Taina
Rosario- Cover Page
My mentors for my capstone were Srta. Manuel, and my grandmother
Señora Iris. I chose Srta. Manuel because of her connection to the Hispanic
community through her Spanish classes, and because of her bright energetic mood
that pushed me to do my best. My second mentor was chosen was because my
grandmother is an inspirational woman who made learning to cook not only a
learning experience but enjoyable as well.
My Capstone
was about learning to cook. I decided to learn how
to recreate recipes that have been passed down through the generations of my
family. In this project, I hoped to enhance my cultural awareness by
surrounding myself with facts about my heritage. The main idea of my project
was for me to learn how to recreate older recipes and in the future pass them
down to the next generations. Also this gave me the chance that I’ve needed to
learn how to cook in general
My Capstone was a deeper look into Puerto Rican Cuisine I spent
the time that we were given for our capstone on learning recipes from my
grandmother that have been passed down the generational lines. For my capstone
I spent every week working on my capstone with my out-of-school mentor, I edited
my photos that documented the process, and even recorded interviews with
Latinas of my generation. To showcase my project I create a website that become
the home for my process.
Link to my Website
Annotative Bibliography:
Primary-
1)
These are all photos I took while cooking, they are ingredients, processes, and
products of my learning. The photos were taken over the span of three months.
Many of the hands in these photos are of my mentor, or my own. These will be
used on my website as proof of my process. The reason they are so important is
because these are primary sources that do not give away the recipes of my
family.
Canned
Ingredients, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Organic
Ingredients, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Frying
Nanicletas, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Displayed
Nanicletas, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Handmade
Sofrito, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Measuring
Rice, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Beans
and Sofrito, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Mixing
Rice, Beans, and Sofrito, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Guineos,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Yautia,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Calabaza
y Yautia, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Guineos
without peels, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Red
peppers, Onions, and Sofrito , Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Red
peppers, Onions, and Sofrito 2, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Mixing
ingredients, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Calabaza
y Guineos , Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Washing
the Calabaza y Guineos, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Cutting
Olives, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Base/Masa,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Pork
Stew, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Rice
Cooking, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Unwrapped
Pastele, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Masa,
and Pork, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Wrapped
Juntas, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Inside
a Pastele, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Diced
Calabaza, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Mashed
Cooked Calabaza, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Adding
Flour to the Calabaza, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Adding
Flour to the Calabaza 2, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Mixing
Calabaza and Flour, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Mixing
Calabaza and Flour 2, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Frying
Tortitas de Calabaza, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Drying
the Tortitas,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2012.
Rice
Ingredients,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2013.
Oil
and Sazon,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2013.
Beans
before rice adding, Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2013.
Coming
to a boil,
Kitchen. Personal photograph by author. 2013.
2)
This book was found in the Library of Philadelphia. This book was chosen
because within it I found a section about Puerto Rican Culture. This source is
useful because not only is it primary, but it also had a good amount of
information about the Puerto Rican culture. I will be using this to understand
further about the food and why there are certain ingredients.
Ember,
Carol R. "Puerto Rico." Countries
and Their Cultures. By Melvin Ember. Vol. 3. N.p.: Macmillan Reference,
2001. N. pag. Print.
3)
This book was found in the Library of Philadelphia. This book was chosen
because within it I found a section about Puerto Rican Culture. This source is
useful because not only is it primary, but it also explained in high detail
about why certain traditions and lifestyles are only in Puerto Rico. I will be
using this to understand further about the food, and to learn amount more
traditional meals.
Gall,
Timothy L. "Puerto Rico." Worldmark
Encyclopedia of Culture and Daily Life. Vol. 2. N.p.: Cengage Gale,
1997. N. pag. Print.
4)
This book was given to me by my mentor. The book is about the indigenous people
of Puerto Rico and how they came to be colonized and the culture. I used this
book to understand parts of the culture I had yet to dig into deeply.
Rouse,
Irving. The Tainos: Rise and Decline
of the People Who Greeted Columbus. London: Yale UP, n.d. Print.
5)
This book was also given to me by my mentor. The book is about the original
culture of the indigenous people of Puerto Rico and how they came to be
colonized. This book was used in my development of understanding my original
culture and why some traditions are still in place now.
Bercht,
Fatima, Estrellita Brodsky, John A. Farmer, and Dicey Taylor, eds. Taino: Pre-Columbian Art and Culture from
the Caribbean. New York: Monacelli, 1998. Print.
Secondary-
1)
This source is a web page/blog that a woman has created to explain Puerto Rican
Culture. Within this site, I found a page that is dedicated to traditional food
and drinks. I will be using the information from this site as inquiry to
understand further the Traditional dishes of Puerto Rican culture.
Rivera,
Magaly. "Food and Drinks." Puerto
Rico Culture:. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.
2)
This source is a web page/ Journal on Fox News Latino. Within it there is an
explanation of how multicultural children, or children raised in a different
culture are less exposed to the primary culture. I used this to understand why
I was never taught how to cook spanish food, or highly immersed in my culture.
Edwards,
Melanie. "5 Traditional Puerto Rican Foods I Wish My Daughter Ate."Lifestyle (n.d.): n. pag. Fox News Latino. 29 May 2012. Web. 01
Feb. 2013.
3)
The source below is a online snippet of a Magazine, El Boriqua. The article
that this leads to is about all different types of recipes from Puerto Rican
Culture. I used this site as an idea creature for some of the many recipes I
later began to learn.
Figueroa,
Ivonne. "Recipes." El
Boricua, Un Poquito De Todo. El Boricua, n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.
