Issue No. 26: Big Year!
I know you care so much about everything I ate in December, sorry to ruin your Day 3 of your January diet
There's so many things to talk about it. Quite frankly, I'm stumped on where to even begin. It’s been a month since I last wrote, mostly due to the fact that yes, you guessed it, the children were ill for a while. But I’m not here to make excuses for myself. It's 2024 for crying out loud.
Briefly, my last issue of E&C, Cheerio Antiphons, was featured in the Advent issue of
, a liturgical living guild newsletter that showcases the work of so many amazing writers! I was honored to be a part, and if you have come my way from there, welcome!It’s me, Allison. I’m a wildly erratic writer when I’m not wiping yogurt off a high chair or bemoaning the fact that I don’t live in near an H-E-B anymore. If you should know, I’m keeping my goals for the new year pretty simple. Just your basic things like “Go Outside” and “Do Laundry.” Simply providing full disclosure for the kind of publication you’ve stumbled upon.
Quick Pause — If you want to become a paid subscriber, thank you ever so kindly for supporting my work as a writer. I plan to offer more frequent meal plan posts (2-3 times per month) for paying subscribers! You can get 20% off paid subscriptions this year if you subscribe by the end of January.
So I think we really should just dive right into things.
We are all awash in the bracing cold of a new January, brimming with verve and intention for the New Year. And you know who does not care a lick that I want to begin my day with an hour of prayer and solitude? My sweet sweet one year old. He's rip roaring awake at approximately 5:30 a.m. every day and, oh yeah, I will spend literally every minute of the day with him for the next thirteen hours. Gosh darn it, Simon, we are trying to be resolute in our GOALS. Speaking of which, my number one goal for the year is Go Outside. Please remind me of this in April when wind is tearing through OKC at alarming speeds.
Last year was a watershed Big Year for us—aren't they all?—and this just in on the wire, another big one is well underway. (It's been, ahem, less than 72 hours). I'm beginning to think we are using the phrase "It was a Big Year" too liberally, because perhaps lots of things happen in our lives all the time. I say that, but indeed 2023 was pretty up there on the Richter scale. We moved to a new state, new job, new church, new house. I started a very small company. We drove to Texas a billion times. It was good. It was hard. Laughed cried prayed hoped yearned, etc. etc.
As your resident Nostalgic Nelly, I’m always going to be into reflecting on the past and probably dwelling on it for an undue amount of time. I’ve been doing “end of year reflection question guides from all my favorite writers” for the past ten days. Namely,
& , thank you for your guidance in these reflections!But yes, a lot happened in my little family’s life this year. January 2023 looks really different from January 2024. It was not an easy year—I don’t recommend moving to a new state if you’re looking for a nice relaxing few months—but I’m grateful for the brave decisions we made. When I think back to the goodbyes we said to people we love, the trepidatious hellos we extended to people who didn’t know us at all, I do feel like I’m finding my footing.
Looking forward, I want to be honest. I will not be reinventing myself. I like to cook. I like to read and write. I like to procrastinate because I love the absolute thrill of working feverishly on a deadline late into the night. And most significantly, I hate running. Don't look for me on the trails. However, I do intend to challenge myself to live in a more grounded, present manner.
Lately, I've seen several writers I follow who are un-onlining their life this year. After a decade of Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, it seems lots of people are ready for other things. I feel that same desire too. I want to explore the world with my kids and not worry about having to share those moments with anyone but them. I want to go on walks and notice the birds that live in my backyard. You know you're pretty much doomed to normalcy when you start talking about watching birds, and I'm perfectly fine with that. I want to read and write, to tackle the mountain of books on my nightstand that I never seem to get to. I want to learn another language, learn to sew, relearn to read music. I want to cultivate a rich interior life of learning, not just mindlessly consuming digital content that disconnects me from my surroundings.
So I’m thinking I’ll mostly just keep posting here on Substack, and hard as it is to not watch cooking videos on Instagram til midnight, I’m going to be doing a whole lot less of that. I'll turn 30 in 2025, and I'm hoping to spend this last year of my twenties planting seeds for a new decade. If I could accomplish my simple goals of going outside, reading daily, and moving my body, I feel like I could call it another Big Year.
What about you? Any reasonable aspirations?
