cakes, prose, woes -- the photos, food & thoughts of a french-speaking seattle-native in brazil

In the end, you're just happy you were there—with your eyes open—and lived to see it. -AB
In the end, you're just happy you were there—with your eyes open—and lived to see it.

Monday, April 4, 2011

A Few of My Favorite Things

Nothing Really, Just some Chat

Yeah, feels like forever. Two months; two months is the longest i have ever gone without a post since we started nearly four years ago. Where have i been? I'm sorry to say that i've simply been right here. No crazy vacations, no getting lost in the jungle. No time, i suppose i have had time, but over all less time than before. No inspiration, no i've had quite a few delicious things sitting on my table in the past few months. What's wrong? nothing. im just not sure what kind of blog this is anymore. food blogs are starting to get really annoying, the internet seems to be suffocating with them. That doesn't mean we're done posting about food, never. Started with food will end with food. But if i have any chance of consistency, we are going to have to open the genre. And i'm starting to feel crafty.

In the past two months of Salty Cod void, i started a new chapter in my life in Brazil. work. Lots of work. I started my own language school and teach both English and French classes here in my petite ville. Who ever thought i would actually use my college degree! So i have students, lesson plans and a lot of Portuguese speaking. I teach all beginner classes in Portuguese, am i perfect in Portuguese? Hell no. So you see it is quite a challenge. English is one thing, but try teaching your second language using your third language. Quite an exercize. Next door to my new "day job" continues my photography jobs-yes i still have those. In the past few months i have been shooting for a magazine as well as a cute start up cupcake shop in Sao Paulo. On top of that, the magazine i've been working with actually let me create my own recipes. That is a first and undoubtedly is an achievement for Salty who has been making up recipes for years. Bravo us. in any case, that is the professional update.


It's April, lets forget about March shall we. We're really starting to miss pastel-style Easter. I don't know how your Easter is, but my American Easter is full of pastels, chocolate bunnies, dyed eggs and snow globes filled with delightful springy Easter motifs. The pastel Easter bonnet ham and asparagus is not exactly what we do here in Brazil. I can't remember much of Easter last year as we were in the process of moving into our house. But i believeit involved a chocolate kinder egg. yep. The Brazilian tradition is the chocolate egg rather than the chocolate bunny. Which is better? Bunny by far. I remember those cuddly chocolate bunnies in my Easter baskets from my childhood--they could be a murderous weapon if chucked in your sister's face. American chocolate bunnies are solid deadly bricks of chocolate that lasts for months, come July and you're still knawing on cottontail's midsection. In Brazil, the eggs are beautiful but are hollow. Hollow? How much did i just pay for a hollow egg? This year we are making our own eggs Martha Stewart style (filling real egg shells) as well as dyeing eggs. People don't dye eggs in Brazil. Isn't that sad? This year i'm dyeing and will make those crafty daycare style bird nest cupcakes. But how to really do Easter right without peeps, malted eggs, cadburry creams and jelly beans? insanity. We'll see how the homemade peeps turn out. Get excited.

I don't know if anyone is still out there with us, but if you are, thanks for being here. We're not dead yet, just waiting for a comeback. Now i've got to finish editing the photos of the fig, almond and olive oil financiers!

17 comments:

Siri said...

Oh Mallory, I'm still here!
And I read every single one of your words just now and can relate to all of them (with the exception of the cupcake shop photo shoots and language school (sounds like a lot of work...good for you!) I had the exact same problem with my blog over the winter. NO. MOTIVATION. I still felt like baking and taking photos, just never the two things together. The result? A slight change in the format of my site. Do keep posting, whether it be a simple photo or just a few words. It's good for you and good for us readers.

Have a great Easter! We're also sadly without Peeps on this side of the Atlantic.

Moira - TertĂșlia de Sabores said...

Hi there!
I'm still here too and waiting anxiously for the fig, almond and olive oil financiers :)

M.Lane said...

Great to hear from you! I also cannot wait for the financiers!!

ML
mlanesepic.blogspot.com

Jana said...

You evoked lots of great memories from childhood easter. I think I will dye some eggs too! Its amazing how easter has completely transformed the grocery stores here in SP, I mean chocolate is now hanging from the ceiling and stuffed so tight into shelving those poor little eggs get no face time! Can't wait to see your pictures of easter...

Mallory said...

thanks everyone, but i can't post the recipe for the financiers, it's for a magazine and something tells me there is a little thing caled copyright...but we'll see :)

eitherway, i am going to be posting some much more interesting and pretty things about easter! there is a 2.5 kilo block of chocolate in my fridge right now!

Jana-i was so interested by the eggs last year during easter time, but once i realized they were hollow and then matched the price tag-such a rip off! they are so much money for such a tiny amount of chocolate! all of them! it's incredible and frustrating how eaily brazilians are ripped off >:|

Nani said...

So happy you posted!!!Glad to hear you are working hard and have been busy, this is great, helps to keep our sanity when trying to adapt to a new country and new culture.

