Tin Box Recipes
Gazpacho
Lunches in July (verano, veranito calentito)
Peeling tomatoes
Countertop strewn with red ribbons
Chopped cucumber, earthy peppers
They let me smash the garlic cloves
With gusto.
Pepper & salt, vinegar & olive oil
Golden and blended. Topped with tropezones—
Summers in a spoon.
Rigatoni all’Amatriciana
Pot sputtering
Scents of fresh prosciutto,
Leafy basil, red pepper flakes adorn
And lure us to the tablecloths
(Nonna’s embroidery, Nonna’s recipe)
Awaiting. The aroma wafting for hours
Breaking bread—crumbling
And warm.
Arepas
Pockets of pollo asado, hints of garlic
Molded and griddled until golden
Smeared with avocado and
Carefully chopped cilantro
Simple breakfasts, Mama’s signature snacks
Steaming platters on Saturdays.
Brigadeiros
Sticky, milky treats
Grandma’s birthday dinners (muitas felicidades)
And sleepless sleepovers
Rolled by my Mother—
Nights scraping straight from the saucepan,
The sweetest cocoa powder billowing
Into my hands.
Ariselu
Grandma always baked outside—
Sweltering
The handy mortar and pestle
Etched into the stone behind our home
The smell of jaggery melting
Lingering in the air
Pinches of rice, dough to knead
Hand pressed in elaichi seed.
