She had us close our eyes and visualize a path. There were no specifics other than that at first: just visualize a path.

I immediately thought of the hiking trail in Tennessee Valley, in Marin County, California. This is what the trail looks like as you start your meander from the trailhead to the Pacific:

Then Robin suggested that we engage our other senses — that we feel the ground beneath our feet, that we see and hear what was around us. I could almost hear the scritch-scritch of the sandy gravel  under my feet. I could see the birds making lazy, diving circles in the sky. I could feel the sun shining on my face. It was all-together pleasant.

Then Robin said a few words that transformed the experience from pleasant to powerful.

Trust your path, and know that sometimes, you won’t know exactly where you’re going, but you stay on the path. Trust your path — keep putting one foot in front of the other. The path may curve and meander. You might come to a place where you need to make a decision about which fork in the path to take. But whichever you choose, you will be on your path. Sometimes the steps might be uncomfortable; the sky may grow cloudy, the path may become shady or rocky. But eventually, the sun will shine, the path beneath your feet will become smooth. Trust your path.

We used the visualization at different times throughout the class to keep us focused and engaged during meditation. Sometimes, my perspective of myself on the path was my point-of-view: when I looked down, I saw my feet in the dirt. When I glanced around, I saw the brilliant blue sky and rolling green hills.

Other times, I saw myself from above, a zooming shot from the clouds. I looked small, but determined. I saw myself committed, moving with intention toward… I don’t know. The future? Destiny? Or maybe just a really good snack?

And at one point during our meditation, I saw myself dancing along the path, like this:

As we moved through class, I moved further along the path. Sometimes I tromped up the hillside…

As I got closer to the beach, I could see the mist coming off the Pacific…

… and when I crossed over the last crest, I was greeted with wide swaths of blue.

When I finally reached the waves, I could imagine the fresh air rolling onto the beach.

And I realized that in Tennessee Valley, the path ends at the beach. But it’s not really the end, is it? A wanderer can turn north and climb the rocks to see what’s on the other side. Or head south to scramble over the headleads and find what lies beyond.

Trust your path, and know that sometimes, you won’t know exactly where you’re going. Keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Last week, I knocked off work early and spent a few hours with my dear friend Stacey chopping and stirring in a cooking class at Thai Fresh. It’s one of those only-in-Austin places that’s an authentic Thai restaurant attached to Thrice, a super cozy coffee-and-wine bar with wireless and live music (because every coffee and/or wine bar in Austin is pretty much required to have live music). In addition to serving generous portions of lovingly made Thai food, courtesy of the chef/instructor Jam, the space also offers cooking classes three days a week and includes a neat little shopping area stocked with essential Thai ingredients.

First, feast your eyes on the photos of our happy, curry-and-pad-thai-making adventures, then I’ll share the things I learned while smelling galangal and lemongrass at Thai Fresh. (Apologies in advance to Jam and to you for the photos. My pro photog Dave wasn’t there with his mad skills and sexy camera to capture beautiful photographs. It was just me, with my iPhone, so… yeah. I did my best.)

This is Thai Fresh. There are wonderful smells and scrumptious meals inside those doors.

This is Stacey and me. She was my favorite partner in crime at the Corporate Overlords, and every time I see her, I want to squeeze her ’til her guts come out. We played “You Know How You Could Do That?” many times while eating lunch together in the break room at work, and along with my mom and dad, she is my most trusted recipe tester. It was badass to be reunited with her over a hot plate and skillet; we might have been whispering to each other while the teacher was talking. Maybe.

That’s Jam on the right, along with a few other students. She was funny, smart, and showed us some insider tips on making Thai food that you just don’t find when you read most recipe blogs and cookbooks. Her technique instructions have inspired me to share more of the how of my recipes, in addition to the what.  Jam has a blog packed with Thai recipes that I recommend you visit for tasty ideas.

The first dish we made was coconut chicken soup. This Thai menu classic is flavored with Thai chiles, fish sauce, lime juice, lemongrass, and galangal. As it turns out, galangal is a member of the ginger family, but there’s a substantial difference between galangal and ginger. On-the-fly cooking usually means the substitution of ginger in home kitchens, but that’s why the soup in a Thai restaurant tastes ever so much better than the home version. From now on, it’s galangal for me, or no soup. Jam also showed us how to cut and bruise galangal and lemongrass so they release their exotic flavors and aromas into the pot.

While we ate the soup, we also enjoyed a chilled bottle of sparkling rosé Vinho Verde. It was happy hour so the bottle was the same price as two glasses. What?! So?! It was happy hour.

For the record, this wine was perfect for eating Thai food on a summery day: light, just a little sweet, but still crisp. Also: pink.

