Raspberries

Yesterday was a day of culinary delights. There was an early morning plov (AKA rice-fest) for my colleague, which was a ceremony marking 40 days since the passing of a neighbor. It featured an array of goodies spread across the floor in typical Central Asian style. You sit around the food on thin pillows,eating with your fingers, with the prayers of the mullah for the deceased wafting in from the adjacent room.

From that very Un-American experience we transitioned to the kitchen of our house and a late breakfast of homemade pancakes and Vermont maple syrup. The pancakes were all made with fruits from the garden so we had apples and raspberries and in a nod to the international food importers, bananas from Ecuador. A huge stack of cakes found their way to the garden table along with homemade Vermont syrup. The combination of warm fruit and warm syrup was an instant hit. However explaining in Russian and Farsi how syrup is made taxed even the most linguistically nimble of the group.

Dinner was yet another adventure and we were treated to Shashlik the national dish. It is Kabob marinated and then grilled on an open fire, and we sampled two beef cuts and chicken. Our boss added in his signature salad, and in the end it was a day of truly delectable gluttony.