of aubergines and eggplant

October 13, 2009

My friend Caitlin tells me that for the first time in ages more Australians are moving out of the UK than in. She’s one of them.

I met Caitlin in London about two years ago at a networking night for freelance writers. Now, she finds herself living in Noe Valley, a family-oriented corner of San Francisco. I’m lucky that her husband’s a vegetarian, because when I came over for dinner I was in for a delicious surprise.

I’ve read a lot about how San Francisco is possibly the foodie capital of the States, and yet one of my favorite meals so far was far from a restaurant. Caitlin cooked up a wonderful Lebanese aubergine stew served along famous Acme bread and preceded by a silky-smooth butternut squash soup. I had to get the recipe, and now you can try it, too, all while discovering Caitlin’s writings at her blog Roaming Tales.

Culture-shock note: I miss my bike and am absolutely amazed at how San Franciscans can power up hills the way they do. And after getting in a cab that circled aimlessly around the hills trying to get me back to Liz’s, I must affirm that London cabbies are really the best in the world. Full stop.

next stop: Kerala

comments

Caitlin October 17, 2009 at 21:32

Thanks for the post – I hope you are loving your yoga retreat right now!

Your readers should know that when I made the dish for you, I cooked the chickpeas from scratch and used fresh in-season tomatoes. (To peel them, you put the tomatoes in a saucepan at a rolling boil and then remove and allow to cool – the skin should then easily come away). My recipe says to use cans, which is great for winter cooking or if you’re in a hurry, but it was definitely nicer with the fresh stuff.

I have been discovering San Francisco’s bike paths and it really is extraordinary how they seem to completely avoid the hills. I can get from here to downtown and back without going up or down a hill, and allegedly there is also a hill-free route out to Golden Gate Park.