Helloo!!
I initially wrote a long ode to Maine, where I spent last week, full of lines about birds chirping, paddle boarding and the history of the place we’ve been visiting since I was four. There was also lots of chat about how much I love going off the grid and not having my phone within my immediate reach at all times as I didn’t have access to emails/texts/social media. Worrying what cocktail to make for happy hour and what I wanted for breakfast (eggs? pancakes?) were my biggest concerns. But then I landed in steamy, swampy and humid Miami where I have about a week left to pack up my apartment, sell most of my belongings and deal with the inevitable annoyances that come with moving, and Maine suddenly seems like years ago.
I scrapped that newsletter, as all I can really think about now is what to keep in storage at my mom’s, namely key kitchen items, beloved cookbooks and books, and what won’t be coming with me as I make the move to Menorca (yay!), which I find very difficult to assess. It’s not that I have hoarding tendencies, it’s more that I get emotionally attached to things (I’m someone who saves birthday cards and notes), and that sometimes gets mistakenly extended to random objects. For example, when my sister helped me move out of my apartment many years ago, she held up a cute wicker basket and said, Do you want to keep this? To which I responded, Of course!
That was a trick question, Yaz! We are getting rid of it. She shook her head at me and immediately put it in the discard/donate pile.
I sat there stunned at my failed answer as I was picturing using the basket to store some warm and cozy blankets, set beside a flickering fire, and thought, how could I get rid of this?! Ignoring the fact that I have never lived in a home with a fireplace, and I was moving to LA. As someone who has moved often, it still surprises me that I’m not better at it.
And yes, I have read Marie Kondo’s book, and a few years ago I did a merciless clearing out of my apartment before a move, discarding anything that didn’t immediately bring me joy—the problem is, if you let me think for a few seconds, then I can quickly conjure up a loving and happy image that incites joyful emotion. But after many failed attempts of not finding joy in my things, I went with the immediate reaction an item gave me, and, though I still regret giving away many things (the memory of a globe that my parents gave me as a small child still haunts me), I know I need to get back to that place. Especially with a move like this, where I’m selling or donating most of my things, I find myself oddly wanting to cling to random items, like a rubber spatula in a fun color, a potato masher or wooden skewers I’ve had for 10 years—they might come in handy, you never know! And my plants! It breaks my heart a little to say goodbye to them, and I even panicked the other day when someone wanted to pick some up before I was ready, and I lied and said I wasn’t available (what’s wrong with me?!). I am my own worst enemy with this. But, I think I’m past that clinging stage now, and more in the, “everything must go!” phase. At least, I hope so.
My life update is that I’m making the move to Menorca in the fall, for at least part of the year as I sort out my visa situation, which is both exciting and slightly terrifying. I don’t have much else to report as I’m in a bit of a transitional phase, closing one chapter before starting another, which is always bittersweet. I’m very sad to leave Barb, my flame red, street legal golf cart, and a few friends and neighbors, but also happy to leave a city I didn’t quite click with. I think part of the problem with Miami was that I wanted it to be Menorca, which is an unfair and unrealistic expectation to put on a city. At least now I know and will never wonder, what if? This is what I’m saying to console myself about the cost and pain involved in moving.
I will finish rambling now leave you with some gorgeous photos of Maine below, from hikes along the Appalachian trail to a waterfall for a picnic lunch (we hiked a very, very small portion), to boat rides to quiet, remote ponds—even more remote than the pond we were staying on—and a cabin fire during some seriously intense thunderstorms. Plus, a light, summery recipe that’s endlessly adaptable. Thanks for listening!
Now… finally onto the recipe!
Corn with couscous and a ginger-tahini dressing
The recipe today has pretty much nothing to do with the above. If this were a cookbook, my editor would likely politely say, while I like the story, it doesn’t really introduce the recipe. Can we try something else? And that’s totally fair. But, no one is editing me here! (I do love my editors so I don’t mean to be disrespectful with that comment as I would probably tell someone else the same thing.)
This couscous base and dressing can be topped with any vegetable combination that you’d like as you’re cooking it separately in a pan. Corn is in season right now, but mushrooms, broccoli and maybe even some crumbly bites of browned chicken sausage would also be delicious, which is pictured below, the first time I made in this while visiting my cousin in the UK. Back in Miami, my friend and cookbook author Susan Spungen gifted me a bottle of tahini as part of the package that arrived with her new beautiful cookbook, Veg Forward, so Barb and I went for a drive to pick up some other ingredients to make this again.
I will give the caveat that the couscous soaks up the dressing, which I love, as it acts like a sauce, but you won’t find fluffy grains because of that. You can always serve the dressing on the side and then pour it over as you’d like for more of a grain-bowl meal. If you’re someone who says, well, it’s all ending up in the same place anyway, then mix everything together, including the vegetables.
Note: use the lower ginger amount unless you really, really love it.
Serves 2, generously
1 teaspoon honey
½ to 1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated, depending on ginger preference (1 to 2 packed teaspoons, respectively)
2 tablespoons tahini
2 limes, 1 juiced, 1 halved
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup couscous
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 ears of corn, kernels removed from the cob (about 1 cup)
Salt
¼ teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 scallions, thinly sliced
¼ packed cup fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, gently torn or chopped
Optional toppings: ½ cup crumbled feta; scoop of hummus or labneh; marinated olives
In the bottom of a large serving bowl, mix together the honey, ginger, tahini, lime juice and extra-virgin oil until the honey is dissolved and it’s mostly smooth (it might look a little grainy because of the ginger).
Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a kettle or in a pot (add a splash more if in a pot). Add the couscous to a medium bowl, then pour in the boiling water. Cover with a clean dish towel and let sit undisturbed for at least 10 minutes or until the corn is done.
Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the corn in an even layer, season with salt, and cook undisturbed until the bottoms of the corn soften and start to color, about 4 minutes. Add the red-pepper flakes, cumin and a little more salt, then stir everything around to coat and spread out again in an even layer (about 30 seconds). Cook until the corn is charred in spots, about 4 minutes more.
Add the chickpeas and scallions and squeeze in half a lime, stirring to combine and scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Remove from the heat and season to taste with salt or more lime juice, as needed.
Fluff the couscous with a fork and break up any clumps, then transfer to the bowl with the dressing; toss to coat. Add the corn mixture on one side or toss everything together to mix. Top with the cilantro leaves and add any additional toppings or serve them at the table to add as you eat. Cut the remaining lime half into wedges and serve with the couscous.
~ Hope you enjoy! Xx
Ahhh, you're doing it! So exciting!!!!