Curious Cook Edward Bottone in celebration of Heritage Month.

There is everything from macaroni and cheese to three-ginger gingerbread. If you don't want to try these at home you will definitely find some of these favourites at this weekend's Bermuda Tasters Day in Dockyard.

NEW BERMUDA COD FISH CAKES Makes about 10 depending on size (can be made as minis) 1 lb salt cod 3 large potatoes boiled as for mashing 2 tbs Outerbridge's Original Bosun's Mustard Mayonnaise or 1 tbs Dijon Mustard and 1 tbs mayonnaise mixed 1 tbs fresh ginger root minced 2 cloves garlic minced 3 tbs fresh thyme (more if you like) several dashes of sherry pepper sauce or to taste 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs vegetable oil for frying SOAK the cod overnight changing the water at least once.

In fresh water bring the cod to a boil and cook until the fish is tender and flakes (8 minutes). Do not over cook. Drain well and cool.

Mash together the cod and potatoes. Add the thyme, ginger, garlic and the mustard mayonnaise.

Roll into balls the size of a small lemon (or smaller for hors d'oeuvres size). Flatten and press into the bread crumbs. Fry until golden. Top with a slice of banana and serve with, or on, hot cross buns -- especially on Good Friday.

JOHNNY CAKES 1 cup flour 1 cup cornmeal 1 cup sugar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking soda 3 cup butter milk SIFT together the dry ingredients. Add the buttermilk and form four small balls. On a floured surface press them out to a 1 inch thickness and "bake'' on a hot oiled griddle or skillet 3 minutes to the side until golden.

MACARONI & CHEESE For eight or ten 2 lb elbow macaroni 1 1 lbs (or more) sharp cheddar cheese (the good stuff) grated 1 lb butter 2 medium onions minced 1 cup all purpose flour 6 cups milk 1 tbs fresh parsley minced 1 tbs Dijon mustard 2 tbs mayonnaise 1 tbs paprika 2 tsp white pepper 3 cup unflavoured bread crumbs COOK elbows in well salted boiling water until al dente (do not over cook).

Drain and rinse in cold water. Saute the onions in half the butter until translucent. Add flour and blend until smooth. Stir in milk beating until smooth and cook about five minutes.

Blend grated cheddar cheese, mustard, mayonnaise, white pepper and paprika into sauce and blend all together with macaroni. Spoon the fairly gloppy combination into a 4 qt casserole (a pretty one you will want to serve in).

Sprinkle all over with bread crumbs, dot with remaining butter and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until bubbly and golden on top and browned at the corners (my favourite part).

Variations: add minced Jalapeno pepper, or 3 lb cooked crumbled bacon, or 1 cup of julienned smoked ham, or a medium - sized can of well drained tinned tuna or crab meat to the mixture.

HASHED SHARK 1 5 lb shark cut in large pieces, well washed 1 medium onion stuck with two cloves 2 bay leaves 1 shark's liver 1 tbs olive oil parsley minced 2 Habanero or Serrano Peppers minced salt and freshly ground pepper to taste IN a heavy bottomed pot put shark, onion and bay leaves in enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, lower so simmer and cook for 1 1 hours until the meat begins to shred. Remove from heat, discard bay leaves, strain and cool. Now with your fingers remove the skin and bones. Put shark flesh in a double thickness of cheesecloth and wring out the moisture.

In a saute pan cook the liver in the olive oil to extract the oil from the liver and strain. Now saute the shark meat in liver oil and add all the remaining ingredients. Cook until flavours are well blended. Serve warm spread on toast points.

BAKED CHRISTOPHENE AND POTATOES For Six 3 large ripe christophines (depending on size) diced 3 large potatoes diced 4 tbs butter 3 tbs flour 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg 1 1 cups whole milk 1 cup heavy cream 3 tsp or to taste salt A new way of cooking Bermudian dishes freshly ground white pepper to taste 3 cup Gruyere cheese grated 2 shallots minced BOIL the potatoes in salted water for 2-3 minutes. Add the christophine and boil another 3-4 minutes until tender. Drain.

