You are what you eat

Brace yourselves for my newest attempt at creativity. 

On Sunday, in honor of Tu B'Shvat, ( a Jewish holiday celebrating the trees and seasons etc), I went to a party in Nachlaot. Nachlaot is a neighborhood in Jerusalem that is very, free-spirited, shall we say. People there tend to be the crunchy, hippie, Carlebach types. Very into love and spirituality. Anyway, we were drinking wine and eating fruit in honor of the holiday and sharing various thoughts about spring and rebirth and blossoming etc. We also spent five minutes meditating on a tangerine. Apparantly there was a famous Buddhist who said that you could see the whole world in one tangerine. I didnt quite get there, but I did try, and it is kind of amazing what you can come up with looking at a fruit. 

So this week's post is a delightful compilation of life lessons as taught to me by my food:

 

Tangerines: The most exciting flavors tend to come with a little bit of a sting. They smell exotic and compelling and they taste sweet and tropical but they are also acidic and can hurt your mouth. And they are totally worth it.

 

Waffles: Beware the word "decadent" while it is fun to say and sounds delicious, it is not necessarily a good word to describe food. Some things in life are better with just a little powdered sugar sprinkled on top, not the equivalent of at least three melted chocolate bars. And an additional two scoops of ice cream. (It made whip cream taste like water.) 

 

Zucchini Soup: Immersion blenders can totally change the essence of a soup. Sometimes it is necessary to let go of your preexisting form and definition and allow yourself to become a part of something greater.

 

Shoko B'Sakit (chocolate milk in a bag): This was an easy one. Enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

 

Basil: You can pick it off a plant and eat it. That is awesome. 

 

Pita: By far the most versatile bread I have ever encountered. You can have it with PB or chocolate spread or chummus. You can make it into a pizza or a tuna melt or a plate for your salad. You can toast it and eat it like crackers or open it and use it like a sandwich or just rip it into pieces, making it more fun to eat. Plus there is a holiness to bread- a food, which when you think about it, is probably man's greatest invention. Have you ever looked at a grain of wheat? Because, seriously, who would think that could become bread? Well we are like God's bread. We are the most amazing creature He created and we have so much potential. We can be so many things (though maybe not pizza). So, go. Be.

 

And one last non-food related note: Israeli politics are quite possibly the most confusing thing I have ever attempted to understand. More so than the stock market or the minds of boys. Okay maybe not the latter.