Cooking And Eating....“Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es”

THE 'BLACK WOMAN'.....CONTINUALLY TRANSFORMED TO SUIT THE "CURRENT' IMAGE OF THE MODERN 'WOMAN OF COLOR'......  AS A CHILD, IN THE 1940'S AND 50'S, I NEVER GAVE MUCH THOUGHT TO THE CHARACTERIZATION OF OUR BELOVED 'AUNT JEMIMA'; AND, THINK THIS "MODERNIZATION" IS JUST MORE COMMERCIAL/POLITICALLY-CORRECT REINVENTIONS OF 'HISTORY'......THE 'PANCAKE MIX' REMAINS, PRETTY MUCH, THE SAME, DOESN'T IT?    

 

            AFTER MULLING OVER ALL THE 'OPTIONS' FOR SILENCING MY STOMACH'S GROWLINGS THIS MORNING......I THOUGHT:  "A BLT HAS, FOR MOST OF MY LIFE, BEEN A 'GO TO'....SO, RATHER THAN COMPLICATE MY MORNING WITH AN IMMENSE MESS...IN THE KITCHEN....POACHING QUAIL EGGS, MAKING FRESH-BAKED BREAD, THEN TOASTING SLICES  OF SOURDOUGH, TOPPED WITH THE EGGS AND A FANCY SAUCE AND CHOPPED HERBS, THEN MORTAR-GROUND INDONESIAN SPICES......RECONSIDERING, I 'WENT FOR' THE OLD FAMIAR....THAT MY FATHER OFTEN MADE FOR MY 'BEFORE SCHOOL MEAL'....THE "BLT".....I MUST HAVE EATEN HUNDREDS OF THESE, DURING MY LIFE......I DID, HOWEVER, MAKE FRESH MAYO, WITH SMOKED PAPRICA AND FRESH-SQUEEZED LEMON JUICE......"

THESE COLORFUL KITCHEN TOOLS ARE MORE DURABLE THAN 'NATURAL WOOD'; SEEM IMPERVIOUS TO SALT WATER AND COOKING OILS; AND...WELL....AESTHETICALLY PLEASING AND COMFORTABLE IN ONE'S HANDS....  

THEN, AS I WAS ABOUT TO BITE INTO MY SIMPLE FAIRE, A FRIEND CALLED AND OFFERED ME HIS SHOWER, SINCE MY HOT WATER HEATER IS 'KAPUT'.....AND A DELICIOUS SALAD, AS WELL AS SOME OF HIS GRILLED  CARNIVOROUS COOKING  OF HALIBUT CHEEKS AND BEEF FILET..........SO, A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER, I RETURNED...HOME..., CLEANED UP AND WELL-FED.....AND CRASHED FOR THE EVENING.....AWAKENING, AT 4 AM, FOR THE 'DESSERT'....THE ABANDONED PALMIER, SLATHERED WITH NUT BUTTER AND MARMALADE........

  Shamed by my lack of discipline (all those desserts for the last few days), I decided to dine at the Thai restaurant....up the street.....raw fish and sushi......A film production crew was lined up at the 'bar', ordering sushi and sashimi......(on an expense account).....The young 'producer' who was sitting next to me kept ordering food items as she texted and cruised the internet on her phone, while her companions downed their food...in a rush to get to wherever they were heading out to, later......Abruptly, they bolted, paid their tab and left the restaurant.......Oddly...to me anyway.....the woman ate not a bite of her largess of 'luncheon specials', and, as the waiter was about to clear her 'place', I asked "are you going to eat all this untouched food?'.....He replied, "No, I'll toss it in the trash!".....I hate waste......(here comes the rationalization)......So, I asked if I could have her dishes......He replied, 'Yes...

Some practice at Provincial French soup-making.......many ingredients, and a few technical processes, produce a 'simple' soup with many ingredients, from leftover champagne to sliced mangos, crushed garlic, and whatever 'remains' were on a shelf of the fridge.......The Pot would not hold another spoonful of anything....so, I've got to 'eat down' to make room for all the stuff that I left out......the okra, spinach and tiny white sweet potatoes that I harvested from a planter on the back deck........the preserved lemon slices fell in love with the hot peppers, sweet white corn, pickled ginger and basil pesto with sriracha hot chili peppers and the last of the jalapeno pepper jelly.....