Hello newsletter friends. Dispatches have been few and far between these days while I tend to the other children (sauce, store, etc.). No First Bloom Brooklyn updates to speak of, though I was recently in Thee New York Times speaking about Montague Street and the forthcoming store of dreams. You can read that here.
I’ve been doing a lot of events lately with authors on their book tours, which is always a dream (Ina!!), but in 2027 I’ll be traveling to do some speaking events of my own. I’ll be returning to a few favorite cities, plus some places I’ve never been. You know the drill: we chat, we take live questions, we laugh, we learn. Above all: We have fun. Find me in select cities next year—more dates to be announced soon.
Lately, at the suggestion of my therapist and also my husband, I’ve been trying to do one thing every day that’s ostensibly “just for me.” The thing can not be for work (though I love to work, so isn’t work always “for me”?) or for anyone in my family (though I love them so much, isn’t caring for them also “for me”?). This is actually hard for some reason. Some things I’ve done lately:
And then, yesterday, I made lunch for myself. I did not make a large batch of soup to feed everyone or text my husband to ask if he wanted lunch. I made a small pot of soup, enough for myself and maybe a small cup of leftovers (also for me). A lovely little pot of cauliflower cooked until soft, golden from the long cooking and a touch of turmeric, simmered with crushed chickpeas and broth, finished with a pleasing amount of lemon juice and lots of black pepper and Parmesan. This soup—a soup made with (frankly) such little intention and so few ingredients—should maybe not have been as good as it was, but it really was. Most cooking does not reward this kind of cavalier attitude, but soup, made with the right ingredients cooked in the right way and finished with the right things, always has potential to be both supremely casual and impossibly delicious.
While you do not need to do this, I accompanied this perfect little soup with a perfect grilled cheese: both sides of bread buttered, salt and pepper between slices of sharp cheddar, griddled in a small non-stick skillet over medium heat until the bread was crisp. I cut it into triangles and kept the crusts on.
Recipe below (though I have scaled it up to serve 4).
Another one for fans of the Something from Nothing lifestyle. The trick, as with many few-ingredient recipes, is in how each thing gets treated, each step building flavor to get you to the promised result (fabulous soup). The shallots are frizzled, the cauliflower is cooked long enough that it browns nicely and begins to fall apart, the chickpeas are crushed to give a bit of body to the broth. From there, it’s the holy trinity of lemon juice, Parmesan and black pepper that make this a tangy, salty, piquant delight. This soup would happily take a handful of dark leafy greens wilted into it, or a dollop of sour cream right at the end. And, for anyone curious, it does freeze beautifully.