Nicole A. Taylor On Watermelon & Red Birds — The First Juneteenth Cookbook

To celebrate this now nationally recognized holiday, we spoke with Taylor to discuss her third cookbook, Watermelon and Red Birds: A Cookbook for Juneteenth and Black Celebrations—the first collection of recipes of its kind, dedicated to and inspired by Juneteenth. As she gears up for her own celebratory weekend, she notes that this time of year is beautiful because "so many people—Black and white, all Americans—are really excited about Juneteenth being this newly nationally recognized holiday."

"The whole time, in the back of my mind, I was not feeling confident that I could pull it off," she said. "But sadly and proudly, after the 2020 summer uprisings with all of the sorrow and the pain that we as Americans and particularly Black Americans were experiencing, I knew to cope with it centering Black joy and Black celebrations. And Juneteenth would be a perfect guide."

"It really shows the bounty of summer," she explains. "You get to see tomatoes in my tomato and eggplant salad. And I love tomatoes at the height of summer. It also reminds me of growing up in the South, where corn was abundant in the summer." 

As for the first part of the title, Taylor explained that watermelon is one fruit loved by so many Americans, making it the perfect choice to celebrate the traditions of Juneteenth. "I feel it's just a beautiful way of honoring the past, present, and future of Juneteenth."

The history of Juneteenth is largely rooted in Texas, but Taylor explains that emancipation days were widespread across the South. "We know that emancipation days happened across the American South because enslaved people did not find out immediately that the president had signed the Emancipation Proclamation," she said. "For me, Juneteenth connects Black Americans to freedom, to Jubilee, to a new hope. To a generation that wasn't suffering."