XOXO
Allison
The Bookshelf
While I did not read as many books as I wanted to in 2023, I did read a lot of good stuff on Substack. Here's who I'm loving lately:
Currently reading:
This Is Your Mind on Plants by Michael Pollan.
I have enjoyed this interesting read which focuses on three powerful plant substances that alter our state of consciousness when we consume them: opium, caffeine, and mescaline. To be clear I do not plan on ingesting opium or mescaline pretty much ever in my life, but learning about them has been fascinating. Pollan's section on caffeine was incredibly illuminating on just how much coffee changed the entire trajectory of western civilization. If you like science, memoir, and food writing, check it out.
Also on my shelf:
Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution by R.F. Kuang
I tend toward fiction that reads like history, and this definitely falls into that category. Of course, I love anything set in Oxford. And R.F. Kuang’s imaginative story harnesses the power of language in translation. I’m about 75 percent of the way through this one, and the sheer amount of research she puts into a work of fiction is remarkable.
The Menu
Thanks for humoring me by reading about my little resolutions, but I know you're really here for the food content. And folks, I ate a lot of good food in December, I won't lie. Last year, I posted about the best things I ate in 2022, but this year, it's just going to be a recap of most of the meals I ate in December.
I had a wonderful trip to New York with my mom and sisters. We ate so much good food and dined almost exclusively at Danny Meyer restaurants (Gramercy Tavern, Union Square Cafe, and we were supposed to also dine at Ci Siamo but they cancelled our rezy as we were in an Uber on the way there because the grill was malfunctioning and they had to shut down the restaurant. I acted like a big baby over this occurrence, but rebounded after I stuffed my face with pizza in Time Square). I also dragged everyone down to Greenwich Village to eat lunch at Via Carota, and it was worth the hour-long wait. Surely you’ve see the Insalate Verde, right? Wait you’re telling me you don’t obsess over obscure salads in Manhattan? Bless you. As I write this, I’m also remembering the Jersualem Bagel with labneh and the za’atar morning bun from Librae Bakery. Sorry I’m literally the worst, but these were so good I wish I could be care flighted to lower Manhattan every morning to eat them.
Maybe my mother won't mind me telling you that when we first arrived, we scurried up to the Plaza for afternoon tea, and when we arrived, oh Lord Lord Lord, they told us we had accidentally made our reservation in Chicago. We cried real tears but then ate $6 hot dogs from a hot dog guy on the corner of 5th Avenue and 59th.
Midway through December, Mitch and I celebrated our five year anniversary at Ma Der Lao Kitchen in OKC. Best meal we've had here. It was funky, spicy, sticky, crispy, crunch, and bursting with flavor. Absolutely fantastic.
Moving on to Christmas dinners, they were aplenty.
We had a busy week around Texas with family. For my own little family of four, I made an early Christmas meal before leaving town. We had Melissa Clark's wine braised chicken with mushrooms and leeks. Boy howdy, it was so so good.
We stopped at my parents' for Christmas morning, and had a fabulous lunch of beef tenderloin, potato casserole, and green beans. Once we got to Austin with my in-laws, we celebrated my father-in-law's retirement at Bulevar Mexican Kitchen, and it was one of the best meals I've had in a long time. There were so many courses, so many amazing flavors, perfect service, and best of all, parents night out. My children happily snoozed the night away with a babysitter while I oohed and ahhed over woodfire grilled ribeye and pork belly sopes, among other delicacies.
Back at my parents for New Years Weekend, we had fajita night, Italian night, our traditional New Years meal of brisket, creamed corn, potatoes, a big tossed salad, and black eyed peas, and a family appetizer competition on New Years Eve. My parents played the roles of Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith as judges for the competition. It was all amazing.
I'm thinking back on all the meals and am grateful for family time around tables and for feasting with one another. I’m still pretty full, I think. And I will graciously welcome a move to a time of fasting.
Lettuce for lunch!
Seems like this you’ve certainly heard enough from me today. I’m grateful to all my readers, I hope to grow this newsletter more in the new year, so I appreciate anyone who shares Editor & Chef out in the wild!
Godspeed on your January detoxes. Lord knows we need it.
Allison
First, I love the way you write! It's so engaging and I'm always sad when the newsletter page runs out.
Second, if you enjoy Michael Pollan, "The Omnivore's Dilemma" is a great read about how food gets to the American table these days. Kudos to farmers everywhere.
This is so much food. I'm not saying too much. Just abundance.