4)
This source is a total synopsis of the Puerto Rican Culture. They touch on the
Ethics, Geography, Settlement, and even food. This source is useful because it
has a lot of information that I needed to understand my culture further. I used
this source in furthering my understanding of the Island, the culture, and even
why some foods are seasonal.
"Countries
and Their Cultures." Culture of
Puerto Rico. Advameg, Inc., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.
5)
This website has an interactive chart that shows certain festivals that are
still celebrates in Puerto Rico. Also on the site is information about
traditions, and cultures which food is a part of. This information is used to
understand when, why, and where certain dishes are served.
"About
Puerto Rico." Puerto Rico
Culture:Visiting Puerto Rico|Puerto Rico Festivals|Puerto Rico Music.
Puerto Rico Tourism Company, n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2013.
6)
This site explained many of the cultures that have influenced the Puerto Rican
Culture and Cooking. The site shows a photos and explains one of the dishes I
learned now to create. I used this information to dig deeply into the cultures
that create the melting pot that is the Puerto Rican Kitchen.
Figueroa,
Ivonne. "History of Puerto Rican Cooking." History of Puerto Rican Cooking. Marknet Group Inc, n.d. Web. 03
Feb. 2013.
7)
This page of a bigger site is about the seasonings, and main components of
Puerto Rican dishes. This page has information about Sazon, Sofrito, and even
Adobo. Many of the seasonings on this page were used at least once during my
span of learning. I used the information on this page to also learn about
seasoning that I had not used yet.
Jones,
Sarah. "Ingredients for Your Traditional Puerto Rican Meal." Ingredients for Your Traditional Puerto
Rican Meal. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2013.
8)
This article on the New York Times website is highly insightful, yet a bite
snide as well. While it explains the cultural mixing that lead to the Puerto
Rican Cocina Criolla, it also looks down on the now trending Latino-Asian food
mixing that has been seen in some restaurants. I used this sight to understand
some of the views on Puerto Rican dishes.
Apply,
R. W., Jr. "On Puerto Rico, a History of Tastes." New York Times: Travel. The New York
Times Company, 23 Feb. 2005. Web. 3 Feb. 2013.
9)
This article is all about Puerto Rican foods. The site explains how the three
main cultures in Puerto Rico influences and created the diversity in the
cuisine. This site was helpful because it not only had information about the
other cultures that influenced Puerto Rico, but also the Indigenous aspects
that Puerto Rico was rooted.
Meléndez-Klinger,
Sylvia. "Country Cuisine Profile -“ Puerto Rico." Hispanic Nutrition. Wordpress, 21
Sep. 2009. Web. 03 Feb. 2013.
10)
This site has information about the musical aspect of the Puerto Rican culture.
On this page, much like my other sites, there is an explanation of the cultural
mixes that lead to Puerto Rico’s diversity. I used this site to help with
understanding other aspects of the culture, and for finding music for my
webpage.
"Arts:
History of Puerto Rican Music." Puerto
Rico Encyclopedia. Fundación Puertorriqueña De Las Humanidades, 2012.
Web. 03 Feb. 2013.
Process Paper---
Introduction:
For my capstone I decided to learn the
recipes of my native culture. I did this by having my out-of-school mentor be
my grandmother, who on countless times has offered her assistance in teaching
me those recipes. There are many reasons as to why I chose cooking for my
capstone. My first reason was to enhance my cultural awareness. My second
reasoning was to conquer my uneasy feelings towards cooking. My last reason for
learning about my heritage was to be able to pass it down to my future children,
while learning from and spending time with my Grandmother. When it comes to the
SLA core values I believe that simply wishing to broaden my understanding of
Puerto Rican cuisines I has shown inquiry. I have shown research and
collaboration through speaking with and learning from my grandmother, but also
by interviewing other Latinas of my generation. My presentation and reflections
were visible though the amount of work I have put in this project as well as
the finished product I have created.
Process:
For this capstone I conversed with both of
my mentors to understand what I would need to accomplish for this project. I
took the time to figure out what kind of schedule I would need and what exactly
my process over the months would look like. I also received some point from my
advisor as to what would be more visually appealing while still showcasing all
of the information I had gathered. The last person, but also one of the most
important in my process was my mother. My mother never let me skip out on
meetings with my mentor, nor did she let down her expectations of my work.
Every week, like clockwork, she would ask me about my project, how far I was,
and what I had to do next. My only obstacles was having all of the ingredients
at the time, and weekly having our meetings rather than leaving it to chance.
My main resources were my grandmother, some books on Puerto Rican heritage, and
a few websites that I found useful. Since every family changed the recipe there
were not many outside resources that I could have used unless I was trying to
understand the basics.
Reflection:
Through out this whole project I can say
that I am most proud of the fact that I actually took the time to learn certain
recipes and that after being put in an uncomfortable situation I am now more
adjusted to cooking. I have even become accustomed to making things from a
recipe that is written, and adding in my own decisions. Through
this project I have learned that it takes
time to become even moderate at any task. I have also learned that some of the
best memories are the ones were you are sharing stories with your love ones
over food. If I could do this project over again I would want to show how much
fun, I had with my family as I learned to make the recipes that have stuck with
them through the years. My feelings towards SLA, as my school, have changed
only a little over the years. At first when I was asked how SLA would be made a
better place by my presence I thought that I would be the one changing more
than the school. At this moment in time, after four full years here, I feel
that SLA was a better place by my presence because I made friends and filled
the building with the laugher and passion that drives us all. I never knew that
I could be so close to people until I experience what its like to be looked up
to and seen as an equal by my peers.