Next up was red curry, and Jam gave us the low-down on the best ingredients. She’s committed to using fresh, high-quality ingredients with a minimum of preservatives and added junk. She recommends Aroy-D coconut milk because it contains no preservatives, and Maesri Red Curry Paste. (Both of these products are available from Amazon, so if you can’t find them locally, there’s always internet magic. Just follow those links.) For more on Thai ingredients — what they are, how to prepare them, etc. — the Thai Fresh web site has a super informative page all about it.

When the red curry was done, there was a flurry of additional cooking before we ate again. We stirred up some pad thai, and my theory about the allure of that noodle dish was confirmed. You know why the pad thai in a restaurant tastes so freakin’ good? It includes three versions of sugar: palm sugar, white sugar, and tamarind. Oh, sweet, sweet poison! I love hate accept you.

Jam also showed us how she steams glutinous rice to make the heavenliest dessert in the world: sticky rice with coconut cream and mango.

Then we loaded up our plates with the food we made and set about congratulating ourselves on its deliciousness. The photo of my plate in no way does justice to how good the food tasted. (The reason it looks all soupy is that I didn’t take too much steamed rice from the buffet, but I wanted that luscious red curry sauce — of which I managed to slurp every drop.)

What I Learned At My Thai Cooking Class

1. A hands-on class is really fun.
This was my first hands-on cooking class (except for all the times I cooked at the side of my dad and mom), and I’m looking forward to more. The stories and insider tips, along with seeing how a seasoned pro does something, was really beneficial, and I feel like it lit up parts of my brain that were sitting stagnant. It’s also a wonderful way to spend time with friends and enjoy a pretty cool shared experience.

2. I only think I miss authentic pad thai.
The pad thai we made was delicious, no doubt about it. But my tastes have changed in the three years that I’ve been eating paleo. The coconut soup and red curry were definitely more to my liking because they were silky and succulent, but not too sweet. My Paleo Pad Thai recipe isn’t authentic, but it’s close enough for me — and when I want authentic Thai food, I’ll stick to the paleo-friendly options like curries and soups, without the added sugar.

3. Wine + pad thai is not conducive to quality sleep.
I woke up at 2:30 a.m., wide awake and feeling kind of amped. Oh, paleo! You have ruined me for indulging in too many treats. Lesson learned: wine or sugary food once in a while, but not both. For real. (On the up side, I took advantage of being awake and practiced my LovingKindness meditation, then I went back to sleep.)

4. The right ingredients make all the difference.
This is not a new idea, of course, but it’s worth repeating. We used galangal (not ginger), fish sauce (not soy sauce… although I did take a fresh bottle of coconut aminos in my purse, just in case), garlic chives (not onion chives), and the coconut milk and curry paste that Jam deems the best. The resulting dishes tasted rich and layered, honoring the Thai tradition of representing the five flavors: spicy, salty, sweet, sour, and bitter. I’m all for shortcuts when it’s necessary — like, when it’s 7:03 p.m. and I’m hungry like the wolf. And I clearly have no problem paleoizing versions of traditional recipes in an attempt to get them back onto my plate. But when an a dish complies with paleo guidelines, and there’s time to get it right, it always makes sense to use the authentic, freshest, highest-quality version of an ingredient.

5. Sharing good food with friends is the best thing ever.
That needs no explanation.

Related Links

Jam’s Thai Cooking Blog
Public & Private Thai Cooking Classes
Thai Ingredients
About Thai Fresh

photo - flickr.com/photos/undergroundbastard/

In my quest for lean superhero-ness, I’m following the Wendler 5/3/1 strength training program. Twice a week, Dave and I are hitting the craptastic gym in our Converse to lift heavy and crank through a mini-metcon.

Hello, summer.

Dave and I are going on a yoga retreat next week in Tulum, Mexico… seven days of sand, surf, sun, and Satnam. (More on that later this week.)

When we went to Costa Rica a few weeks ago, my favorite bathing suit (black scoop neck tank with long, rock-n-roll fringes) popped an underwire. Very upsetting! And I decided my other stand-by — an athletic-shaped, black scoop front-scoop back — was serviceable, but not totally vacation worthy.

But I hate shopping, and I’m kind of a cheapskate, so it’s hard to get me to spend money on things I don’t deem essential. (My essentials? Food, books, Smudge’s food… and that’s about it.)

Thank goodness for smart Internet friends like Holly. Her post “Real Life Style: Look Foxy In A Bathing Suit – No Starving or Exercise Required” convinced me to at least try to find a new bathing suit for this summer. Something that would make me feel fun and flirty and fit.

Rather than focusing on my flaws — a little more belly than I’d like; left arm bigger than right arm; arms, in general, just lookin’ a little too meaty — I decided to shine the spotlight on the good stuff.

Legs: I have thighs like hams, and I like ‘em. They’re short, but they’re in proper proportion with the rest of my body, and they look strong.

Boobies: I’m not always glad they’re there, but bathing suit time is a pretty sweet time to have them.

Collar Bones / Shoulders: They’re not quite as defined as they used to be, but they still look feminine and strong, so I’ll take ‘em.

