Global Table Adventure | Monday Meal Review

Monday Meal Review: Philippines

October 1, 2012 By Sasha Martin 10 Comments

We all have mountains to climb (or, since this is the Philippines' week at the Global Table, we all have volcanoes to climb). To cook the Philippines, I rolled two dozen lumpia shanghai, simmered pork adobo with a house-cleansing formula of vinegar and bay leaf, and slurped on bubbly, ooey, gooey sago at gulaman. And none of it was easy. Every step of the way, I felt like I was trudging on the steep side of a cold volcano. Until I got to the vista. You see, this week's cooking was … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Asia, Monday Meal Review, Philippines

Monday Meal Review: Peru

September 24, 2012 By Sasha Martin 3 Comments

THE SCENE Ava's on to us. When we pull up to the dining table on Thursday nights she knows. It's Global Table Adventure night. In fact, she strung together these words for the first time this week: ""Gwobal" Table Adventure ("can I go there, mama?"). When a three year-old child knows that she is expected to try an unusual meal every week, one of three things can happen. 1. She can go for it wholeheartedly. 2. She can eat with normal interest/disinterest, depending on the day. 3. She can … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Monday Meal Review, Peru, South America

Monday Meal Review: Paraguay

September 17, 2012 By Sasha Martin 6 Comments

"Here at last," I think, as we pull up to our cabin at Beaver's Bend State Park. I gaze up at the tall, skinny trees and then down to the sturdy stilts which keep the cabin from falling into the river below. They are the same circumference. A familiar smile curls my lips and I look back at Ava. She's staring out the window in awe. Here is our little house on the water. A space to listen to the birds, feel the breeze, and watch the seasons change. For four days, at least, until the next family … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Monday Meal Review, Paraguay, South America

Monday Meal Review: Papua New Guinea

September 10, 2012 By Sasha Martin 7 Comments

I hover over the dining table, scooping the tapioca and banana mush onto banana leaves to make saksak. The deep green leaves are soft and supple - completely relaxed from a pass over the licking blue flames on my range. I work slowly, eventually rolling each leaf into a rectangle shape, taking care not to spill any filling. I tuck each bundle securely in the steamer and, when I'm done, I click on the burner. A few moments later, vapors slip out between the pot lid and the pot. Little wisps of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Monday Meal Review, Oceania, Papua New Guinea

Monday Meal Review: Panama

September 3, 2012 By Sasha Martin 11 Comments

A canal cuts straight through Panama, dividing the skinny country and two great continents. Ships no longer have to pass around the southern-most tip of South America to circumnavigate the globe as they once did. They just slip right on through her middle. Each time a ship passes, 200 million liters of water slosh and gush through the opening. Incredible, the effect of a "little divider" like the Panama canal. Keith's new job means he's traveling a lot. One week of every month he just … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Monday Meal Review, North America, Panama

Monday Meal Review: Palau

August 27, 2012 By Sasha Martin 15 Comments

Keith left me last week. He didn't leave-leave me, but he went away for an extended business trip that meant he'd be at a motel in Vermont for his birthday. If that isn't wretched enough, in an unfortunate twist of fate, I came down with an incredible self-induced illness caused by accidentally inhaling an aleve pill into my lungs. Ka-plunk. (That's the sound it made as it plopped into the soft tissue normally dedicated to taking oxygen to my bloodstream). To give you an idea of how … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Monday Meal Review, Oceania, Palau

Monday Meal Review: Pakistan

August 20, 2012 By Sasha Martin 11 Comments

Keith once told me that he hated cilantro. He despised how green and soapy it felt in his mouth and how the little green bits snaked through his teeth, sticking with him throughout the day like a tag-along little brother. This was in the days before our Global Table Adventure, a time when he also hated tomatoes, had no idea what eggplant was, and had never had fresh spinach. A time when one salad per year was a major accomplishment. So, naturally, when I pop the platter of garlic rice on … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Asia, Monday Meal Review, Pakistan

Monday Meal Review: Oman

August 13, 2012 By Sasha Martin 3 Comments

Curls of frankincense billow towards me. I breathe in slowly through my nose. The house submits to the sweet, deep darkness and I feel the urge to sleep. My body is ready to sink down anywhere - the couch, the bed, the kitchen floor - but, as Robert Frost would say "I have miles to go before I sleep." I drag the tip of my spoon along the soft white scoop and put the cold ice cream to my lips. I slip into a dream lit by exotic pine, orange, sandlewood and cream. There's ginger in there, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Asia, Monday Meal Review, Oman