While I love my husband dearly, there are times that our love feels so comfortable I’m at risk for taking him for granted. But then I smell some garlic frying in oil, maybe some tomato sauce bubbling on the stovetop, and I know he’s making me pasta for dinner. It’s nothing complicated – a simple gesture, really – but I know in that moment he loves me. Food, prepared with care, is the meaningful gesture that can fix just about everything, especially an in-the-rut relationship. To me, Valentine’s Day is about taking this simple attentiveness and amplifying it – by exposing our five senses to something new. After all, new experiences breathe life into the old. They help us notice. And so this week, while I’m finishing up a few more last minute edits on my memoir, I assembled some awesome food traditions and ideas from around the world that will have your heart swooning in no time… in every sense, with every sense. Note: These tips, though most might assume are geared for couples, are completely …
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The question is not whether I’d sing to an apple tree, but rather where I can find an apple tree to sing to. My Oklahoman neighborhood just doesn’t deliver the crimson fruit. Regardless, I will tipple this wassail with a cheer (wassail literally means “wes hail”, or good cheer)- after all in 2014 I’m learning about celebrations around the world, a suitable follow-up to completing our first adventure: eating one meal for every country in the world. January is all about wassailing. What is wassailing? Wassailing is the Southern English art – yes, art – of cooking up some of last year’s apple crop with cider – sometimes with a flush of orange peel, warm cinnamon stick, flecks of nutmeg, or maybe allspice. To make it… just… Roast some apples. Click on the burner and clank on a pot of cider and spice. In a moment, heat shimmers through the pot and those first bubbles pop the surface. Seconds later, sweet apple and spice billows through the house. The roasted apples are whipped into a froth, then stirred to …
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The best kind of party is a tea party. Even better? A themed tea party. This week we’re exploring the Central Asian Tea Party. As I read through many descriptions of teas in Turkmenistan (this week’s Global Table) and her neighboring countries, I realized there are just FIVE basic things you need for a Central Asian Tea Party. Anything else is icing on the proverbial cake. 1. Green or Black Tea. In Central Asia, people drink two main kinds of tea, green or black. Green tea is typically sipped in order to relax, while black tea is enjoyed for an energetic boost. Both are called “Chai,” which simply means tea. When serving, the tea should be poured from very high up into each glass… do this at least three times. This aerates the tea and makes tiny bubbles (more on this in a moment). 2. Fun superstitions Much of the fun of any global tea party is learning the superstitions that go with them. Here are two from Central Asia. a) If you can tap the …
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I can’t get over how many unique and occasion-worthy recipes can be found all around the world that only have three ingredients (not counting water, of course). There is no limit, it would seem, to creativity in the kitchen. With just three ingredients, our global neighbors can offer something sweet or savory, simple or complicated. These easy recipes can take our imaginations to any continent. Once I assembled the list, I realized something rather amazing… [dropshadowbox align=”none” effect=”lifted-both” width=”570px” height=”” background_color=”#ffffff” border_width=”1″ border_color=”#dddddd” ]All of these recipes are vegetarian (V) or vegan (V+) and most are gluten free (GF).[/dropshadowbox] Bonus. So, now the question is, which recipe will you make? NOTE: Country listed indicates when we cooked the dish in our Global Table Adventure. In many cases the recipes may be available and beloved by other countries as well. THE LIST ( Click through for the recipes ) Hokey Pokey | New Zealand ( V, GF) Baked Papaya with Sweet Coconut Cream | Marshall Islands (V+, GF) Vanilla Bean n’ Tropical Fruit | Madagascar (V+, GF) …
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Valentine’s Day is almost here, and there’s no better way to show love than to bump hips in the kitchen, or, at the very least, to deliver an edible prize to the champion who stole your heart. While you’re at it, why not take your love on a mini vacation, via stovetop travel? Without leaving your own global table, they can experience Egypt, Belgium, Morocco, Malawi, and beyond. And you can go with them, in the most sensual way possible: with your taste buds. It’s all here, for the ravishing, so go on, eat your way around the world. PART ONE: 5 Unique Ways to Give Your Sweetheart Flowers 1. Egyptian White “Coffee” Mix hot water with rose water, made from thousands (millions!) of rose petals and a little sugar, and you’ll have a caffeine-free way to warm up next to your sweetheart. A great drink for late night cuddling, since it won’t keep you up past your bedtime. Unless you want to stay up past you bedtime. 2. Moroccan Honey Buttered Semolina …
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Glorious meatballs, bathing in hearty, simmering sauce, can be found all over the world. Some meatballs are a meal unto themselves, requiring a knife and fork, while others are delicate, dainty droplets – more garnish than substance. Although most people enjoy a good meatball, entirely too much effort goes into making them. Intended to be comfort food, even homemade street-food, meatballs should not be an all day affair. Here are my simple tips for how to make great meatballs, from any country. 1. Roast the meatballs, don’t fry them. I’ve ruined at least 4 cute shirts by pan-frying batch, after batch of meatballs. Oil spatters not only ruin shirts, but also burn skin, grease up the stove top, and yellow surrounding walls. Not to mention the time it takes to carefully rotate each meatball. One. By. One. Usually, the little balls get beat up in the process and end up with flat sides, like the skulls of babies who aren’t given enough tummy time. To roast meatballs, all you have to do is lay them on …
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