Saute the shallots in the butter until translucent and soft. Add the flour and stir until smooth. It should look like wet sand, if too thick add a dot more of butter. Season with nutmeg, salt and white pepper. Slowly whisk in the milk and heavy cream, stirring until thickened. Remove from the heat and add about a quarter of the cheese.

Toss the potatoes and christophine with the warm sauce and transfer to a gratin (baking) dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over top, cover loosely with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven until bubbling. Uncover and cook until golden on top and brown at the edges.

CASSAVA PIE This recipe is a subtle variation on the one taught to me by the late Reggie Ming, OBE.

5 lbs grated cassava root 3 lbs chicken pieces light and dark 2 lbs pork pieces 1 tin chicken broth plus 2 cups water freshly grated nutmeg to taste (1 tsp) 3 cloves garlic sliced in half 1 small onion quartered small bundle fresh thyme salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 10 eggs 1 14 oz. tin condensed milk 1 cup sugar (or more according to taste) 3 cup butter 1 heaping tbs vegetable shortening 1 cup flour 1 lb (1 stick) of butter melted A day or two before you plan to actually make the pie, defrost and drain the cassava in an open bowl in the refrigerator. This will allow the root to remain tender and removes excess moisture.

Poach the chicken and pork pieces in the chicken broth and water along with the garlic, onion, fresh thyme, salt and pepper to taste until just cooked.

Drain reserving the broth.

While this is going on you can assemble the batter. In a mixer cream together the butter, sugar and milk until fluffy. Now add the eggs one at a time.

Season according to taste with grated nutmeg.

In a large earthenware bowl blend well with your hands the egg-sugar mixture with the cassava.

Now liberally grease and lightly flour an oblong pan (like a lasagna pan) with the vegetable shortening. This is to ensure two things -- that a nice crust will develop along the sides and that you'll be able to get the pie out of the pan once it is baked.

Put down a layer of the "batter'' in the pan using a little more than half the batter. Put in a layer of the meats. Season again with salt and pepper if you like. Cover with a layer of the remaining batter.

Bake in a pre-heated 350 degrees oven for one hour. Then cover with aluminium foil, lower the heat to 250 degrees and continue baking another two hours.

Remove the foil, the pie should pull away from the sides when done. The moistness of the batter really determines the cooking time. Don't under cook, if not sure test with a cake tester or knife - when it comes out clean -its baked.

To ensure moistness baste once or twice with the broth in which the chicken and pork has been cooked.

If more browning on tops is required simply run under the broiler for a couple of minutes. Brush with melted butter and serve, or cool and serve the following day. A little aging, as with many things, undoubtedly improves the flavour of this holiday speciality. I love it cut in slices and fried in a little butter on Boxing Day.

Note: Farine Pie in some homes is either the alternative pie or additional to the cassava pie. The farine pie is often lighter and sweeter, and has vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice, otherwise the ingredients and method are identical. Some folks make one pie but use half farine and half cassava.

The following "New Bermuda Cuisine'' recipes combine traditional Bermuda ingredients with modern cooking techniques and also inject ideas for cooking from other countries.

CHICKEN THIGHS STUFFED WITH CHOURICO For Four 8 chicken thighs, de-boned (see below) 2 lbs local chourico sausage, casing removed, trim any fat, finely chopped 1 clove garlic, minced 1 medium onion, minced 2 tbs olive oil 1 cup seasoned bread crumbs 1 cup Manchego or Pecorino Romano cheese grated 1 cup flour salt and pepper 3 tbs olive oil for browning butcher's (or kite) string Rosemary sprigs for garnish For the sauce: 2 tbs Tiago olive oil 2-3 cloves garlic, chopped 1 small onion, finely chopped 1 28 oz tin tomatoes, seeded, finely chopped, save juice 2 tsp fresh rosemary leaves 1 cup good chicken broth 1 tsp paprika salt and pepper to taste 3 tbsp heavy cream MAKE the stuffing by sauteing the garlic and onion in the olive oil until translucent. Add the sausage and cook stirring for 3-4 minutes. Add the bread crumbs, stir them in and remove from the heat.

