Kwanzaa Culinarians

Recipes and Food Stories from the African Diaspora

Faith in Transition and a Dominican Mangú Recipe

January 1. We made it to see this day. It’s that pivotal date when all things new are embraced and our efforts at finding that balance which optimizes our lives … Continue reading →

January 1, 2013

My First Time Celebrating Kwanzaa. An Umoja Experience.

A foodie colleague told me the other day she didn’t know “what the hell Kwanzaa is.” Admittedly, I was stunned. Not at the fact that this national and cultural holiday … Continue reading →

December 15, 2011 · 2 Comments

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Learn more about Kwanzaa

The word "Kwanzaa" comes from the phrase, "matunda ya kwanza" which means "first-fruits." Kwanzaa's extra "a" evolved as a result of a particular history of the Organization Us. It was clone as an expression of African values in order to inspire the creativity of our children. In the early days of Us, there were seven children who each wanted to represent a letter of Kwanzaa. Since kwanza (first) has only six letters, we added an extra "a" to make it seven, thus creating "Kwanzaa." To learn more about Kwanzaa, visit the Official Kwanzaa Website.