I decided to hit up Land’s End because they have cute separates that offer plenty of support for the… um, er… the Girls. Plus, I la-la-love swimming skirts because they remind me of old Hollywood. I chose these three pieces. Cute right?!

(In case you care, they’re the SwimMini, Princess Tankini, and Halter Tankini. They’re all available in other colors, too, so don’t be put off by the all-black theme to which I will always remain loyal.)

So, friends — both female and male — if you’re sweating the fact that the temps outside mean bare arms, legs, shoulders, back, and, potentially, tummy — or if you’ve been stalling on the torture of [dressing room + expensive bits of spandex + bad lighting] keep these things in mind:

(1) We’re all with you and/or we’ve all been there. Some seasons are better than others for body image. But you can survive it — and maybe you’ll be happily surprised.

(2) Read this post from Holly and take her good advice. Make an investment in a good quality suit that flatters your body… and then forget about it. The true value of a bathing suit is that it’s the appropriate costume for all kinds of fun adventures: swimming, splashing, Frisbee, snorkeling, lounging, beach running, handstands in the pool, cannonballs, water slides, tubing… and maybe some water ballet!

WARMUP
5:00 elliptical
PVC shoulder mobility
10 slow PVC Frankenstein squats + 10 PVC good mornings
10 slow PVC back squats + 10 PVC good mornings
10 slow PVC OH squats + 10 PVC good mornings
straight-leg march

STRENGTH
Deadlift:
5 @ 75% of max = 135#
3 @ 85% of max = 145#
max reps @ 95% of max = 160# - I did 6.

Dave had 200# on his bar, so I decided to try it. I got into position, contracted my abs, cleared my mind, and… got the bar about 2 inches off the floor before the whole thing kinda collapsed. I rested for a minute or so, and tried again, but  no dice. Thisclose to getting that damn 200# off the floor. Maybe next month!

Bench Press:
5 @ 75% of max = 85#
3 @ 85% of max = 95#
max reps @ 95% of max = 105# – I did 4.

I’m pretty sure that I’ve never benched 105# before. It was exhilarating!

CASHOUT
11:00 AMRAP:
11 push press, 55#
11 kb swings, 12 kg
11 box jumps, 20″ box

I did 5 full rounds plus 5 push press.

How are you feeling about bathing suit season this year?

Rants

Last week, I only had two small rants to share. This week? I had so many articles that made me smash my head against the desk, I had to break them up between this week and next. Sometimes it’s just like that.

Scientific American Busts Some Organic Farming Myths
Prepare to feel stabby. This article gets real about four key points regarding organic farming, and among us friends I gotta say, it made me frown. Here’s a tidbit that will leave a bitter taste in your mouth: “… there are over 20 chemicals commonly used in the growing and processing of organic crops that are approved by the US Organic Standards. And, shockingly, the actual volume usage of pesticides on organic farms is not recorded by the government.” Get the whole story here.

New & Improved: Poison with Less Poison!
Hallellujah! 7-Eleven has added a low-calorie Slurpie to their menu. “Slhttp://www.theclothesmakethegirl.com/wp-admin/post-new.phpurpee Lite will target females in their 20s with this tagline: ‘All flavor. No sugar.’”… “‘We talked to a group who said they would drink Slurpees more often if we take out the sugar and reduce the calories,’ says Laura Gordon, vice president of brand innovation.” Get psyched, everyone. May 23 is “SlurpFree Day.”

I just threw up in my mouth a little.
Seriously. Not even joking about that. This article made me nauseous, so proceed with caution. Employee + meat slicer = missing finger –> teenager’s sandwich. Ew.

Raves

Now that we’re appropriately grossed out and potentially riled up, let’s turn to the stuff that restores our faith in humanity…

Turns Out, It Takes More Than Shoes
Sketchers claimed that some of their shoe lines — like Shape-Ups, Resistance Runner, Toners, and Tone-Ups — could give women toned legs, tighter butts, and a slimmer body “without setting a foot in a gym.” Sounds bogus, right?! So bogus that the Federal Trade Commission has called bullsh*t. Sketchers has agreed to pay $40 million to settle complaints that the company deceived its consumers. Sketchers still purports that they told the truth about the magical powers of their shoes, but “could not ignore the exorbitant cost and endless distraction of several years spent defending multiple lawsuits in multiple courts across the country.” I wish they’d confess their culpability in selling false dreams, but at least some people will get their money back… so they can buy Inov-8s and hit the gym.

I feel the same way about my Sitti bowl.
I love this story about a girl, a baking sheet, and big dreams. As anyone who’s read Well Fed knows, I have a deep, abiding affection for my Sitti bowl (named for my great-grandmother and used almost every day in my kitchen). Do you have a favorite piece of kitchen equipment? Share in comments!