Buy them deboned, or bone the thighs by cutting along the single bone and insinuating the knife all round carefully extricating the bone. Lay chicken flat, skin side down, between waxed paper, and give some good smacks with a meat mallet until it is about twice its size. Layer in some of the sausage mixture, sprinkle with cheese. Now roll up the thighs lengthwise into parcels and tie in three places with string. It takes some patience and package tying skills, try to keep the stuffing stuffed in.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Season the flour with salt and pepper. Dust each parcel with seasoned flour and brown in the oil in an iron skillet or saute pan until golden all over. Place in the oven, skillet and all, and cook another 20-25 minutes until done.

Meanwhile make the sauce by sauteing the onions and garlic in the oil until golden. Add rosemary, paprika, tomatoes and any juices. Cook for fifteen minutes over a moderate flame until thickened. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil and cook 3-4 minutes. Strain the sauce into a bowl pressing on the ingredients to get as much essence and pulp pushed through as possible. Return to the pan bring back to a boil, add the heavy cream and reduce to sauce consistency. (Thicken if necessary with 1 tsp cornstarch dissolved in a tbs of milk).

Snip and remove the strings, slice the chicken parcels into rounds, fan them out on the plate and nap with sauce. Garnish with rosemary sprigs.

GRILLED JERKED RACK OF LAMB WITH LOQUAT CHUTNEY for Four 4 racks of New Zealand Lamb For the marinade: 2 tbs olive oil 1 cup soy sauce 1 cup apple cider vinegar 2 tbs ginger root freshly grated 1 tsp nutmeg 1 tsp allspice 1 tsp cinnamon 4 Scotch Bonnet or Habanero peppers, seeded, roughly chopped 1 Bermuda onion chopped 2 cloves garlic chopped COMBINE all the ingredients in a food processor and liquefy. Pour into a non-reactive pot and bring to a boil, simmer 15-20 minutes until you reach desired thickness. Cool completely. Refrigerate in a clean, snap lid jar.

Keeps indefinitely. Can also be used on chicken, pork, beef or fish.

Marinate the Lamb racks in the jerk sauce in a zip-lock bag for 4 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Light the grill and when it is good and hot sear the lamb meat side down for 3 minutes. If the gas grill lower the heat and continue to grill bone side down, brush once or twice with reserved marinade, for fifteen minutes or until just pink at the middle. Cut into chops and serve with Loquat chutney on the side.

Loquat Chutney 5 cups loquats, stemmed and stoned 2 large onions, chopped fine 1 clove garlic, chopped 1 Granny Smith apple peeled, chopped 1 1 cup dried cranberries 2 oz ginger root peeled, minced 4 cups brown sugar 1 lime chopped, blanched in boiling water 1 tsp salt 1 tsp cloves 1 tsp allspice 1 tsp nutmeg 1 cinnamon stick 1 cup walnuts 1 cup apple cider vinegar 1 cup Bermuda Gold Liqueur COMBINE all ingredients except the walnuts in a heavy bottomed pot and slowly bring to a boil. Simmer until thickened. Remove from heat, remove cinnamon stick, add walnuts. Ladle into very clean snap lid containers leaving a half inch head room. Label and date. Keeps 3-4 weeks refrigerated. Also tasty with chicken, turkey, pork, game, or just on cream cheese and crackers.

THREE GINGER GINGER BREAD for Eight 2 1 cups unbleached flour sifted 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 tsp each of ground cloves, nutmeg and allspice 1 tsp cinnamon 2 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp freshly ginger root grated or minced 2 tsp candied (crystalized) ginger finely chopped 1 tsp cocoa 1 stick unsalted butter melted and cooled 3 cup sugar 3 cup molasses 1 cup buttermilk 1 cup whole milk 1 large egg PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees. Have ready a rectangular baking pan (11x7x1 1 -2 inches) non stick or greased and lightly dusted with flour.

In a bowl mix together to dry ingredients. In another a mixer beat together the butter and sugar until creamy. Add the molasses, butter milk, milk and finally the egg.

With the machine at its lowest speed beat in the dry ingredients until a smooth and thick batter is achieved. Take care not to over mix as this toughens the final result.

Immediately pour the batter in to the pan and tap it on the counter to settle.

Bake for 35-45 minutes until the sides pull away and the top is springily.

Cool on a wire rack, invert or serve warm right from the pan. (Will keep wrapped in plastic for up to five days in refrigerator.)