Posts | Global Table Adventure

About the food of Qatar

I can’t believe we’ve arrived at Q. With one year and one month remaining in our Adventure, I am face to face with a tiny country jutting out into the Persian Gulf, east of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. This is Qatar’s week at the Global Table. Qatar. Just saying it makes me feel like I’m rounding third base, with my eye on the home run. Which, in turn, makes me a little sad, becausenow all I can think about is how little remains of this Adventure to eat the world. But Qatar has an answer for that. As they like to say: He who begets offspring doesn’t die. الّلي خلّف ما مات The idea of living on through our children – even if just as a whisper of an idea – is beautiful. And I think there’s many similarities between this blog and having a baby. When we’re done going A-Z, you readers will be able to carry the Adventure on by sharing the recipes with your families, at potlucks, and as gifts. The Adventure won’t die. …

Monday Meal Review: Portugal

The older I get, the harder it is to find time to give. I am so wrapped up in my own life – my own business – that I forget that the easiest way to make the world smile is to give back. There’s a Portuguese proverb that reads: What is bought is cheaper than a gift. I had to reread the proverb several times to really grasp the meaning. I don’t think it means that we all need to be on Pinterest, super-crafting gifts for everyone (although that’s fun, too). While the proverb implies that a gift cannot be bought, it also leaves it open to what constitutes a gift. Perhaps it could even be the gift of spending time together. Or really listening to someone unload their troubles (without the need to solve anything). Or maybe a gift is cooking something together for someone else. During this week’s Portuguese Global Table, Ava and I stood elbow to elbow. We giggled as we patted the soft dough into small squares, topped them with smoky chorizo sausage, …

Menu: Portugal (& Giveaway)

There’s a Portuguese saying “A caridade começa em casa,” or “Charity begins at home.” And what better way, than with food? This is the time of year to cook for friends, friends of friends, and not yet friends. This is the time of year to burst into a quiet room with the scent of freshly baked bread. When the gray skies hang low, you can be the entertainment in your home, office, and community. For starters, you can make a lot of people happy with Portuguese bread – especially when stuffed with chorizo sausage. You can also make people happy with nutritious, wintery salads, and soul-soothing soups. It’s even better if you have a three year-old share the goodies (not only is it cute, but it teaches her the importance of a giving spirit): All recipes and the meal review will be posted throughout the week. Tuna & Chickpea Salad | Atum com Grão [Recipe] Think love in a salad… chickpeas, tuna, lemon juice, fresh cracked pepper and a happy drizzle of olive oil. It’s good for …

About the food of Portugal

I’m not sure what I was thinking, but for some reason I had Portugal all wrong. I forgot about the impossible mountaintop castles, surrounded by water (and here’s another). I forgot about turquoise waters that swaddle neon villages. As for the food? I didn’t even have fish on my radar which is surprising, considering 1. most of Portugal’s border is coastal, 2. We’ve cooked Portuguese inspired food before, including Grilled Prawns with Piri Piri from Angola. Hello. Overcoming my extreme ignorance is exactly why I am on this Adventure. And I love it. Thankfully, one of our longtime readers offered to help me out. Three cheers for Paulo. First of all, he suggested a chickpea salad [Recipe] from his very own Portuguese wedding. I say if it’s good enough for a man’s nuptials, it’s good enough for just about anything. Paulo tells me the salad either includes tuna or cod and vinegar or lemon juice. Speaking of Cod, dried cod is everywhere, with enough recipes to fill every day of the year. Not only can you find it in …

Monday Meal Review: Poland

I never expected a picnic to be so difficult. There’s a Polish saying, “Bez pracy nie ma kołaczy,” which means “Without work, there won’t be supper.” This was most definitely the theme of our week at the Polish Global Table. For starters, I spread out the cooking of each dish over the course of three days, slowly making each one when I could find the time. When I finally finished cooking, we took the apple pie to the park to share with friends. Keith didn’t catch much of “the scene” on camera, so I’ll have to relay it the best I can. After our first game (ever) of Frisbee Golf (which was quite fun, actually), we set up our picnic under a covered gazebo. We ate our meal with gusto (Ava was particularly hungry, since she had eaten her breakfast at some ungodly pre-dawn hour). The breeze was mild and the sun was shining. Simply lovely. As I rummaged in our picnic backpack for the Tupperware filled with Polish apple pie, I heard footsteps. I looked up to find a serious looking …

Menu: Poland (& Giveaway)

Have you ever heard the saying “All the goats jump onto leaning trees”? (“Na pochyłe drzewo wszystkie kozy skaczą.”) It’s Polish. The saying means goats know to make due with what they are given – they leap to take advantage of the opportunity that presents itself. Real practical, those goats. We should be more like them. Which brings me to our menu. This week, this beautiful week of October, we are given ruddy apples harvested fresh from the orchard, comforting potatoes with dirt still clinging to their rough skins, and the last cucumbers off the vine (it’s Oklahoma, what can I say). It’s the perfect set up for a Polish feast. Will you join us? All recipes and the meal review will be posted throughout the week. White Cucumber Salad | Mizeria [Recipe] Mizeria means misery in Polish, but this creamy (but slightly sweet and sour) salad is anything but. A refreshing combination of cucumbers, sour cream, dill and a hit of vinegar and sugar. Cheese & Potato Pierogi [Recipe] Comfort food to the rescue. These traditional pierogi …

