Sunday, September 15, 2013

Diced Eggplant With Honey and Herbs





It was the perfect ending of the summer. We wore summer dresses and sandals. We walked five neighborhoods, to capture the warmth, buzz and sunshine, and store them in a jar for when the rains arrive. We sat on the sidewalk, happily tired, eating ices. We took photographs in the late afternoon, bathed in the golden hues of the sun about to disappear. We filled up our bags with eggplants, herbs, lemons, honey and flowers, and went home to make that last dish of summer 2013.


Tuesday, September 3, 2013

A Plate on Fire: Sri Lankan Kale Mallung + Pol Sambol





If you thought that the spiciest cuisine in the world is Mexican, you are wrong, you are very, very wrong. It is Sri Lanka, the tiny island at the southern tip of India, that takes the first prize. Speaking of which, for the last ten days, I am home alone. My husband, also known as Dr. V, and my daughter, also known as Miss Pain, are visiting Sri Lanka. I am in the workforce, with no vacation left, and therefore stranded alone in our New York city apartment, envisioning all the glorious places they will go to, and all the glorious foods they will be eating. To add insult to injury, I happen to be the only one in the family who cares about both the glorious places and the glorious food. The pain is unbearable.