Italian in my Banana Bread
Weekends are for experiments; Trying out new ideas, recipes, restaurants, activities.. you know, life. Monday to Friday blurs in a flurry of routine, structure, commuting schedules, outlook reminders, being yelled at, coffee with colleagues/friends to cope and bitch, evenings with significant others to bemoan the troubling boss/team, you know, boring stuff that pays bills... and, for weekends!
I can't remember the last memorable thing that I have done during the weekdays that has not been eclipsed by the weekend! Sure, there have been times when I have whooped and thought this was the best day ever, when I closed that amazing deal, or when I was promoted, or when I delighted in seeing a movie mid-week (!!! shock-horror!!!) or I ran into a long lost someone and we shared a coffee spontaneously (happens all too rarely!).. or.. or....
A Mystery Up at Stone Barns
The first time I heard of Stone Barns was a few years ago when Mike and I were tossing around ideas for a piece I was going to write for Spenser Magazine. But, the timing did not work out with the publishing schedule, that plan got parked and I wrote about Uruguay instead. We attempted to revisit it again later but it quite never came through.
Last Summer, as an excuse to practise my driving skills, patient teacher and I decided to head to the famed farm to table pioneers and see what the fuss was all about. Blue Hill Cafe in NYC and the restaurant up in Stone Barns has been making headlines in the new whole know-your-food movement taking off in the US. The thing that always gets me about these places is ...
A Druze experience in Israel
The high point of my recent trip to Israel was an evening spent in a Druze home, sipping tea, learning about their life and beliefs and of course, delighting in some amazing home made delicacies.
Arranged through Galil Eat, our guide was Paul himself, who runs a supper club of sorts. Paul arranges up close and personal experiences in Israeli homes in the Galilee region, where one can be immersed into the hosts' culture through food and conversation. You get a lot of information about their life while enjoying a wonderful at-home culinary experience. Talking to Paul I realized there are several religious and ethnic minority groups that live and love Israel. He arranged for an evening with the Druze community and cuisine in the home of Pinina (and her daughter Rana).
The fact is, this was not my first experience with Druze. One of my favorite and oft frequented lunch spots in NYC is Gazala Place, which, as it happens serves Druze cuisine. Not that I had noticed the tiny print stating that on their menus. The spark of connection was ignited during the tea when we were served their distinctive 'pita'.
Me(al) Time: Caramelised Mushroom Omelette
