Monthly Archives: August 2010

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Baba Ganoosh

Posted on Categories Crime Writers Kitchen, RecipesLeave a comment
Baba Ganoosh and Pita
Photo by Takaokun via Wikimedia Commons

I got an eggplant in my Farm Fresh to You box this week and as soon as I saw it I knew I wanted to make baba ganoosh with it. I love this simple eggplant dip–I devour it every time we go to Taverna Tony.

Here’s the easy recipe:

Ingredients
1 large eggplant (1 pound)
1/4 cup tahini
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
Fresh parsley (garnish)

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

Pierce the eggplant 10 – 12 times with a fork and put it in a baking dish. Bake for about 50 minutes or until soft. Let cool and remove skin.

Finely chop the eggplant and combine with remaining ingredients.

Garnish with fresh parsley and serve at room temperature with pita bread or crackers. Or, if you’re like me, eat it plain straight out of the bowl.

Quieting the Frenzied Mind

Posted on Categories Diversions, More About Me8 Comments on Quieting the Frenzied Mind

I just realized I haven't posted once in the month of August. This is my half-assed attempt to remedy that.

Lately, I've had a lot of trouble shutting my brain up. It's always a problem, but for the last few days, it's impossible. My mind is going a mile a minute, jumping from one thing to the next, and I'm unable to concentrate on the task at hand, which of course, is the book.

Of course, Restless Mind Syndrome is not new to me. In my early twenties, I wrote a poem that included this line:

"Even in the center of the bustling crowd, the screams in my head remain ever loud."

Right now those screams are pretty much blocking out everything else.

I used to go for a run when things got this bad. The fatigue seemed to have a calming effect. But at the moment I'm unable to do any sort of exercise that demands that much physically. A glass of wine helps, but frankly, I have to drink more than a glass to get the desired effect.

So I turn to you, gentle reader, for advice on how to turn off those voices. What do you do when you're having trouble concentrating? A hot bath? A shot of whiskey? A run on the treadmill? Tell me what works for you.