Pepper Steak and a Letter for Brother on Occasion of His London Study Abroad Send-Off
January 5th, 2011 § Leave a Comment
12:40 a.m. this morning.
It was a great last meal.
Although that’s hardly fair since not only has food in the UK undergone a recent renaissance and shaken its reputation for being, um, terrible, but my brother Kevin who leaves for London today for his first experience in Europe will be able to see and eat, well, all of it.
Best of luck to him on this great adventure, and may he soon forget about last night’s amazing steak au poivre delivery from Michael’s as new profound experiences flood his present to replace it!
Crazy how 10 years ago last month, I had just returned from my fall/winter semester based in Florence, Italy. Unlike me, Kevin will have the modern convenience of smartphone technology at his fingertips. Google maps, Twitter — even blog platforms, should he choose to accept the challenge and delight of keeping a published travelogue… To think that in 2000 we actually used real maps. Train timetables in book form. Now even the Prince of Wales has an official Twitter account for updates on events of interest, like the upcoming Royal nuptials. Certainly this access to both more and more intimate information is a blessing, but I can’t help but mourn the loss of much simpler days when ‘slow travel’ was the going way of the wanderlusting world. There’s nothing quite like allowing yourself to get lost in a new city. It’s getting harder and harder to disconnect and go with the flow these days.
But maybe slow travel, as we too hope for slow food, will prevail. And maybe like me, Kevin will wake up early at least on his first day in London, cell phone safely ensconced in pocket, for a morning run through his neighborhood to get the lay of the land, the feel of the place, as merchants accept their first deliveries and open up shop to greet the new day. The memory of when I did that at the start of my great adventure abroad is a good one.
XO Kev, and Bon Voyage!
P.S. You can follow Kevin on Twitter where he says he’ll offer at least more than infrequent bursts of 140 characters of what we can only hope to be an entertaining mix of American and British English at @k_sayet.
Hard to beat, but study abroad should just about do it.
Recipe: Elizabeth’s Apricot Tart with Lavender Honey Cream
October 17th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
Ok, it was really Patricia Well’s tart, but Elizabeth Fenjvez made it her own and baked it for our delight at my mother’s dinner party a couple of Sundays ago. Here is the recipe. As happens sometimes, busying myself in pre-meal kitchen commotion, I didn’t get there quick enough to capture the crowning moment, of lavender honey cream, every indulgent drip of it, being poured over the tarts. But I was first in line for a piece! This dessert is lovely for fall, substituting pears for stone fruits, as they aren’t in season. Thank you, Elizabeth, for sharing the recipe — you made it look easy, but we know it wasn’t that easy!! I think we’ll see if we can pull it off with as much finesse for Thanksgiving.
Elizabeth and her tarts before going in the oven.
Stick a Fork in Me, I’m Done!
March 2nd, 2010 § Leave a Comment
Yep, it was a fabulously filling and fulfilling week of South Beach Wine & Food Festival festivities. Fun times were had by all. Our cups runneth over with beer, bubbly, Bordeaux, and bernaise. And now we count down the days until next year's dates of decadence, Feb 24-27, 2011, when the Festival celebrates its 10th anniversary. We have no doubt that Founder Lee Schrager will spare no expense, pull out all the stops, and we wouldn't miss it for the world. See you next year!