Growing Old is Definitely Not for Sissies
And neither is high fashion. I dare you to not be delighted by these photos of women of a certain age rocking it hard in killer couture. As I’ve told you before, I’m modeling myself after the athletes in the book Growing Old is not for Sissies — and hardcore fashion pics of elderly ladies speak directly to the fashionista inside me. Barbells with a side of Prada, Chloé, and Miu Miu when I’m 70-something? F*ck, yeah.

photo shamelessly borrowed from Tom and Lorenzo

While we’re talking about fashion…
If you’re not reading Tom and Lorenzo, you are cheating yourself out of a luscious treat. It’s the fashion+bitchy-brilliant writing equivalent of fresh mango +coconut cream: indulgent and worth guilt-inducing-even-though-it’s-not-really-bad-for-you bite.

No matter how gentle I am, mine always turns to mush.
The Kitchn (for which I will always have a soft spot since they gave me the “Best Healthy Cooking Blog” award) lays down some science on “How to Make Better Guacamole.”

Just for Fun

From BoingBoing.net, I think every cook needs Kitchen Kong:

I don’t want to ruin the surprise by saying too much, but I think you will laugh with delight if you click on this link. Like, really laugh out loud. A lot. (I am 12.) And oh! Good golly! Be sure to read the “About” page, too.

Right on!

From Beauty has no BMI:
Please, please subscribe to their RSS and get these awesome messages on a regular basis.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! Dave and I are on very official business in San Antonio today, exploring the Pearl Farmer’s Market and touring the Culinary Institute of America for future blog posts (Thanks, Austin Food Blogger Alliance!). Tomorrow is our much-needed secular sabbath. Be good to yourselves while I’m unplugged — see you back here Monday.

photo - flickr.com/photos/undergroundbastard/

In my quest for lean superhero-ness, I’m following the Wendler 5/3/1 strength training program. Twice a week, Dave and I are hitting the craptastic gym in our Converse to lift heavy and crank through a mini-metcon.

I need a revamp.

I’ve been consistently throwing around the heavy barbells twice a week since January, and I love what it’s doing for my confidence and my frame. True, I’m still broader and heavier than I want to be — I feel like I get very “bulldog-y” when I gain weight… very dense — but I can see the scaffolding that sits underneath the external mushiness growing stronger and tighter. This is movement in the right direction.

But I’m not feeling fired up and inspired by my training. I often felt terror and joy when confronted with my CrossFit workouts, and I miss that very much (along with the social side of CrossFit Austin and my dear workout buddies in the morning class there). But given my hormones right now, my body is simply not ready for those high-intensity hits yet. My inner 8-year-old is throwing a hissy fit of epic proportions these days, demanding workouts that include a little glamour, a little sexiness, a little what-what that makes me feel like a super badass when I’m done.

So while my pre-teen self is whining and eye rolling, the adult in me is thinking honestly about what to do with myself this summer. What kind of plan can I put together for June, July, and August to make myself feel fit, accomplished, happy, and — please, oh please, oh please — leaner?

The yoga and meditation need to stay. The strength training is a given. Based on this very wise article from Whole9, I should probably be enjoying more low-intensity activity in my life, and I’m committed to GetUpStandUp on the days that I’m at my desk for long stretches. I also really love hitting the trail with Zombies, Run!, and I’d like to be doing more body weight movements that increase my heart rate but don’t wipe me out.

Putting all of that together in a sensible plan is going to be no small feat, but I’m going to make it happen. Damn it.

I’m going to chew on it all over the weekend to get a plan together for Monday and the start of a new week. I need to get back that feeling of zing wow! about my workouts, rather than the decidedly meh approach I’ve been feeling lately. It’s the foodie equivalent of eating plain poached chicken breast and steamed broccoli. I want to feast on workouts made up of — metaphorically, of course — spicy stuff like Merguez Meatballs, refreshing stuff like Vietnamese Chicken Salad, and luscious stuff like Tropical Chopped Salad.

To stretch this point to breaking, I need a workout plan I can sink my teeth into. (Sorry.)

WARMUP
5:00 elliptical
PVC shoulder mobility
10 slow PVC Frankenstein squats + 10 PVC good mornings
10 slow PVC back squats + 10 PVC good mornings
10 slow PVC OH squats + 10 PVC good mornings
straight-leg march

STRENGTH
Back Squat:
3 @ 70% of max = 100#
3 @ 80% of max = 110#
max reps @ 90% of max = 125# – I did 6.

Bench Press:
3 @ 70% of max = 75#
3 @ 80% of max = 90#
max reps @ 90% of max = 100# – I did 6.
(According to the 5/3/1 strength training program, that means my estimated 1 rep max is now 119#. Um, that would be a killer new PR. I’m thinking about doing a real 1 rep max day to kick off June training to see if that estimate is on the money.)

