Speaking Out ... for Myself.
n the midst of a pandemic, particular one where we have been fortunate to weather rather well, it seems trifling to think about needing space and breaks. I mean after all my life is incomparably easy relative to healthcare workers and those in essential jobs. And yet, I feel a fatigue and severe ennui. I struggle with feeling grateful for what I have and yet being empathetic to my own needs…
Yet, at the same time, I can see that isn’t helpful or enabling. It is necessary to let in my vulnerable self and reach out for support. Because, if I do not, not only does it inhibit me from finding balance and joy within me, it also blinds me from the extending empathy and balance to those around me.
Spring in My Tart - Salmon & Asparagus Vol au Vent + Lemon Mustard Glaze
Spring has arrived! Today I spotted a blue jay, which, has always been the true marker of Spring. The Cardinals brighten a winter landscape and the blue dashes with Spring’s riot of green! And with that, it is almost binary switch in my kitchen. I want more green on my plate, more vegetables and more fresh looking and tasting stuff. I am not sure how much I can garden this year, as last year’s patch has been completely razed and no longer viable. So, I am definitely focusing on being more mindful of getting produce that is in-season in the local environs (North East for me and ignoring California!). I am also angling towards quicker meals that allow me more time with family and yet bring a touch of special….
Puff Pockets With Roasted Tomato and Whipped Mascarpone
Rather impressed with what had been delivered on my Instagram feed, I allowed myself to go with the flow and tweak to my pantry! Roasted cherry tomatoes with rosemary draped over a cheese filled pastry shell. Divine! That’s all folks.
Remembering Whence I Came and Egg Puffs
Somehow, since moving here and the puff pastry becoming ubiquitous, I had forgotten my own humble origins. How a bite of a simple pastry could make my life feel rich and sumptuous. Because in the 10 minutes that I took to eat the egg puff (for at least an hour after), I forgot about how I was the awkward one in class, that my skin was too brown for a fairness obsessed culture, that I had no pretty clothes (OMG! that horrendous high waisted jeans I had! :O), that I was the weird kid in class who wore so big an A-line skirt that it looked like a ball gown because my mother chose the cheap tailor. No, for those minutes, I felt equal to the nobility who probably were the only ones who could have afforded such a pastry, only 50 years prior!
But Instagram brought it up! That community of food obsessed and passionate rekindled me. It all started with Giulia’s post on the Puglian rustici…!