... and these are eggplant pitas with beluga lentil salad and spiced yogurt.
Happy Friday!
This weekend, I’m seeing this magic show at The NoMad. Yes. A magic show at Daniel Humm’s culinary temple better known for its truffle-stuffed chicken for two. D and I are really, really into magic. (C'mon, it's magic!) Our last magic show was a big production on Broadway, and this is a more intimate salon. The magician's name is Dan White. He had a show on the Travel Channel called White Magic and was also Kanye's "magic consultant" on the Yeezus tour. There will be about 30 people in the audience and you betcha we’re going to sit as close as possible.
Then on Sunday I’m seeing some family visiting from Seattle. A month or so ago, I went to a signing with Carol Weston, who wrote the girls' bible Girltalk: All the Stuff Your Sister Never Told You and planned on giving the copy to my cousin who’s in middle school. After I told my mom that the book talks about drugs and sex, she nixed the idea. So now I’m reading it -- and actually learning a lot. :P
This week I also started at a new yoga studio in my neighborhood called Align Yoga. It specializes, obviously, in spine issues. I love a good yoga sesh, in part because it stretches and shakes out the kinks. So far, I’ve loved the wall work of this class. There was one pose where I was doing a child’s pose… but up against the wall so my feet were towards the ceiling and my fingers grazed the floor. And another pose where a strap was wound behind my back and around my feet. Picture an omega sign… but upside down. That one ruled.
On Tuesday, I went to a reading by Deanna Fei, author of A Thread of Sky and, most recently, Girl in Glass. You may have heard Deanna’s story last year, when the CEO of AOL caused a firestorm when he referred to two “distressed babies” as the reason employee benefits were being cut. My stomach turned then, and it totally wrenches now. I’ve never winced so much at a reading (as in, the words were heart-breaking and powerful).
“Distressed babies. I know about “distressed jeans” and “distressed leather.” I’ve heard the terms distressed securities and distressed properties. Or distressed merchandise: damaged goods.
“Distressed babies” sounds like another bit of corporate-speak, except that I doubt it shows up on any MBA vocabulary list. It’s both a dehumanizing insult and a strange euphemism that seems intended to demonstrate extra sensitivity on the part of the speaker—as opposed to, say, premature babiesor sickly babies or goddamn pain-in-the-ass babies.”
I’m in awe of Deanna’s (and her husband Peter’s) strength.
And speaking of books… I got a bunch of great blurbs this week! I'll be updating this Facebook album as they come in. Here are some of them…
And last, this week I tried Blue Apron for the first time! I've always been a bit snobby about these meal delivery services. I can come up with my own recipes... I feel like a kid with a condescending "creativity kit"... but I kinda liked it! One, I probably never would have thought to make these dishes on my own. And, two... it is a pain to pick up ingredients sometimes. There's only one place in my neighborhood that sells tarragon (not one of my regular places). And I can only get breakfast radishes at the farmer's market... which I only go to on Sundays. Plus, it helped that my friend works there so I got a free week...
See above for a summery corn chowder, which I made exactly as the recipe said. I would have preferred fewer potatoes and some kind of protein -- chicken or shrimp would have been great. I modified the eggplant pitas by baking -- rather than pan-frying -- the eggplant. I also gave the same flour/spice/panko/yogurt treatment to some okra and broccoli because my shipment had only two tiny eggplants -- not the 1 lb the recipe needed. This one wasn't my favorite. I think it needed more grease. The original recipe was probably a lot better.
All in all, I probably wouldn't do this regularly, but might do a couple weeks during the year, just for fun. I'm also curious about Ritual (formerly Sweet Roots) and Plated. Have you tried any of these services? What did you think?
Hope you have a great weekend!