Bonus Fun:
bench press: 10 reps @ 65#
lat pull: 2 X 10 reps @ 80#

How are you feeling about your summer training plan?

photo - flickr.com/photos/undergroundbastard/

In my quest for lean superhero-ness, I’m following the Wendler 5/3/1 strength training program. Twice a week, Dave and I are hitting the craptastic gym in our Converse to lift heavy and crank through a mini-metcon.

Well, that was unpleasant.

Sometimes, I just don’t want to. I look at the barbell, and I know it’s going to be heavy, and I just don’t want to pick it up.

Yesterday was kind of like that. All day long.

I didn’t want to pick up the barbell. I didn’t want to test recipes. I didn’t want to set the timer and move every 60 minutes. And I really, really, really didn’t want to do the editing I needed to do on two chapters for Living Paleo for Dummies. There was no good reason for my reluctance. I wasn’t tired, ill, hungry, or overwrought (all legitimate reasons to go easy). I just didn’t want to.

Dave calls it “resistance.” I call it pouty face.

Whatever name you give it, it’s that internal stubbornness that wants to prevent you from doing the thing that is true and rewarding and just — and often just what you need.

But here’s the thing that CrossFit, meditation, strength training, writing, and my busted-ass thyroid have taught me about resistance: the only course of action is to ignore the voice of resistance and do the thing.

Pick up the barbell. Pack your lunch. Go to the  meeting. Take a rest day. Sit your godforsaken ass in the chair and do the editing (maybe that one is just me).

Whatever it is that you need to do — for you, for your family, for your career — shut down that voice inside and do it. Then see what happens.

I’ll tell you what happened to me yesterday. I picked up the damn barbell and put it down… and picked it up and put it down. And before I could even really put a full-on pout on my face, I was done. I’d completed eight beautiful reps at 90% of my max. Hmmmph.

And when I finally sat my sorry butt in the chair to do my editing, it took one hour — One hour! I tortured myself all day thinking about it, and it took one hour. And you know what? It was fun, too. Hmmmph X 2.

In meditation, the idea is not to be completely shut off from the outside world, but to focus on the breath moving in and out of our bodies, while we also simultaneously acknowledge the sensations around us — smells, sounds, tingles, tickles, itches, whatever — without getting caught up in them. Interesting, there’s an itch. Hmmm, I’d like to stop now. And then a gentle return to paying attention to the breath.

Overcoming resistance is a similar experience. The answer is to simply focus on doing the thing that resistance is very clearly telling me not to do. I acknowledge the resistance — Hi, Resistance! What up, bro?! — but I keep on moving.

It’s not unlike when I wrote about getting comfortable with being uncomfortable on the front squat. Once I stop fighting the sensation, it melts away. But to be clear, it’s not the same as surrendering to it. Rather, the trick is to almost embrace resistance, and when it gets close enough to wrap your arms around it, you steal its power: Come here, Resistance! I’m gonna give you a big hug! [noogie, noogie]

WARMUP
5:00 elliptical
PVC shoulder mobility
10 slow PVC Frankenstein squats + 10 PVC good mornings
10 slow PVC back squats + 10 PVC good mornings
10 slow PVC OH squats + 10 PVC good mornings
straight-leg march

STRENGTH
Deadlift:
3 @ 70% of max = 120#
3 @ 80% of max = 135#
max reps @ 90% of max = 155# – I did 8.

Overhead Press:
3 @ 70% of max = 60#
3 @ 80% of max = 70#
max reps @ 90% of max = 75# – I did 5.

bonus fun: 10 reps @ 55#

How do you overcome resistance — with a hug or a kick in the ass?

But on to the good news!

Well Fed is now available on the Kindle. Get it right here!

Amazon totally came through for us. Their Kindle division got in touch with us a few months ago and offered to do a Kindle conversion for us for free because they wanted to get “good cookbooks onto the Kindle.” Dave is a Kindle devotee, and I’m a 100% print books girl, and we both think they did a bang-up job of translating Well Fed into the digital realm.

Cool Stuff About the Kindle Version

1. There’s a little bit of graphic design.
The team at Amazon did a great job of retaining some of the look-and-feel of the print version, without making it annoying. On the Kindle Fire version, the photos and graphics are in color — and in the traditional Kindle version, you get black and white photos, with nice font variations and spot graphics.

2. Everything is linked.
As you’d expect, the Table of Contents and Index both link to all the recipes, so it’s easy to jump around. And where the individual recipes “Tastes Great With…” there are handy links to those recipes, too.

3. Get the PDF for $1.
Just like the print version, the Kindle version includes a special code so you can download the PDF version for $1… just in case you want to go old school and print a few pages — or put it on your iPhone so it’s always with you at the grocery store.

Dear Kindle friends, thank you for your patience while we got the Kindle version ready for you. We really hope you like it! Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below so when Well Fed, Volume 2 comes out in 2013, we know what you like.

So… here are snaps and stories from my birthday celebration on Tuesday, May 1 when I turned the thoroughly unglamorous and unremarkable age of 44.

