Soul of a New Cuisine and Me

 I recently got married and now everything has been lifted off of my shoulders. I have no reason to stress. I go to work, to a job I love for a company I love, and then I come home...sometimes I cook dinner, sometimes I don't. Sometimes we watch a movie, other times old episodes of the Cosby show. Life is good. I didn't think I would change as a person right away after being married, but I have. I am a new me, revitalized, and with a new outlook on life and cooking. This is my new blog, for the new me.

The weather just broke into the 80s here and it is wonderful. I love this time of year, when the warmth is new and welcomed...3 months from now I will be beggin' for autumn's mercy.We are in the middle of our annual fundraiser at work for the Whole Planet Foundation and I wanted to cook up some great food to serve at our fundraising event, and one chef came to mind...Marcus Samuellson. I fell in love with him when I was in culinary school. He was assigned to my group and I for our catering project. We had to cook and serve food from his new cookbook at the time, Soul of a New Cuisine. In case you have been living under a rock, Marcus Samuellson was born in Ethiopia and was adopted by a family from Sweden after his mother died during a tuberculosis epidemic. He is a huge supporter of UNICEF as well as several other non-profit organizations. He specializes in Swedish cuisine, but in the book Soul of a New Cuisine, he travels back to his birthplace and travels all around Africa discovering his culinary roots. A lot of his recipes are Swedish-African fusion...and fantastic.

When Marcus was asked what African dish he wished Americans ate he said “It’s not a dish. It’s ubuntu. I wish people here ate with ubuntu.” “Whenever I pick up the newspaper and read a story about Africa, it’s almost always negative: war, famine, AIDS, corruption. And it’s true that a lot of bad things happen in Africa. But this is not the only Africa I know. I know an Africa that is a land of great beauty, and of beautiful people. It’s a land of ubuntu — “I am what I am because of who we all are” — the idea is that there is a universal bond of sharing that connects all people, and calls for humanity toward others. This word…defines a traditional African spirit that I saw connecting and unifying people throughout the continent….In Africa you are surrounded by people everywhere you go, and the spirit of community is embracing, even in the most impoverished areas."

Thank you Marcus for making food a legitimate religious experience haha, but seriously...this goes along with the new me. I hope to find my deep rooted passion for cooking again and share it with all of the people I love. These recipes are tweaked from his recipes in the book. Enjoy!

Mango Couscous with Shrimp: Serves 4

1lb peeled and deveined shrimp (I used 21/25)
blackening seasoning-to taste
1c couscous
2T olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 mango, peeled, pitted, and medium diced
1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, finely chopped
1/2c raisins
1 tomato, medium diced
juice of 1 lime
1/4c chopped parsley
1/4c chopped cilantro
salt-to taste

Season shrimp with blackening seasoning. Set aside. Cook couscous according to package directions. Set aside. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet over high heat. Add mango, jalapeno, garlic, and saute until the mango begins to color. Stir in the remaining oil, couscous, raisins, tomato, lime juice, cilantro and parsley and toss to heat through. Serve warm or at room temperature. In a separate skillet heat a small amount of oil in the pan. Add shrimp and cook until just opaque. Serve on top of couscous.

Ginger Beer: serves 4-6
Juice of 4 limes
1c orange juice
4c club soda
Two 3 inch pieces of ginger, peeled and coarsely grated
1/2c sugar
4 cloves
4 cardamom pods

Combine the lime juice, orange juice, ginger, sugar, cloves, and cardamom in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour into a bowl and let cool. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Strain and add club soda.