The following forward was written by the then association secretary Edith Herman

This little Montserrat Cookbook, dedicated to the aged of our island, is brought to you by the Montserrat Old People’s Welfare Association, founded in 1964 by Mrs. Patricia Griffin, a native Montserratian, in her effort to seek out the particular problems of Monserrat’s old people.  As on way of meeting the costs of their innumerable needs, Mrs. Eileen Cochrane, a Canadian resident in Montserrat for several years, suggested a cookbook, since so many visitors to the island ask for ways of preparing the West Indian foods they are served here.  With the publications of this book we hope their quests will be over and our coffers filled.

Our book presents many West Indian specialties as well as some international recipes, the common factor always being that the main ingredients are native to Montserrat and the islands.  Only mountain chicken and goat water, however, are peculiar to Montserrat and, therefore, deserve special mention here.  The mountain chicken is a giant, blackish front that seems to be found today only in Dominica and Montserrat.  Living on the dark, cool slopes of the damp mountain forests, it is rarely seen, but its presence is recognized by the high-pitched bark which it emits at night.  Watching the Centre Hills at night, especially after rain, one may see the flickering torches used in hunting the mountain chickens; the following morning a vendor may come to one’s door selling the “chickens,” usually skinned and ready for the pan.  Once one has tasted their stewed or friend meat, the origin of the name, “mountain chicken,” becomes readily apparent.

Goat water most probably traces its origin to the Irish settlers who left so many marks on the island.  In his study of Irish influence on Montserrat, John Messenger, Professor of Folklore, Anthropology, and African Studies at Indiana University, describes this dish as “the most tasty delicacy in the diet of the islanders, … and Irish type stew made with goat meat… An identical recipe, learned in her youth, was given to my wife by the aged spouse of a farmer in Ireland the week after we left Montserrat” (Caribbean Quarterly, XIII, 2, June 1967).

We are very grateful to all those residents and lovers of Montserrat who contributed their favourite recipes to this book.  While most of the donors permitted us to use their names, some chose to remain anonymous.  However, our particular thanks, and many apologies, must go to those whose names do not appear where they should, the result of some early confusion in the typing of handwritten recipes during which those names were inadvertently lost.  In addition, we wish to thank the many people who have helped in the preparation of this book with their suggestions, and those who will assist in the distribution and sales.  Finally, special thanks are due to Susanne Chirman for her invaluable help in editing the recipes, typing the final manuscript, and designing the cover of the cookbook.  While a resident of the United States, Mrs. Chirman is closely tied to Montserrat by her frequent visits here and by her agreement with so many of us that this island is the closest possible thing to paradise.