Even though I said I don’t do that whole “birthday weekend celebration” thing, I actually did start celebrating a little bit early with a trip to Half-Price Books on Sunday. I had just finished reading the thoroughly suspenseful Prague Fatale by Philip Kerr. It was jam-packed with Nazis and intrigue and beautiful women and plenty of noirish wise-cracking. I devoured it and decided I needed to read the Berlin Noir trilogy immediately. So off we went to Half Price Books, where I scored as if the store knew it was my birthday and wanted to play along.

I find a lovingly used copy of Berlin Noir (for $5!) — the pages of which make a perfect crackling sound when flipped because they’re both very thin and already broken in — as well as a $7-copy of This Body of Lies, #16 in  Elizabeth George’s Inspector Lynley series (another favorite of mine).

But the best of all might be what I found in the Bargain Books corner: six installments of the Time-Life Foods of the World cookbook series for a measly $1 a piece.

A few months ago I read some blog posts about other foodies’ affection for these books — like this one and this one — and decided I need to read them. They’re hardcover and photographed in lurid, saturated, full-on 1970s style. Written as travelogues with recipes, they document the beginning of when American cooks started to become interested in learning about other cultures through their cuisines. The books are out of print, but show up in sets and singles on eBay fairly regularly. I decided to make it a non-urgent hobby to see if I could find them and bam! the birthday spirits threw six of the 27 titles in my path. (Curious? Wikipedia has more details.)

Here’s my stack which includes Middle Eastern, Russian, Chinese, Germany, American: Creole and Acadian, and the piéce de resistance: A Quintet of Cuisines which covers Switzerland; The Low Countries; Poland, Bulgaria and Romania; and North Africa. The introduction to the book describes — in hilariously, stiff prose — how these four regions came to be lumped together. I’m sure I’ll be sharing bon mots from these books in the future. For now: feast your eyes.

And this is just one breathtaking page from inside Middle Eastern Cooking:

OK! Now… imagine that thing they do in movies where everything gets all swirly to indicate we’re traveling through time… swirly, swirly, swirly…

It’s May 1! My birthday! The plan was to get up and take a walk around the lake, then go out for lunch, take a nap, and head to kundalini yoga. But the best thing about having a birthday is that on your day, you get to do whatever you want, so I changed my mind.

We did take a walk around the lake, and here’s proof:

Turtles!

 A ducky mom and babies!

After a leisurely brunch at Habanero and a short stint on the couch to watch Hell’s Kitchen while Dave wrapped my presents, I decided that rather than meditating at kundalini, I wanted to put on some eyeliner and heels to sip champagne.

Eyeliner:

Heels:

Champagne:

We went to Opa!, a lovely wine and coffee bar in South Austin. The chairs are comfy and the soundtrack was all ’80s music. I kid you not, when we walked in, Duran Duran was playing. Birthday magic! I opened my presents from my parents (gorgeous wind chime, Well Fed floor mat for my kitchen) and Dave (totally badass rimmed baking sheets, the game ChickenFoot, an armband for my iPhone so I can run from the zombies more efficiently, and two books: a collection of essays called A Moveable Feast: Life Changing Food Adventures Around the World and Mana’s Homesick Pie: A Persian Heart in an American Kitchen.)

Continuing the Bday magic, when we were getting ready to leave for dinner, we were gifted a lovely piece of baklava from the barista. Which I ate. As an appetizer. Before dinner at Barley Swine. ‘Cause it was my birthday.

Halfway intoxicated on champagne and sugar, we posed for self-portraits…

And headed off to Barley Swine…

The accolades for Barley Swine are very impressive — GQ named it one of the top 10 restaurants in the U.S. and Food & Wine designated chef/owner Bryce Gilmore one of the best new chefs of 2011. But that made me nervous; Austin has been known to not live up to the hype. Man, I love it when I’m wrong! Every moment of our Barley Swine experience was as perfect as it could be. The atmosphere was energetic but chill. The service was first-class but friendly. And the food was not only “an experience,” it was delicious.

Hang on, it’s a bumpy, non-paleo roller coaster ride, but it’s all kinds of fun.

First, the menu. I took notes about each plate while Dave snapped pics with his iPhone; click the photo to enlarge, if you want to see my (increasingly drunken) scribble.

They’re small plates, so we ended up ordering all but three things on the menu. It was a non-stop parade of deliciousness…

#1. Beets, mole, grilled greens, goat cheese, popcorn
(Notes: “OMG. Popcorn!”)

When our server saw me trying to scoop up the last bites of yumminess left on the plate, she awarded me with this tiny rubber scraper so I didn’t have to humiliate myself by licking the plate.

#2. Scrambled duck egg, morels, green beans, goat feta, pecans
(Notes: “Holy shit. The pecans and feta make it.”)
This was Dave’s favorite dish of the night.

