Creamy Pumpkin Curry

by Diana

Halloween always makes me think of those very simple yet essential privileges that living in London offers. We never celebrated this 'feast', not necessarily because it was pagan, but possibly because it was dangerous. I never drove my pink tricycle in the streets around my neighbourhood as even in the 1990’s my overprotective parents, rightly so, feared for thieves and kidnappers. I cannot really imagine what could happen now if a bunch of children are out and about in the streets in Caracas, knocking on strangers doors and demanding sweets. Furthermore, with so many basic foods shortages, it’s hard to think of what could people give away, if they can afford to be generous at the moment. There is one other thing in my mind, very much linked to the previous idea, and that is food waste. I am creative, don’t take me wrong, and I strongly support pumpkin carving as with any other art activities, it could be good for your wellbeing, specially if it's done as a family. But if on the following day you could use your spooky sculpture leftovers to cook something together, then that would not just balance out your kids' nauseating sugar intake, but could also give you an excuse of another family gathering during which, in the back of your mind, you could be grateful for those very simple, yet essential moments of freedom that other families are not able to afford. 

© The Teaspoon

Citrus Loaf

by Diana 

It’s very difficult to unlearn those things that are an intrinsic part of the way you see the world. As my multiple grammatical mistakes reveal, English is not my first language and no matter how hard I try, Spanish would always flourish one way or another.

In (Venezuelan) Spanish the word for lemon means actually lime. We call ‘limón’ the smaller, green more bitter variety of citron and ‘lima’ the big yellow one. This knowledge is so embedded now in my stubborn adult mind that it comes with images and flavours which makes it even harder to deracinate. I know I am not dyslexic so perhaps I am just obstinate.

Last week I was searching for a recipe calling for the ‘limes’ I had lying around in the kitchen and found one that solved all my problems and actually called for both. As I didn’t have ‘lemons’ I just used limes and to make things  even more confusing I covered the cake with almonds so my citric problems would never be revealed. I told everyone at the office that because of the almonds, it was a deceiving cake, and inconsistently described it as both lemon and lime when people dared to ask. Perhaps I’m just a liar. The cake is really good though, so I hope you like it too!

© The Teaspoon

Cornbread

by Diana

My mother is the kind of person that when an idea gets into her head there is no power on earth that can persuade her to give it up. When her projects don’t demand my time (as I treasure every minute to do the exact same thing but with my own little projects) then I do admire her determination and extreme insistence to reach her goals. Most of the time we are talking about meaningful and important projects she sets herself to do  but sometimes it’s just a recurrent thought she transform into a task for all of us to deliver. As the passionate psychologist I know she is, I am convinced she sees this as ‘bonding’ time. There was one summer she (meaning my  husband) would spend every day on the hunt for the perfect blue pair of shoes that would match the exact colour on the blue dress she fixated with on the previous year. These last few months the theme is cornbread as all the other types of flour in the world are just wrong of course. It doesn’t matter what we have on the agenda, where we are or who we are with,  if she (meaning we) could stop and enquire about cornbread then that would make her happy. And what’s the point of having a food blog if I can’t help my own mother fullfill her bread related fantasies. So just to see that smile on her face (and so we could get some rest) then I am making her a American southern style corn bread that I am sure I’ll be making over and over and over again at least until the next idea comes up. 

© The Teaspoon

Spicy Apple Soup

by Diana 

Not a lot of people can claim they had their very own mango tree when growing up. We were lucky to have access to an amazing tropical garden but, as it often happens, the priority was to drive my pink tricycle around the heliconias rather than harvesting the fruit. I self-reproach not having fully appreciated that privilege, as living in London has taught me to be content now with just a few not very exciting indoor plants. 

The farther you live from the city though, the higher the chances you ever have to shop for fruit again. My friend Patricia is at the moment overwhelmed with an abundant autumnal produce as she wisely chose to exchange the city commodities for a wide range of trees and a happy family life in the countryside. We visited her last week and were mesmerised with the colours and generosity the season brings to her garden. Not surprisingly she fed us with exaggerated portions of delicious apple crumble and waved us goodbye with equally generous fruit-full ‘goodie bags’. I used her apples for a heart warming soup inspired by a cold version my sister-in-law did for the blog a few years ago.

© The Teaspoon