a Large Lime

Freshly cracked Black Pepper to taste

Extra Virgin olive oil to drizzle

Chopped Parsley, to garnish

Method

Place sardines on a platter.

Lay anchovies over the sardines.

Scatter olives, peppers and capers on top.

Grate lime zest all over the ingredients.

Squeeze the juice of the lime all over.

Season with freshly cracked pepper to taste.

Drizzle over olive oil and garnish with chopped parsley.

Linguine with Alfredo Sauce

This is one of those classic Italian comfort dishes. Few ingredients, delicious results, this is loaded with calories, but who cares if it’s a one-off treat?

75 g Butter

500 ml Heavy Cream

2 cloves Garlic, crushed

250 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 small bunch chopped fresh Parsley

Method

Prepare pasta according to the directions on the package.

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium low heat.

Add cream and simmer for five minutes, then add garlic and cheese and whisk quickly, heating through.

Stir in parsley and serve.

Linguine with Aubergine

This Pasta dish is my riff on Pasta alla Norma, a rustic Sicilian dish I enjoyed in Palermo one weekend. For those of you familiar with the Italian composer Vincenzo Bellini’s opera Norma, this dish is named in honour of the main character, a high priestess called Norma — this part is played by a soprano. Unfortunately I did not have Ricotta Salata or any regular Ricotta as a matter of fact. I always have Feta in my fridge, thought about using it as a substitute, since it has a salty taste, but I’ve been in the country, so it needs replenishing, so I did without.. Aubergine is the French name for Eggplant.

2 Large Eggplants, diced

1 Red onion, chopped

4 Garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil

2 Cans diced Tomatoes

1 fat sprig of fresh Thyme

1 1/2 tsp dried Basil

A couple dashes dried Chilli flakes

Salt and pepper to taste

Small bunch of Black Mint, chopped

Small bunch of Basil, chiffonade

500g Linguine

Method

Prepare pasta according to the directions on the package.

In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat.

Add the onion and the garlic and cook until soft but not yet browned, approximately five minutes.

Next, add the eggplant and sauté, stirring regularly until softened and lightly browned, roughly 10 minutes.

Add the canned tomatoes, dry basil, and thyme, and bring to a boil.

Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes, season to taste with salt, pepper and chilli flakes.

Garnish with fresh mint and basil

A massive thank you to my friends and sponsors Megamart

Contact me at info@juicychef.com

As the Italians say, Buon Appetito!