#3. Gulf shrimp, mango, pork fat, radish
I got to eat this all by myself ’cause Dave’s allergic to seafood.

The fried head was the best!

#4. Foie gras, rutabaga, pickled strawberry, parmesan
(Notes: “OMG. Parmesan.”)
My champagne and Dave’s beer forgot to remind us to take a photo of this plate before we decimated it. Sorry!

#5. Chicken fried chicken egg, grilled rabbit, mustard, hay grits
Our server explained to me how they fried the egg, but if I tell you the secret, I’ll have to kill you. You can barely see it under the greens in the photo — it’s that tan-ish orb in the background. It was crispy-fried on the outside, like fried chicken, and inside, the yolk was still tender and slightly runny. AMAZING!

#6. Pork belly, zucchini, pine nuts, nicoise olives
(Notes: “Best pork belly I’ve ever eaten.”)
The olives were dried and powdered (!) so they were like black diamond dust. The flavors were all perfectly balanced, and the pork belly itself was meaty and tender.

#7. Grilled quail, duck liver dirty rice, charred leek, hoe cake
This was my favorite dish of the night. I usually shy away from quail because, honestly, eating a tiny bird kinda freaks me out. BUT, the dirty rice plus corn cake won out over squeamishness, and I’m thrilled that it did. That tasty little thing was stuffed with the most luscious dirty rice, and the crispy bits of bird with tender, sweet hoe cake was… sigh.

#8. Coffee rubbed brisket, barbecued beans, slaw
(Notes: “I looked at the meat, and it fell apart.”)
The description on the menu didn’t get me super excited. I mean, there is BBQ EVERYWHERE in this town. But Dave said something, like, “Don’t you think if they put brisket on the menu it’s going to be something special?!” So we ordered it. We are geniuses. The other scribbled note on my copy of the menu says, “I would murder someone to get to it.”

When the savory hedonism was over, we moved on to dessert. And in my champagne-impaired state, I didn’t protest when Dave ordered all three of the dessert options.

Dessert #1: Chocolate swiss cake roll, barley ice cream, hazelnut
Yeah, those are some kind of candied macadamia nuts.

Dessert #2: Cornmeal shortcake, strawberry, buttermilk gelato
(Notes: “white chocolate dust”)

Dessert #3: Ste. Maure goat cheese, grilled zucchini bread, chamomile
(Notes: “Life changing.”)
This was my favorite dessert, and I wish we had lick-o-vision, so you could try it (and I could eat another plate of it right now). The goat cheese was so pungent and the zucchini bread was just the right amount of sweet and buttery.

And there you have it — every single decadent bite of our epic dinner. But before I wrap up, I need to show you the wonderful people that made this one of my best birthdays ever.

This is Billy. We sat at the bar so we could watch the action in the kitchen, and she took our order and made sure we had a good time.

And these are the completely badass chefs that worked their magic in the kitchen…

Should you find yourself in Austin, please do yourself a favor and eat at Barley Swine. For real.

Dave and I have already decided we’re going back for our anniversary in July — and there was some discussion of monthly Smudge Publishing “morale-building events”…

On Thursday morning, we get the next best thing.

Join me on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. EST for BeanChat — it’s a live chat on Facebook sponsored by Gevalia coffee. We’ll talk about some of my favorite things — Prague, CrossFit, yoga, Jane Eyre, and eating paleo — and basically have a lovely visit together. At the end of the chat, the good people of Gevalia will pick a winner to receive free Gevalia coffee. How fun is that?!

Date: Thursday, May 17
Time: 10:00 a.m. eastern / 9:00 a.m. central / 8:00 a.m. mountain / 7:00 a.m. pacific
Place: Gevalia BeanChat on Facebook

The chat opens up just a little before 10:00 a.m. Simply go to the link above and hang out. Easy-peasy.

Please come hang out with me, or I will get verklempt for sure.

Learn more about Gevalia Coffee here and here.

I have a thing about my teeth. I had braces when I was 12, and since then, I’ve been a little distracted by keeping my chompers as white as possible and free of embarrassing bits of food stuck between them.

I use whitening toothpaste and sometimes resort to Crest Whitestrips. I have a pretty badass rotating-head Oral-B toothbrush — and most meals end with me baring my teeth at Dave like a hyena and asking, “Are they OK?” to ensure there’s no stray parsley or spinach hanging out anywhere. And instead of flossing, I do maintenance on my gums with these awesome picks I get from my dentist. (I love you Dr. Bell!)

I’m also an equal-opportunity recipe collector, so I was favorably interested when I got a press release from the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD) about their new free cookbook. “The teeth and gums mirror what’s going on in the rest of your body. Therefore, what you consume influences the health of your smile,” says Dr. Frawley, a dentist in Beverly Hils and a member of the AACD.

