me picó

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

love is a place 
& through this place of 
love move 
(with brightness of peace) 
all places

e.e. cummings

♥

greetings, reader! i come to you bearing great news:

i’m smitten.

head over heels.

i think i hear champagne corks popping.

it all started sunday afternoon.

i received a few delightful gifts that day. one which led straight to the other. my gorgeous roommate gave me a massage appointment. (thank you!!!!) as i was leaving, my massage therapist and friend, malinda, gave me a new ingredient to try that she had found at her co-op. the first gift was undoubtedly amazing and much needed. the latter, a surprise like no other. a simple plastic bag full of little peppers is now, in a few short days, turning into what i believe, my dear reader, to be true love.

may i introduce you to my new boyfriend, shishito.

yes, you heard it here first folks. yet again i have surrendered to the seductive ways of the capsicum cultivar. i cannot seem to help myself. for as long as i can remember, i have craved foods that make me cry. i long for the sensation to continue, even when the tears roll grey down my cheek from the mascara i so delicately applied, now being washed and wiped away for the sake of more chile.

i’ve learned to be more conservative about this when in public. it can get awkward. people start offering you water (which you should never consume if something is too spicy, always milk or a corn tortilla) or they ask you if you’re ok (…is she crying in her soup?) or they think you’re crazy (daaamn that is a lot of hot sauce, girl! where you from?) but if i’m alone, there are no holds barred.

if i told you some of the things i put hot sauce on, you might stop reading right now and never take me seriously again. i’ll leave it at that.

let’s get back to this new fling with shishito.

the shishito pepper is god’s gift from japan. along with the umeboshi plum and a few other beauties. it is crispy and juicy, it bursts with flavor,  and it has a perfect amount of spice while being delightfully spontaneous. sometimes you get a little tiny bite, while others sneak up and POW! you have to take a little break. if you identify with any of the feelings i previously mentioned about spicy food, you’ll eat these guys like a normal person would a bowl of cherries.

i mixed in a bowl some raw and some that i sautéed very quickly in hot oil and sprinkled with salt. the skin blistered but they kept their texture, though they softened inside and sweetened up a bit.

the rest i used to make this dish. i was even inspired to write a little poem, and it goes like thish:

i seek it breakfast lunch and dinner

supper brunch and yes, the punch

be it salty or be it sweet

be it fruit or be it meat

i want my spice

i want it nice

please if you can,

i’ll have it thrice

-zm

thank you, malinda, for so many things, but especially for reminding me of what’s really important.