Spring has arrived slowly this year and some days in Northwest Connecticut are still raw and blustery. This week the trees have finally started to bud! This is one of my favorite times of the year- the cool weather makes me feel invigorated. Paul and I are continuing our almost daily walks and hikes and have discovered so many beautiful and relatively quiet trails and roads that we have lost count! AND, yes, that is snow on a spring wildflower on May 9th! This picture was taken at Ashintully Gardens in Tryingham, Massachusetts.

The wonderful gift of extra free time that we are fortunate to have has enabled many people to pay more attention to their surroundings. Paul and I find that we have become amateur arborists. As we wait for the new leaves on the trees to start to bud, we have become focused on identifying trees by the unique patterns and subtle color of their bark.

On our walks, I find that as I look closely around me I see the lovely patterns of roots, rocks and moss on the forest floor. Sometimes it seems as if I am in an amazing art gallery surrounded by masterpieces!

The other day we took a walk in the lovely Tryingham Cobble in the Berkshires. When we arrived, the parking lot held just a few cars- in these times of social distancing, this was good news! And, if we happened to see people coming towards us on the trail, we felt relieved that everyone stepped off the trail to let us pass.

I discovered that a cobble is a large outcropping of rock created by geologic upheavals from over half a billion years ago. Thinking about the unfathomable amount of time that has passed since then helped me to put into perspective the difficult times we are all going through now- what we are experiencing is just a tiny blip!

After the strenuous walk we had a quick and delicious dinner that evening: Black Bean and Lentil Veggie Burgers with a topping of leftover sauteed Indian spiced cabbage and Siracha Mayo on toasted whole wheat muffins.

Black Bean and Lentil Veggie Burgers

1 can black beans

2 cups cooked lentils

1 clove garlic finely chopped

¼ onion diced

diced jalapeno to taste

1 tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. Garam masala

handful toasted walnuts

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in food processor and mix briefly

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in non stick pan until hot and cook veggie burgers until browned on one side

Flip over and brown other side.

This will make about 5 or 6 burgers, so you may have leftovers

Sauteed Cabbage:

¼ head green cabbage thinly sliced

1 small grated carrot

1 tsp.mustard seeds

1 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp ground cumin

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in medium skillet

A bit of butter also adds a nice flavor

Add mustard seeds and cook over medium heat until they start to pop

Add other spices and cook for about another minute

Add cabbage and carrot and saute for a few minutes until the cabbage wilts slightly, but still has a crunchy texture.

Sandwich:

2 Toasted whole grain English muffins

Dressing: 2 tablespoons Vegenaise or Mayonaise- mix with 1 teaspoon siracha sauce (or more if you would like more spice

Assemble and Enjoy! I found one more kosher pickle at the back of the fridge and that was great!!

Now a little promised escape from reality- here’s a story about an excursion in January to Flushing, New York, a part of Queens and one of the largest Asian neighborhoods in the city.

At the beginning of January, on Saturday January 11th to be exact, when we were all still blissfully unaware of the impending pandemic, I went to Kristin Bertrand’s oboe repair shop in Floral Park, New York to have my oboe adjusted. In addition to being an excellent repair person, I always enjoy seeing Kristin’s beautiful young family, her cozy studio and their adorable puppy Linus.

On the visit, I also had a chance to speak with Kristin’s husband Rob Pollan about a trip that I had taken to France a few years ago. Under a professional development grant from Hofstra University, I had traveled to the area in France where reed cane is grown for oboe, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone reeds. This just happens to be in a beautiful and untouristy section of Provence, not far from Marseille. Rob used to work for D’Addario Woodwinds and he spent a good deal of time in that part of France. He is very knowledgeable about reed cane and was responsible for putting me in touch with contacts and a wonderful tour guide, Jean Francois Rico (his grandfather was the founder of Rico Reeds) This day in we talked about a possible return trip and the best time to see the harvest of the cane.