About the food of Poland

Among the cool, rolling hills of Central Europe, which stretch like green tomcats beneath the blue sky, lays Poland … where waters run clear from the city’s industrious lip, all the way to the edge of her spiny mountains. Situated between Germany and Belarus, the best Polish food can be summed up by that which is hunted, foraged, or fished. Under the filtered forest canopy, mushrooms are not just dinner, but a hobby. Fish, straight from the river, is a way of life (think herring, carp, pike, perch, eel, and sturgeon). There’s no denying the local love of Pierogi – a dumpling filled with anything from potatoes and cheese to sauerkraut. You might enjoy it fried in butter and onions, served with kielbasa sausage or simply with just a dollop of sour cream. Speaking of which, sour cream is a “go-to” in Poland, as popular as ketchup here in the United States. You’ll even find this cool, tangy milk product in everything from pie crust to cucumber salad to pierogi (and this time, I don’t mean the …

Monday Meal Review: Philippines

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 made difficult by the fact that I had something else on my mind: I was scheduled to speak in front of 350 people at the Global Vision Dinner presented by the Tulsa Global Alliance. What an honor! What a treat! And, considering I’d never spoken to more than 35 people at one time, I was incredibly nervous. My shaking hands and bad dreams told me, this was an opportunity for growth if I ever there was one. So, I practiced the speech walking home …

Menu: Philippines (& Giveaway)

Yum. That’s all I can say. Slow cooked pork, crispy lumpia, and a sweet, jiggly drink… this is our little taste of the Philippines. We’re talking bold flavors and big bites. Perfect for your fall table. All recipes and the meal review will be posted throughout the week. Lumpia Shanghai [Recipe] This is the long, flaky cousin to the egg roll – a shatteringly thin wrapper stuffed with ground pork, carrot, green onion, and jicama then fried to deep golden perfection. Filipino Braised Pork Adobo [Recipe] Pork cooked in a tangy combination of vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, bay leaves, and peppercorn. Served over rice. This is serious stuff. Tapioca & Jello Sipper | Sago at Gulaman [Recipe] A wiggly, jiggly drink which has variations all over Asia. This one can be found with street vendors in the Philippines, mixed with crushed ice. Super fun for kids. THE GIVEAWAY UPDATE: *Winner from this week’s Filipino Menu Giveaway was selected at random by random.org. There were so many fantastic ideas for globally-inspired baking dishes. Congratulations to Katherine, who said: “I would …

About the food of the Philippines

Welcome to our week at the Filipino Global Table, where you can stovetop travel your way to these 7, 107 tropical islands in the western Pacific ocean. Tucked between her mountains, tropical rain forests, and gorgeous coasts live 28 million people who enjoy a diet with influences from Spain, China, and Malaysia and beyond. The food packs a serious punch. According to wikipedia, “Filipino cuisine is distinguished by its bold combination of sweet (tamis), sour (asim), and salty (alat) flavors. While other Asian cuisines may be known for a more subtle delivery and presentation, Filipino cuisine is often delivered all at once in a single presentation.” Pork is extremely popular. If you’re ever in the mood to roast a whole pig, you can learn how from the beautiful people of the Philippines. Called Lechon, the meat is slow cooked over charcoal until tender on the inside and crackling on the outside. Then there’s pork in adobo, braised in vinegar, garlic, and soy sauce (chicken is also used for Adobo). You’ll also find pork in lumpia shangai, …

Monday Meal Review: Peru

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 rebel. With tears. Man, that last one’s a doozy. Two and a half years ago, when we started this adventure, Ava simply ate what we gave her. Sure, she spit some of it out (she was a baby after all), but overall she was more open than we were to trying new foods. She had zero preconceived notions. Now that she’s hit the ripe ol’ age of three, Ava is way less accepting than she used to be. While still extremely open minded compared to her peers, she’s …

Menu: Peru (with $150 Giveaway)

There’s a Peruvian proverb that reads… “Gold, when beaten, shines.” This simply means it takes a little elbow grease to make even gold look good. As with most things in life, the more effort we put in, the better things go. I’ve been trying to teach this important lesson to Ava, especially when the going gets tough. Not everything is as instantaneous as twitter or as fun as facebook. Incidentally, I’ve been using this proverb as I prepare to deliver a speech tonight in front of 350 people at the Global Vision Dinner here in Tulsa, put on by the Tulsa Global Alliance. I’m excited but scared. I’ve never spoken in front of that many people before. Keep me in your hearts – I’ll need strength to let my message shine. And, now, for the food of Peru, which (thankfully) shines with hardly any effort on our part. Especially that delectable ceviche… …all recipes and the meal review will be posted throughout the week. Ceviche [Recipe] Find out why one Peruvian calls this the dunkin donuts …