A Taste of Southside sweetness

The Gleaner-sponsored Restaurant Week maybe over, but the celebration of food and Food Month continues. So once again we showcase a Taste of Southside, with Jacqueline 'Jackie' Henry's sweet potato pudding. We recently visited Jackie at her home in the community where she was eager to share a slice and the best way to get 'Hell a top, Hell a bottom and Hallelujah in the middle'. The series 'A Taste of Southside' highlights Restaurant Weeks' support, in collaboration with other sponsors of the central Kingston community through a partnership with City Life Ministries.

The grandmother, and mother of three, has lived and worked out of the same location for more than 30 years. The matriarch of her close knit family, Henry bakes and cooks to ensure all their financial needs are met. After learning to cook at the age of 12 from her mother who was a professional cook, she has continued to hone her skills. After working with large corporations and numerous restaurants, she decided to branch out on her own. Now, an expert at preparing countless dishes, her customers know they have to pre-order, as she prides herself on fresh meals made from ingredients she purchases at Coronation Market.

She notes that one of the things she has taught her children is to, "build the community first. Even if you plan to leave." She notes that there are challenges to living in Southside, and it's a day-to-day process to balance the positives and negatives but she holds fast to the hope that she will see her community get back to the way it used to be.

Her pride and joy are the smiles on the faces of her customers, or new converts like City Life Ministries board member, Pamella Chin, and Gas Products Limited's CEO Kailashnath Maharaj who were all too happy to get seconds!

'Jackie' Henry's sweet potato pudding

Ingredients

3 1/2 lb sweet potatoes, washed

2 lb flour

1 1/2 lb brown sugar

1 dried coconut, husked

1 tsp vanilla

1 pinch salt

1/2 nutmeg, grated

1/2 stick margarine

water

Method

1. Grate dried coconut

2. Once grated, combine coconut with water and 'juice' by hand until the consistency thickens. Then separate 'trash' from the milk.

3. Add sugar, grated nutmeg, salt and vanilla to mixture and mix well.

4. In a large pan, grate sweet potatoes and combine with butter

5. Add coconut mixture and mix well

6. Add flour mixture slowly and combine ingredients by hand.

7. Pour mixture in a buttered and floured pan

8. Place on coal stove and begin the cooking process

9. Place a sheet of zinc on top of the baking pan and put burning coal on top of zinc (with no flames)

10. Leave to bake for about 1 1/2 hours or until cooked through

Pudding is ready when knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Enjoy.