I’m all for trying new things.
OK, that’s the understatement of the century. (And that’s a well-worn cliché that I’m slightly embarrassed to have used, but while in general I’m very much against cliché, that one still rings true to me, and if the shoe fits… [OK, that one I did on purpose.])
I make a habit of trying new things with a somewhat odd approach, first going full throttle on something — anything — new, until suddenly I tire of it and don’t want to do it anymore. And then I find something else.
This has happened with so many things, I don’t even think I can list them all: skateboarding, playing Scrabble, running, surfing, knitting… It’s a habit that earned me the nickname “lobotomy girl” in high school, and while I don’t make the 180s in clothing and hair color I did in the early oughts, I still feel that this constant undercurrent of change is an essential part of what makes me me.
I don’t know what I like so much about it, really — I guess it’s like falling in love, that exciting part of the beginning, the drop on the roller coaster, the first lick of ice cream. The best part comes at the beginning; follow-through is harder.
But there are some things, no matter what, that I keep coming back to.
Reading is one, for sure. While I become excited and obsessed with different genres at different times — dystopian YA, Lost Generation, Indian novels, Beat poets, 19th century French literature, Dickens (yes, Dickens is a category of his own) — I’m rarely without a book in my bag. With one (pretty long) exception — the three years I was getting my Masters in French literature and felt guilty reading anything that wasn’t for school — I’ve had a novel in progress ever since I read my first Babysitters Club.
Travel’s another one, though wanderlust is a better term for it. There were years where I preferred moving to a new place over taking a trip, but these days, I’m addicted to that thrill of discovering a new place, especially, oddly enough, when it’s for work. Interviews of locals open doors into experiences that I never would have had the chance to have otherwise, and I find that my favorite trips lately — Leipzig, Prague, Limoges — have all had a work-related tilt to them, and that has made me love them even more.
And then, of course, there’s the kitchen. I don’t remember when I first got interested in cooking, only that it was the undercurrent of my childhood — the way I related to my grandmother, the way my best friend and I kept ourselves busy on early mornings after sleepovers.
I cook differently than I used to; when I first started this blog, it was all about learning as many recipes and techniques as I could, whereas now it’s more about seeking out seasonal, quality produce and finding new and interesting ways to prepare it, technique be damned. And while sometimes I have days where I feel uninspired, there’s something so reassuring about coming back to the stove again and again, taking ingredients that I’ve touched a thousand times and making something new.
This recipe was inspired by a salad I tried at French organic chain exki, which has an outpost in terminal 2 of the Charles de Gaulle airport (i.e. one of my favorite places in the world). I loved the way it took three fall ingredients that Ã’m so familiar with — sweet potatoes, lentils, and cabbage — and turned them into something that felt gourmet and luxurious. Serving it in a parmentier like this made it even more special.
Sweet Potato and Lentil Parmentier with Cabbage Slaw
1/2 small pointed cabbage
1 tsp. cumin
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
fleur de sel
2 sweet potatoes
1 cup Puy lentils
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. allspice
fleur de sel
Thinly slice the cabbage and place it in a bowl with the cumin, vinegar, oil, and salt. Toss well to combine and allow to sit at least 30 minutes (even better overnight).
Poke the sweet potatoes with a fork and bake in a 400 degree oven until soft inside. Peel them and season with fleur de sel. Use an immersion blender to purée them completely and set aside.
While the sweet potatoes are cooking, cook the Puy lentils in unseasoned water for 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and season with fleur de sel, cumin, and allspice.
Use a pastry ring or an old tuna can with the top and bottom removed to plate the parmentiers. Fill the bottom with sweet potato, and top with the lentils. Tamp down a bit, then lift off the ring. Top with cabbage and serve warm or cold.