When Kristin finished adjusting my oboe, I checked WAZE and saw that I was only 20 minutes from Flushing, one of the largest and most vibrant Asian communities in New York City. This was the perfect opportunity to visit one of my favorite dumpling restaurants, Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao! When I arrived in Flushing, the streets were clogged with bumper to bumper traffic and as I slowly navigated my way to the restaurant on Prince Street, I realized that parking was going to be the challenge of the day. I saw a crowded public parking lot across the street from the restaurant and luckily there was one spot left in a tight corner of the lot. Risking the wrath of many drivers as I blocked their way out the of the lot, I muscled my way into the spot and soon found out that most of the public parking meters were broken. I followed a growing group of young and old Asian men around the lot until they found a meter that worked. We found ourselves sharing a small moment of hilarity and triumph together!

Famous for their soup dumplings, Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao had just opened in a newly renovated and larger location and I was eager to visit there! The old location was always packed and so it was no surprise when I found lines of people outside waiting for their turn. I was given a number and told to come back in 45 minutes. This was clearly a day to go with the flow and to enjoy my surroundings! I set out on a busy street and enjoyed walking anonymously among throngs of people while looking at the restaurants, Asian markets, fish and vegetable stores and at the same time listening to the many different languages. On one street I came upon a large street map of Flushing. I was interested to see that there was a synagogue in the middle of Flushing called the Free Synagogue of Flushing.

My long wait for a table soon paid off and I decided that soup dumplings (stuffed with pork, crab and broth) might be a bit too filling for one person. I ordered handmade steamed pork and cabbage dumplings that when dipped in Chinese black vinegar and shredded ginger, were absolutely delicious!

The restaurant also offers a number of unusual cold dishes; cucumber salad with garlic sauce and chicken and wine sauce. I tried a dish called Four Happiness Sponge Tofu, which was braised seitan with bamboo shoots and wood ear mushrooms. I detected a subtle undercurrent of five spice powder. I love seitan’s chewy texture -making seitan involves a process of washing wheat flour with water until all of the starch is removed, almost magically leaving an elastic mass of gluten. It doesn’t look pretty but tastes great!

After this wonderful meal, I thought it might be fun to to explore a section of Flushing that I had never been to before. I needed to buy dumplings skins, fresh noodles, Chinese vinegar and condiments for our annual dumpling party. I did a quick internet search for Asian grocery stores in Flushing and found a listing for the Chang Jiang Supermarket on 41-41 Kissena Boulevard. Of course when I got to the store, I realized I was in for another round of “Search for the Parking Spot”. I drove around a few blocks, found a spot and then started to walk back towards the store. Feeling a bit disoriented I thought that rather relying on a GPS that I would ask passersby for directions. I quickly realized that no one spoke English. I finally found my way back to the Chang Jiang Supermarket, glanced across the street and right in front of me was the Free Synagogue of Flushing. A feeling of serendipity washed over me. This was the synagogue I had just seen on the Flushing street map! Later that week I contacted the director of the synagogue and it turned out the synagogue has a vibrant concert series. I sent the director an electronic press kit for Hevreh Ensemble. He was delighted with our music and we started to make plans for a possible concert. Of course this is on hold for the time being but hopefully when the pandemic is over we will be able to perform there.

SO, this brings us back to reality. I find so many silver linings with our current situation. Not having live concerts for a while changes things immensely. Normally I need to spend most of my time preparing for concerts. Now I have the opportunity to revisit beloved pieces from my repertoire and of course always my daily dose of Bach! Hevreh Ensemble is planning our next big project with a dear friend, the photographer Loli Kantor. We last collaborated together in 2018 with our tour to Poland where we presented our project together for the Krakow International Jewish Cultural Festival and the POLIN Museum in Warsaw. We are talking about plans to bring our next collaborative project to the Ukraine, Paris and Munich for 2022. It seems a long way off, but it helps me to think ahead to better days! A big disappointment is that my daughter Alicia’s wedding to her partner Katie, set for May 24th had to be cancelled. But we have started a new tradition- a virtual lighting of the Sabbath candles every Friday evening where we are treated to Alicia and Katie’s beautiful singing!

Perhaps the biggest gift of all is appreciating the natural beauty around us and being able to share it with Paul!

Sunset Rock- Mt. Washington, MA

Coming Soon………. The Bronx Botanical Gardens, Georgia O’Keefe and Albanian Bureks

Judith Dansker May 16,2020