"It goes by SO fast!" My youngest is in college already and yesterday he was 3 weeks old!"
Says the lady at the Trader Joes checkout, and the UPS delivery guy..... and that friend of my mom's...... and the woman with two German Shepards walking through the park..... and the man drinking coffee at the table next to me. I believe it, really I do. Just like how I have been telling people that I just got off the boat, or that I write a blog of travel and food. Which I DID! Back in 2013. Because time really does fly past, and suddenly your in the future, and your not even sure how you got there.
It has been almost a year since she arrived. Since I watched my abdomen swell and my body change. A year since I craved nothing but bagels and pasta with mushroom sauce. A year since I spent any moment alone. A year of motherhood.
She arrived in mid March of 2014. We had her in the home I grew up in. I won't bore you too much with the birth story details. There was plenty of moaning, growling, intensity and pain. As one would expect. It was a sunny afternoon, and I felt best outside. Although I would love to tell a story where I hung from a branch like a Native American woman, allowing gravity to bring my baby down into the arms of Mother Earth. Blissfully welcoming my loin fruit through an ecstatic and orgasmic birth. you know, the ones you read about in books while in Bali last..... oh, just me? ok.
Well, needless to say, it didn't happen that way. But the way it did happen was beautiful and amazing. It's truly incredible what the body can do, and I am in awe of women everywhere, even more than ever.
I now also know why an epidural is so popular.
So just like the snap of a finger, a year has past. Just like they all said it would. She crawls, and talks, and eats, and points, and does all those things that an 11 month old does. She's a dual citizen and has already whet her appetite for long hours in International airports. She is the most amazing and hardest adventure we have ever embarked on. Aside from the challenge to keep our carry-on luggage small and manageable, we are thrilled to add this new member to our gypsy pack. New destinations and adventures in the works! Now that we have properly hibernated with our little.
As for the "chef" in A Gypsy Chef. Although I spend most of my time being a private chef for one, and a master in milk production, I am still cooking for clients outside of my family home. A much smaller scale than the past, but the attention to health, well being and travel through taste buds remains.
Since I am not frequenting my favorite stops such as Morocco, India, Spain and Vietnam. I keep myself and those I feed connected to these places in the world via flavor. Bellow is my new favorite way to eat chicken- covered in Cardamom, coconut, ginger and garlic and roasted on the bone. It reminds me of places far away, and I feed it to my daughter while I tell her stories of the Gypsy I once was before I knew how to be the mother of Mila.
Says the lady at the Trader Joes checkout, and the UPS delivery guy..... and that friend of my mom's...... and the woman with two German Shepards walking through the park..... and the man drinking coffee at the table next to me. I believe it, really I do. Just like how I have been telling people that I just got off the boat, or that I write a blog of travel and food. Which I DID! Back in 2013. Because time really does fly past, and suddenly your in the future, and your not even sure how you got there.
35 weeks
It has been almost a year since she arrived. Since I watched my abdomen swell and my body change. A year since I craved nothing but bagels and pasta with mushroom sauce. A year since I spent any moment alone. A year of motherhood.
She arrived in mid March of 2014. We had her in the home I grew up in. I won't bore you too much with the birth story details. There was plenty of moaning, growling, intensity and pain. As one would expect. It was a sunny afternoon, and I felt best outside. Although I would love to tell a story where I hung from a branch like a Native American woman, allowing gravity to bring my baby down into the arms of Mother Earth. Blissfully welcoming my loin fruit through an ecstatic and orgasmic birth. you know, the ones you read about in books while in Bali last..... oh, just me? ok.
Well, needless to say, it didn't happen that way. But the way it did happen was beautiful and amazing. It's truly incredible what the body can do, and I am in awe of women everywhere, even more than ever.
I now also know why an epidural is so popular.
Mila is her name.
As for the "chef" in A Gypsy Chef. Although I spend most of my time being a private chef for one, and a master in milk production, I am still cooking for clients outside of my family home. A much smaller scale than the past, but the attention to health, well being and travel through taste buds remains.
Since I am not frequenting my favorite stops such as Morocco, India, Spain and Vietnam. I keep myself and those I feed connected to these places in the world via flavor. Bellow is my new favorite way to eat chicken- covered in Cardamom, coconut, ginger and garlic and roasted on the bone. It reminds me of places far away, and I feed it to my daughter while I tell her stories of the Gypsy I once was before I knew how to be the mother of Mila.
Cardamom Spiced Roasted Chicken. Serves 4-6(note: to get the cream top of coconut milk- refrigerate the can, do not shake, and scoop off the cream from the top)
- seeds from 10 cardamom pods
- 2 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 4 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon cayenne (optional)
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup whole milk greek yogurt, or the cream top from a can of coconut milk
- 2 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 3-4 pound chicken, butterflied or cut in half by your butcher
- Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
- Grind cardamom seeds and peppercorns in a mortar with pestle to a fine powder. Add salt, coriander, cumin and garlic. and smash the garlic. Add the olive oil to form a paste. Stir in yogurt/coconut milk, ginger and lemon juice.
- Place chicken in a large bowl or pan. Rub yogurt between skin and breasts and thighs. Then smear remaining yogurt over the outside of the chicken, front and back. Refrigerate at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. Remove chicken from refrigerator 30 minutes before roasting.
- Preheat oven to 425 F. Place chicken breast-side up in a baking pan or cast iron pan. Bake in oven until thoroughly cooked, 45 minutes - 1 hour. Remove and let rest 15 minutes before carving. Serve garnished with cilantro leaves and remember to por the leftover juices from the pan back over the chicken.
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