Keisha Shakespeare, Freelance Writer
Marigold Harding puts the finishing touch to her papaya soup, unique and tasty that can be served cold or hot. The Papaya soup is pictured at top. - NORMAN GRINDLEY /DEPUTY CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER
On her culinary travels, Marigold Harding takes the road less travelled
IF TOMATOES and lentils can make soup, then why not papaya? If pineapples can make ice box cake, why not mangoes?
In Marigold Harding's kitchen, the road to tasty dishes never follows a straight line. Taking away a little bit of this, adding a dash of that, and a pinch of whatever catches her fancy, Harding's adventurous approach to food has led to divine culinary creations. She never follows a recipe to the tee. Take her cornbread, for example. Going beyond the ordinary, she adds cheese and whole kernels of corn.
Then there is the papaya soup. Ten years ago she reckoned that papaya would make fine soup - like tomato and lentils. She experimented a few times then bravely served up a batch at a chaine des Rotisseurs gourmet luncheon she was hosting. The members of the prestigious and world famous group - who can sniff the vintage of a wine and can easily spot a fake - were impressed.
"From then I have been
cooking it and it's now a family favourite - like the mango ice box cake."
The cake rose out of Harding's passion for mango and baking. One day she
reckoned that the two should
go together and ended up
creating another Harding
family favourite.
She believes that mangoes should be used to their fullest and uses even the leaves - to decorate the cake. In fact, Harding is such a mango maniac that she found a way to have mangoes year round. She slices the mangoes, sprinkles sugar on top, places them in zip lock bags and freezes them. When she wants mangoes for her cake they are only a freezer away.
A TOUGH EXPERIMENT TO SWALLOW
An office manager for her husband's (Senator Oswald Harding) law firm in Kingston, Harding's culinary journey began in early childhood when she used to watch her father, Aston Yuen at work in the kitchen. The flames were stoked by her grandmothers, Agnes Chen and Margaret Taylor, 'great cooks' who taught her well.
"I remember that my siblings and I used to love to experiment with food. One day we ate raw cho cho. We did not know that it couldn't be eaten raw. After we ate it we thought we were poisoned but my maternal grandmother (Chen) showed us how to cut out the middle area of the cho cho and cook it."
Harding also recalls that her grandmother Taylor made the best beef soup in the world. Hers, she figures, is almost as good. She also easily whips up a variety of nutritious Chinese dishes.
Harding notes that her husband's discerning palate also keeps her on her toes. He's a connoisseur of good food and fine wine and Harding says she enjoys taking the time to meet these high standards.
SARDINE CASSEROLE
Still, she's no food snob. The road to a satisfying and tasty meal can just as easily be paved with down home, ordinary food.
For one, "At Christmas I stuff my turkey with yam (and) for me, the most challenging time is when my cupboards are almost empty. However, whatever little I find in the cupboard I use to make a delicious dish. Take sardines, it's such a simple food but instead of just opening up the can and eating it you can make it into something extraordinary - a sardine loaf or sardine casserole. If you have potatoes just boil and crush it, line the bottom of a casserole tin then spread the sardine on top. Add another layer of potatoes and bake. You get a simple food made into a lovely sardine casserole dish."
On a parting note, she says presentation, service and palatability are the three key ingredients for a good meal.
"I believe that food should be presentable and not just to fill one's hunger. When food looks good it will taste good."
Below Harding shares her recipe for Papaya Soup. The mango ice box cake she's holding close to her chest.
Papaya Soup
1 cup half and half - (combination of milk and cream)
1 medium papaya
2 cups chicken broth (freshly made or from chicken stock concentrate)
A dash of garlic powder
Pinch of paprika
Chopped chives
Sour cream (optional)
METHOD
1 Cut papaya and discard seeds.
2. Scoop out the inside of the papaya.
3. Blend the scooped out papaya, chicken broth and milk and cream.
4. Season to taste with garlic powder and chill or heat.
5 Garnish with chopped chives.
If you wish, add a spoonful of sour cream and sprinkle lightly with paprika.
Serve hot or chilled.