No surprise: many of the ingredients recommended in the recipes are paleo-approved. I thought this Carrot-Pineapple Ginger Salad sounded pretty good, so I downloaded the ebook. There are some tasty looking recipes, but my favorite page of the book is the list of foods and how they benefit our teeth. I learned that ginger is an anti-inflammatory that helps keep gums healthy, and pineapple helps promote an alkaline response in the mouth. Also, did you know broccoli forms an acid-resistant coating on teeth that helps prevent enamel erosion?! I love learning that stuff I like to eat has cool functional benefits, too.

Not all of the recipes in the free ebook are completely paleo, so you need to keep your eyes open and do some ingredient swapping, but there’s a recipe for Creamy Wasabi Sauce that I’m pretty excited to try, and a hot, sweet fruit salsa that sounds perfect for summer. Help yourself to the free ebook right here.

And smile.

Hmmm…

Both of these articles stirred up an emotional response in me. They provoked neither a rant nor a rave, but definitely made me think.

Are Most People in Denial About Their Weight?
The piece begins with a somewhat provocative statement: “As the population becomes fatter, study after study shows that instead of feeling bad about ourselves, we have entered a collective state of denial about how big we’re actually getting.” It put my teeth on edge a little, but the rest of the article goes on to describe experiments that might explain both the physiological and psychological aspects of why we don’t always have an accurate perception of how our bodies look. It’s fascinating stuff.

Black Women and Fat
Here’s a whiz-bang kickoff to an article: “…too many experts who are involved in the discussion of obesity don’t understand something crucial about black women and fat: many black women are fat because we want to be.” This article takes a hard look at the possible cultural — and potentially political — reasons that four out of five black women are “seriously overweight.” I love the fight against the Hollywood-skinny norm and the notion that big thighs are beautiful, but the stats on diabetes are scary. May we all find the balance between loving the bodies we have and working to make them as healthy as possible, while still loving them.

Rants

I’m light on the bad news today. That makes me happy.

I’m proud to say I wrote every word of Well Fed.
From a writer’s perspective, this article on ghost writing cookbooks makes it sound like ghost writers get kind of a raw deal — and from a cookbook lover’s perspective, I’m bummed to learn that most celeb chefs don’t even create the recipes in their own cookbooks. I didn’t think they were lashed to the keyboard to type up the recipes and stores, but I assumed they were at least creating the recipes and dictating to a ghost writer. It’s all sort of depressing. Say it isn’t so, Gordon!

Raves

Plenty of good stuff to share…

The Churro Conversation
In which FitBomb’s fatherly logic battles against the evil power of deep-fried sugar. The resulting conversation is delicious.

We Want Paleo
Join the movement to help campaign for restaurants to include more paleo options on their menus! “We’re asking nicely, and will happily reward restaurants with our business if we can be treated to good, healthy, Paleo options when we eat out.”

Oh! That Burpee Guy
Friends, meet Ben, a.k.a., That Burpee Guy. Everyday in 2012, he’s adding one burpee to a burpee ladder to raise money for The Children’s Hospital Foundation in Australia. He’s currently in the mid 130s, and on December 31, 2012, his burpee adventure will culminate in 366 burpees within a 24-hour period. See him in burpee action on his YouTube channel, visit him on Facebook, or make a donation to support him in his mission. Back in my early CrossFit days, I took on a 100 burpee challenge and made it to somewhere in the mid-70s before I decided I just really didn’t want to do burpees every day any more. I applaud Ben’s efforts for a good cause. Go, Burpee Guy! (Read all my burpee adventures right here.)

Super Moon was Super
Last Saturday night was not just a full moon, it was a Super Moon! Boing Boing has a pretty stunning collection of photos from Reuters; here’s a sneak peek. See them all here.

photo: REUTERS/Ali Jarekji

Get Up, Stand Up
A few weeks ago, I told you about my mission to move more throughout the day with my new #GetUpStandUp habit. Here’s a pretty badass standing desk that could also help alleviate the problems associated with sitting all day.

Don’t be a Gluten-Free Zombie
I like the intersection of gluten-free eating and paleo, but I worry about gluten-free eaters who gravitate toward packaged food and treats made with overly-processed flours. This post from Nourished Health does a really nice job of bringing the gluten-free peeps even closer to full-on paleo — and it includes some great reminders for those of us already eating paleo.

Clanky Fun!
Just discovered the band Perhaps Contraption and think they’re super fun. Totally weird and probably only listenable in small doses, but super fun, all the same. They’re a sort of punk rock marching band and remind me, at least in spirit, of another band I love: Kaizers Orchestra from Norway.

Really?!

From BoingBoing.net, I give you fishbowl bras:

Right on!

From Beauty has no BMI:

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! I’m off to read my thoroughly entertaining and engrossing book Berlin Noir by Philip Kerr, then we’re seeing The Avengers, and tomorrow is our much-needed secular sabbath. Be good to yourselves while I’m unplugged — see you back here Monday.