My bedtime reading lately has been a beautifully written book called An Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler. In it, she describes how to cook intuitively and well using the leftovers and tail ends of one meal to make the next, so ingredients “topple into one another like dominoes.” Conceiving of meals in this way turns [...]
Archive for the ‘try this’ Category
Eggplant Rolls with Walnut-Garlic Paste and Their Transcendent Echoes
Posted in cooking, food writing, Georgian food, recipes, try this, tagged badrjiani nigvzit, eggplant pkhali, Georgian eggplant rolls on February 12, 2012 | 1 Comment »
How to Render Lard and What to Do With It
Posted in cooking, try this, Ukraine, tagged lard, rendering on December 23, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
After returning from Ukraine, you’d think I would have had enough lard to last the rest of the year, and indeed, there were a few days not long after I got back when all I craved all day was miso soup and grapefruit. But I had two packages of leaf lard (the creamy pink [...]
Kicking Off Soup Season 2011
Posted in cooking, recipes, try this, tagged bean soup, dried beans, Russian soup on October 10, 2011 | 2 Comments »
After returning from Turkey and wanting to eat nothing but eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, lamb, and garlic-yogurt sauce for several weeks, I have moved into soup mode. This phase hits me every year around this time, as the leaves turn yellow and ochre and I come home with a cold nose after my walk back from [...]
The Tao of Cooking
Posted in cooking, try this, tagged cooking, Pooh, relaxing, taoism on March 11, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
One of my favorite books when I was younger was called The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. It explained the tenets of Taoism through the actions (and relaxions, as Pooh might put it) of everyone’s favorite pudgy, hunny-loving bear. In his cheerful acceptance of what is, his childlike sense of wonder at the world, [...]
Mussel Lessons with Olga
Posted in cooking, recipes, try this on February 19, 2011 | 4 Comments »
When my friend Olga responded to my tweet about mussels with an offer to teach me how to cook them at home, my eyes widened with excitement–and fear. The idea of feeding anyone mollusks that I had prepared myself filled me with terror. I feared unleashing upon my guests the hordes of gut-wrenching illnesses I imagined these [...]
Small Kitchens, Big Meals
Posted in cooking, try this on October 10, 2010 | 2 Comments »
By the time I left DC in August, I had almost completely stopped cooking in the galley kitchen I shared with two housemates. The problem? It was too small, I whined, too dingy, and painfully uninspiring. Tough. I’ve been living with a host family here in Georgia for two months as of today, and I’ve [...]
The Simplest and Best Chai
Posted in recipes, try this on February 22, 2010 | 1 Comment »
When I was in high school, I worked at a coffee shop part-time for three years. The money I made went toward only three things: a trip to Ireland, a trip to France, and case after case of chai tea concentrate. I mixed half a cup of milk with half a cup of the sweetened tea and [...]
Snowpocalypse Paves Way for Brussels Sprout Comeback
Posted in recipes, try this on February 9, 2010 | 2 Comments »
Snow storms have been ravaging Washington, DC lately and local grocery stores have been unable to replenish their stocks fast enough to keep up with demand. Only the “weird” vegetables are left. Not to fear! This is a great opportunity to try something you wouldn’t normally cook. Think you don’t like brussels sprouts? Think again: [...]
