No recipe this week. Just food for thought on cautious, happy traveling.
NORMALLY WHEN WE VISIT DETROIT, our plans are filled with more events and places than we can possibly get to, more restaurant meals than we can possibly eat. This past Memorial Day weekend, our plan, singular, was simply to be with our daughter Claire, whom we hadn’t seen in person since December 2019. Continue reading “A reunion with a daughter and Detroit”
NO RECIPE THIS WEEK, JUST SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT. We crossed a state line last weekend. We went to a library. And a store. These are things we hadn’t done in more than a year. It felt good. And strange. Continue reading “Small steps into the new normal”
Usually, Wednesdays mean new recipes at Blue Kitchen. Spoiler alert, not this week. Here’s what we’ve we been up to lately instead.
WE’VE BEEN PLAYING WITH KNIVES. We first discovered these handsome Spanish-made knives at Almond and Oak in Oakland, California, in May 2019. We were having dinner with friends we hadn’t seen in years, and I was halfway through my thick cut pork chop before I realized how easily I was cutting it. The next morning, before flying home from San Francisco that afternoon, we took the bus to the elegant home store MARCH and bought two Pallares Solsona steak knives. Continue reading “What we’ve been doing instead of cooking new stuff”
WALKING IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD, WATCHING THE SEASONS CHANGE, is always a treat. Maybe never more so than right now. Our neighbors embrace the holidays. Some with modest, quiet displays in their windows, some with exuberance. But all our walks and drives through the neighborhood had not prepared us for this. Continue reading “Santa’s actual house, right here in Pilsen”
The pandemic is increasing hunger in virtually every community in America. Here are ways you can help feed people, wherever you are.
THE HOLIDAYS ARE A TIME FOR GIVING. That has always been the case. And now, in the midst of a pandemic, it has never been more important. Hunger, always a challenge even in this richest of nations, is at levels not seen in decades. Continue reading “Hunger affects us all—here’s how to fight it”
NO RECIPE AGAIN THIS WEEK. With so much going on everywhere, we’re just not ready to write about sautéing and braising and such. Events continue to roller coaster, even now. But along with the pervasive anger, fear and hopelessness, there are true signs of hope. Signs change may be finally coming. Continue reading “Black Lives Matter: ways we can help, learn, make a difference”
WE’RE NOT SHARING A RECIPE THIS WEEK. You’re reading this post when you’re reading it, but we’re writing it on Tuesday, June 2, 2020. Eight days after the death of George Floyd. Right now, in these unprecedented—and many would say unpresidented—times, no one is thinking much about cooking. We’re thinking about safety. And justice. About something so broken for so long.
Take care of yourselves. Care about others—even, and maybe especially, those you don’t know. And may never know. Do what you can do to help, and be safe. We’ll be back next week.
Some thoughts on life and food right now, and five simple, comforting recipes.
THE OTHER NIGHT ON OUR NEIGHBORHOOD WALK, Marion said two things she was missing most right now were us getting in the car and going to see one of our daughters—both live driving distance away—and the two of us going to some little place for cocktails and dinner. A place like Martin’s Corner. Continue reading “Life in the time of shuttered restaurants, long walks and embracing home cooking”
[su_dropcap style=”flat”]B[/su_dropcap]lue Kitchen is up and running again. We had to make some changes—and will continue to iron out some glitches—but we’re back. Look for a new post this Wednesday!
[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e were in Mexico City recently. Ciudad de México, CDMX. On our return, a colleague asked me what we’d done. I said, “We drank mezcal and ate bugs.” Totally true. We also did other things. Continue reading “Eating, drinking, walking and museuming our way through Mexico City”