"There is No Me Without You"

One of my favorite books that I have read in preparation for our adoption is called "There is No Me Without You" by Melissa Fay Greene. The book skillfully infuses narrative, modern history and statistics on Ethiopia, and cultural knowledge. In the book's pages, I also recognize much of my trip to Ethiopia, back in November 2005.

From the back cover:

In this powerful and highly acclaimed book, award-winning journalist Melissa Fay Greene tells the story of Haregewoin Teferra, a middle-class Ethiopian woman who found herself at the heart of a global health crisis. After the loss of her husband and daughter, Teferra reluctantly agreed to take in two of Addis Ababa's thousands of AIDS orphans, and soon children of all ages began to appear at the door of her tin-walled compound. There is No Me Without You is the story of how Teferra transformed her home into an orphanage and began facilitating adoptions to homes all over the world. At heart, it is a book about children and parents, wherever they may be, however they may find each other.

Here's a link to learn more about the book: http://www.thereisnomewithoutyou.com/

Even though it's been months since I've read the book, I've been thinking a lot about it lately. In part, I've been thinking about it because I want to read it again. In part, I've been thinking about it because I have learned that Haregewoin Teferra recently passed away after a short illness. She was an incredible woman with an inspiring story and a long-lasting legacy.

So, if you are looking for a good book to read, this should be your next one!

Our First Ethiopian Potluck!

Jeremy and I attended our first Ethiopian potluck yesterday. It was hosted by Ethiopians for Ethiopians, and included judging of the food by a local Ethiopian chef! We decided to make "Misr Wot" (MISS-ER WAHT) or Spicy Red Lentil Stew because it's one of our favorite dishes. For our first attempt at making it, I was pleased that it turned out so well!

Misr Wot is usually served with injera (IN-JEER-AH), a spongy, slightly sour, pancake-like bread that is used to pick up the stew. Injera is the "silverware" in Ethiopian food, and should be held and eaten from only the right hand to be polite. This is a restaurant picture of Misr Wot and other dishes on a piece of injera. Rolls of injera are also served on the side.

To make our Misr Wot, the ingredients included: red lentils, nitr kebe (NIT-ER KEH-BAY - an Ethiopian spiced butter), bebere (BAYR-BAIR-AY - a Ethiopian spice mixture), garlic, onions, jalapenos, tomatoes, and kosher salt.

To make the dish, the onions were chopped finely and sweated (cooked over the stove with salt on medium low without oil) for about 30 minutes. While that was happening, I diced the garlic, cored and chopped the tomatoes, and "stabbed" the jalapenos. After about 30 minutes of sweating the onions, I stirred 3 Tablespoons of kebe into the onions and added the garlic, stirring until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Then, it was time to add 2 cups of well-rinsed lentils, the tomatoes, 2 Tablespoons of bebere, and the 3 stabbed jalapenos. I stirred it and had it simmering, uncovered, for over an hour (until thick). To add the finishing touches, I mixed in another 3 1/2 Tablespoons of bebere and lots of salt.

This is our finished product:

Here's a somewhat blurry pic of the Ethiopian chef sampling our dish!

So, we didn't win any prizes, but we got this nice certificate!

Overall, we enjoyed ourselves! And now we have more confidence in our abilities to make Ethiopian food at home too. If anyone wants to join us for Ethiopian food sometime, let us know!