A New Take on Cacio e Pepe + author Mason Currey!
Plus conversations with weirdos, the best salsa, and Seattle stops!
This week, I’m sharing a recipe from the new Love + Lemons cookbook and a Freak Your Week from Mason Currey, one of my all-time favorite authors!
Hi!
Thanks for all the Seattle reccs! I ended up eating at Plum (the brunch was amazing), Ben + Esther’s (a vegan Jewish deli), and Rojo’s Mexican Food (a new plant-based taco shop). Everything was so, so good and the IKAT and Empathy exhibits at Seattle Art Museum were chef’s and highly recommend.
As soon as I hit send on this letter – I’m headed outside to expand my new cottage garden by a few feet (I can’t stop) and find a home for this dude in the garden. I picked him up at a big community garden yard sale yesterday - and his tag made me happy.
This week’s newsletter is super special, because both authors’ books have consumed a lot of my life (in a good way). First up, Mason Currey. According to my records (a glance at Amazon), I have bought his book Daily Rituals twenty times (not counting the times I bought from IRL bookshops). It’s my go-to gift for everyone – from a good friend in need of some inspiration to the doctor that did my breast reduction ( I really did give him a copy as a thank you). Personally, Daily Rituals changed the way I thought about my creative process, and I’m forever grateful. And then there’s Jeanine Donofrio, author of the Love & Lemons cookbook series. Her recipes are always in rotation in our house because they’re so simple and delicious. And the layout and type treatments in her books are perfection (if you love a big serif with contrasty thicks and thins (think Bodoni)…it’s a dream).
Alright! Let’s get to it!
As always, thanks for being here.
Love,
Jessica
The Things That Freaked My Week With Mason Currey
Our guest: Mason Currey is the author of the Daily Rituals books, featuring brief profiles of the day-to-day working lives of more than 300 brilliant minds. He’s currently working on a new book and writing Subtle Maneuvers on Substack.
Here’s Mason’s picks!
Kinto travel tumbler
Lots of thermoses will keep your hot beverage hot, but this one has an elegantly designed two-piece lid that is actually pleasant to sip from, unlike any of the other versions I’ve tried. And it comes in a bunch of cool colors.
Aldous Harding
I only discovered Harding’s music a couple weeks ago and have been obsessed with it, especially her 2022 album, Warm Chris, and the many YouTube videos of her performing its songs on her most recent tour. That stage presence!
Commonplace podcast
I love podcasts but at the moment I can’t bear to listen to any more true-crime investigations, self-improvement advice, or political analysis. One genre I’m not tired of: long, digressive conversations with contemporary poets, which the writer Rachel Zucker has been hosting since 2016. I started with her recent episode with Eileen Myles and have been gradually working my way through the archive (Bernadette Mayer is another highlight). Poets are, almost by definition, interesting weirdos and I feel like listening to this show is helping me tap into my most authentic weirdo self.
Papalote salsa
Years ago, my wife introduced me to this roasted-tomato elixir from San Francisco’s Mission District, and we made a point to bring home jars of it from our occasional visits to the Bay. Now you can get it at Whole Foods! The flavor profile maybe bears a slight resemblance to Nacho Cheese Doritos? I mean that as high praise.
Chickpea Cacio e Pepe From Love & Lemons Simple Feel Good Food
It was hard choosing a recipe to feature from this the new Love & Lemons cookbook: Love and Lemons Simple Feel Good Food: 125 Plant-Focused Meals to Enjoy Now or Make Ahead. Usually publishers only let you choose from a handful - but Jeanine (the author) said I could choose any, making it hard! I went with this Chickpea Cacio e Pepe because 1. I’d never seen Cacio e Pepe made with chickpeas. 2. I figured you might already have all the ingredients on hand and you could make this tonight. And 3. It’s really tasty (I made it last week).
I served mine with some seared garlicky broccoli on top (next time I’m going to do a medley of roasted mushrooms and sautéed spinach). What I love about Jeanine’s recipes is that most feel like a base to add whatever veggies, spices, and herbs you love to make it your own. Alright, here’s the recipe!
Chickpea Cacio e Pepe
12 ounces bucatini, spaghetti, or linguine pasta
¾ cup cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons white miso paste
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ to 1 cup reserved pasta water
Lemon wedges, for serving (optional)
Sea salt
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare the pasta according to the package instructions, cooking until al dente. During the last few minutes of cooking, scoop out 1 cup of the hot pasta water.
In a blender, place the chickpeas, olive oil, miso paste, nutritional yeast, ½ teaspoon of the black pepper, and ½ cup of the reserved pasta water and blend until creamy.
Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Stir in the sauce. It should be lightly creamy. If it’s too thick, add up to ½ cup more pasta water.
Serve with the remaining ½ teaspoon black pepper and lemon wedges, if desired.
From Love & Lemons Simple Feel Good Food Cookbook
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