It is normal that you miss peeps and chocolate bunnies, they remind you of your childhood, of your own culture. The same way you think Brazilian Easter eggs are kind of "funky" I think the easter chocolates here are "sem graca". I don't like the chocolate in the States. To me peeps and those chocolate small bunnies are just like any other candy, haha (not judging, just noticing the different expectations of people from different cultures, I love that!).
The thing I miss the most in Brazil (besides my family of course) is the Easter Chocolate Eggs in Brazil. They are hollow but there is a variety of flavors, and they come with lots of goodies inside them like bomboms! Different sizes and colors... I still remember the feeling of waking inside the grocery stores looking up to the sealing and seeing those hundreds of colorful chocolate eggs, it was like "heaven". I remember thinking that if there was such thing as Heaven I would want them to be just like that: all made of chocolate eggs!

You should try some different ones. There are some eggs that are think and have chocolate truffle cream inside the shell. My favorite one was called "tentacao" it's in a pink wrap, and it's shell has two colors brown and pink, two falvors: chocolate and strawberry!!! My favorite chocolate in Brazil.
How I miss Easter in Brazil...
I know what you mean when You say you miss peeps (I just tried them the first time this year haha), bunny eggs... and coloring real eggs, the whole tradition. It's part of how we were brought up. So interesting to read your point of view!!!

Thanks for writing. I was missing your posts.

By the way: I got accepted in the Nursing program!!! I am so excited!!! It's been a long journey just to get my pre-requisites done, now it's time for the real thing and I am scared haha, excited though.

Good luck to you there and to me here!

Nani said...

Jeez, I just noticed a lot of grammar and spelling mistakes. My bad, please, don't pay attention to them haha.

Mallory said...

hahaha, elaine "sealing" :P congrats on nursing school though! that's excellent! i'm sure i will never get into a brazilian university....portuguese is way too bad, and by the time it's ready i'll be an old lady! sticking with my "jobs" for now :)

oh i'm sure you are right about the eggs, i am exagerating as usual. they are brilliant and i HAVE seen commercials for cacaoshow or copenhagen chocolate (can't remember which one) where the egg is filled with fruit truffle, but those are so expensive! Sadly there are only 2 types of eggs i can eat at the grocery store: the Kindereggs with the plastic toy inside or the Lindt egg which is about R$60!! those are the only two eggs sem glĂșten! so honestly i eat very little of the brazilian chocolate--no garroto (or whatever the brand is) or those round bonbons that people always grab at the check out. sigh. i don't think i would EAT a peep, i would just decorate things with them. heeheh. peeps are pretty nasty to eat. but i do miss all the little chocolate eggs CADBURRY and bunnies. and jelly beans. oh jelly beans. i would give anything for jelly beans. We (I) am making small chocolate eggs this year in the actual egg shell, so we'll have colored eggs and do an american egg hunt with the little cousins! i mean, yes i can see how you love the eggs, but i wish there was something more than just the egg. unless you go to church, there really isnt anything else. or is there?

Nani said...

I just read you last comment... you are so right about the prices in Brazil. The Easter eggs have gotten so expensive in the last 7 years, it's crazy! Not only the eggs but so many other things such as clothes, shoes, food, ridiculous! I remember when I went back to Brazil to visit my family (after I had been away for 4 years) I was in shock to see the prices! That is one of the reasons why I love living in the USA!

Nani said...

Oh Jeez, Now I saw you posted something to me, haha.
60 bucks for a Lindt egg?? Socorro! haha

Oh, so you can't eat gluten? Do you have Celiac? I thought I had something like that when I was having that inexplicable pain in my stomach for months. When I finally decided to try a gluten free diet to see if it would help the pain went away!

Nani said...

by the way, can I have your Brazilian mailing address???? You can send it to my email if you want
elaine_guaru@yahoo.com.br

Thank you!!!!!

Rita Gomes. said...

tks for commenting on mine :)
I love easter eggs! in ireland the poor chocolate eggs dont have a big wrapping, they came in box.. very sad.. he
beijos!!!!

Nani said...

Mallory - oh my goodness, it sounds just like what I had. I had an endoscopy and a collonoscopy done in Brazil as well to try to find out what was wrong with me. I kept having that weird pain for about 6 months or more, I was back to the US already and it didn't leave me alone. One day it finally stopped. But sometimes it feels like it's coming back, then it doesn't. I am not gluten free because like I said, the pain finally stopped the day before I was going on a gluten free diet. So ended up not doing it. I don't think I could live without gluten! Although, I know there has been more gluten free foods in the market. I am still going to try the gluten free banana bread recipe you posted you your blog a few months ago. My husband is all about eating healthy. Oh, don't worry about bringing me stuff from Brazil. It's very sweet of you to offer. I really can't think of anything I would want. I bought some Brazilian products in Tucson a couple of weeks ago (they have an oriental market that sells foods from all over the world) so I am stocked up! haha Thank you. I would love to have the magazine though, if it's not too much trouble.
I am happy to know you are coming to visit your family and "matar a saudade" of your country. I bet you miss it here. I wish I lived closer to Seattle, dang it! I am even farther now that I am in New Mexico! I am happy to know you are working a lot. It helps with sanity! Plus, your job sounds like a lot of fun!

Unknown said...

im here too but im also fading.....!

Born Again Brazilian said...

Wow! Your photography is amazing! And I love now having a resource for recipes made with things you can actually find in Sao Paulo. Thanks!

Alis Stafford said...

Nice and fantastic post...
Show Plates

Alis Stafford said...
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