Hidden Gems from the Road

Posted on September 26, 2013 by Tasha

And not so hidden. Jazz Fest is of course, amazing, and so is the food there!

I’ve been working on a new page, for you and for me. It’s full of all the places (mainly restaurants) that I want to remember from our travels. How do you persuade me to leave my comfortable and productive studio, and head out on the road for a summer tour of art shows? Well, just remind me that when we get to Austin, we can eat at Enoteca Vespaio, they have the first and best macarons I have ever tasted. Then once we get to St Louis there’s Shu Feng, oh the crispy eggplant . . . you get the idea. And it pretty much works that way, every spring. Ever since we read Walking and Eating in Tuscany and Umbria, we have an ongoing joke about being on the walking and eating tour of wherever we happen to be, with the goal of walking enough so that we can eat some more! The list of restaurants and fun places to visit is getting too long to keep just in my head, or on random scraps of paper and lists on my phone, so I made a page for it here.

For every place I’ve remembered, looked up, and put on the list, I thought of at least one more that I haven’t had time to post yet. So, look for another update, hopefully soon, and I even have some pictures to put in! But I wanted to go ahead and publish the start of the list. My goal is to keep updating it as time goes on, and we stumble on more hidden gems of the road. If you have some of your own to share, let me know!

A Touch of Comfort, Weird or Ordinary

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Tasha

Much of our time on the road is just slightly anxious for me. There are a lot of unknowns that hover around the edges of my consciousness; where we will sleep, when will eat, can we park the truck here? Plus of course I miss my people and my places. Most of the time these little worries are barely visible on my conscious radar. Then I’ll catch a glimpse or a touch of something that comforts me, and only as the feeling grips me, like the warm hand of a friend on my shoulder, do I realize that I could use reassuring.

Often times the things that comfort me are what you might expect; objects I’ve made that remind me of the skills I have to fall back on, and of home. Seeing, using, brushing, (and occasionally burying my face in) the garment bags I made before we left this spring has been great all this summer.

Sometimes though, it’s something silly or just plain weird that gives me little bursts of happiness. Right now for instance, I get happier every time I see my blue-painted toenails. To clarify, I paint my toenails maybe once every five years. Most of the time, I prefer their natural state. But for a Caribbean beach wedding in the company of close friends and their kids, it seemed appropriate. A dear 9-year-old friend painted one foot, and I did the other. (If you can’t tell, I’m not telling, which is which.)

All the way back home, I’ve been vaguely wondering how other people interpret my slightly sloppy blue toes. But I don’t really care, since every time I see them, I’m reminded of great friends and good times.

Whatever you’re up to, I hope you have some weird (or not so weird) little things to give you a touch of comfort when you need it!

Campfire Roasted Bananas—Here’s to Savoring Summer While it Lasts

Posted on September 4, 2013 by Tasha

Bananas make better s’mores. Trust me. Forget marshmallows—imagine the sweetest roasted plantain you’ve ever had, between two graham crackers, eaten around a fire. I think it was two years ago, when we accidentally discovered this, all of our friends started coming up with ways that they could somehow patent and/or market this idea. None of them did, and I’ve decided that the statute of limitations is up, and it’s time to share it. Maybe I should have asked them? Um, too late.

So, the idea is pretty simple: roast bananas over a campfire, and then eat with graham crackers, and chocolate if you wish. You may be surprised at how good this is. We have tried roasting the bananas in tin foil, in their skins, and on a fork, all with some degree of success. The fork is my favorite because it gives you a nice caramelized crust, but patience is definitely required, and vigilant guarding of the bananas from outright burning. It takes longer to cook a banana by the fire than to roast a marshmallow, but it’s totally worth it.

You need a fork with two tines. A stick that goes through the banana in only one place will allow it to rotate, and makes it just about impossible to cook both sides. Also, starting with a piece of banana that isn’t too large and unwieldy will help. Last time we did this, I distinctly remember that if you were careful when roasting, the outsides of the banana got not only caramelized but downright bubbly. This time, they came out a little more dry on the outside, as if baked in a crust, but were still delicious. I strongly suspect that the riper the banana you start with, the more likely you are to achieve a sweet bubbly caramel outside. I haven’t yet had a chance to try out this theory completely. If you do, please report back!

If you want to make s’mores with your roasted banana pieces, do it while they are still hot and can melt the chocolate. I recommend dark chocolate, since it’s my favorite. The warm caramelized banana is also super delicious just by itself between two graham crackers.

You have at least one more campfire in your summer, right? (If you are reading this from the southern hemisphere, I’m kind of jealous that you’re just heading into spring and summer.) I love love love this time of year, not just because it contains my birthday, but because it seems like all the bounty of the harvest is pouring right into my lap. Every farm stand and market is bursting with luscious tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, and the first apples, all at the same time. Trees in the yard of the dear people we’re staying with are positively dripping with pears and plums. I think it’s such a shame that people mentally move on to fall, Halloween, back to school, and all that nonsense, when the whole bounty of nature is before us, and the days are still warm and long enough to savor it. Ok, so bananas are not exactly local produce in my part of the world, but roasting them is another way to enjoy these lovely days.

Yes, there is a fallen banana in the back of this shot. I rescued part of it.

By the way, speaking of extended summer, if you try to contact me in the next week or so and don’t hear back, it’s likely because I’m in Curaçao! At a friend’s wedding. Hopefully swimming in the ocean and eating lots of exotic fruit. I hope you have some great adventures planned as well. The close-to-home, campfire kind will do just fine.