A Quick Thaw in Miami

And, a very good and loose chili recipe.

Reporting live from Miami for the first time in 15 years. I always forget how much I love it here. The palm trees are swaying in the breeze and the vibes are high.

If anyone has restaurant recommendations please drop them in the comments. We have a list going, but very open to suggestions. We will also be doing a good amount of cooking at home, because “Dinner Again.”

Darn it feels good to be in the sun!

OK! 

À Noter

Reading

Canadian chef and cookbook author Christine Flynn and I met many years ago and didn’t put it together until she got in touch about her second cookbook A Generous Meal: Modern Recipes for Dinner. It comes out later this month and I was lucky to get an advanced copy.  I absolutely adore it. I read it cover to cover and I haven’t done that with a cookbook in a long time.  Lamb Loin Chops over Minty Pistachio Butter and Spicy Oven Charred Cabbage and Lemons are standouts to me. It’s a sexy book.

Binged 

Extraordinary! Angie Venezia included a recommendation of this show in her newsletter last week. Angie and I are generally on the same page about things. And she was right! It’s a hilarious and absurdly delightful show. I also cried. Please watch it!

Dreaming About

Pansies! It’s no secret, Helen’s work is breathtaking, nor is it a secret that she is my dear friend. Helen has a select number of paintings from her recent Pansy series still available. Catch them while you can. Her releases only happen a few times a year. You can also sign up for her newsletter to hear when the next one will drop.

Dinner Again

Friday

An incredible ladies night with wonderful food. My friend Myna made Momofuku’s Bo Ssam (paywall!) with all the fixings including oysters. Our friend Kristi, who lived in Korea, made insanely good banchan. And, our friend Megan made belated Hanukkah Sufganiyot. It was a FEAST. Highly recommend getting a group together and doing exactly this.

Saturday

So many leftovers. I sautéed some chopped shrimp in ginger and garlic, added the pork along with a quick sauce of soy, lime juice, sesame oil and brown sugar. Tossed it all together with some baby bok choy and fresh pappardelle. It was very good. 

Sunday

Super Bowl! I could care less about the game (although, it was a good one), but made Pok Pok wings and chili. We had other various snacks and never ate the chili, so you can guess what Monday’s meal was… 

Monday 

Chili! This was very simple and very good. I used what I had around taking many liberties. I sautéed some ground beef and a roughly chopped yellow onion over medium heat. I then added some chopped Thai chilies and 4 cloves of garlic and let them sweat out. Next, I added a good sized palmful of Rancho Gordo chile powder, some ground cumin and coriander and cooked for a minute more. In went two cans of black beans (sorry Steve! I didn’t have time to make from scratch this week) as well as about 1 1/2 cups of tomato pasta and some some broth. I let it simmer for 30 minutes or so. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt. Ladle into bowls and top with sour cream, cilantro, radishes and grated cheddar cheese. Chef kiss! 

Have a great rest of your week. I’m signing off to grab a Corona and drink it in that swing.

With love,

Colu xo