Beets, Rhymes, & Life

Last weekend, I packed up the Ac with what seemed like my entire kitchen and headed to the Big Apple. After hearing encouragement from a few friends and family, I decided to apply for the 4^th season of MasterChef. Two days after I submitted my application, I received an e-mail from one of the producers requesting additional pictures. One would think they’d want pictures of my food, but no…they wanted more pictures of me. Needless to say, everything was set up to attend the casting call in NYC on November 10.

I wanted to create something heavenly like duck breast with a pomegranate sauce or roasted lamb over a parsnip puree but the rules were each participant had to bring a pre-prepared meal. We couldn't use sternos, candles, electricity, etc. to keep food warm. Long lines and the lack of outdoor heat in November created a slight dilemma for this amateur cook. I wanted to create something gourmet but also something that would taste great hot, cold, or somewhere in between. Therefore, I decided to pay homage to city I grew up just outside of with my interpretation of one of her most popular sandwiches, the roast pork sandwich.

Usually when you think of sandwiches, you do not think of a culinary masterpiece. So, I had to go over the top. Once my palate became more sophisticated, I stopped ordering chicken and salmon out at restaurants and you should too. The main reason is you can make them at home and due to commercial farm they have horrible flavor, unless your local sustainable restaurant is using grass-fed pasture raised or wild caught protein. So I butterflied a pork loin and soaked it in an apple cider brine overnight. While the loin was marinating, I prepared a curry mint yogurt sauce and pickled broccoli, honey crisp apples, purple cabbage, cayenne pepper and carrots.

The next morning, I stuffed the loin with goat cheese and sautéed garlic and shitake mushrooms and patted it with a dry rub blend of fresh ginger, cumin, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, black pepper, smoked paprika, and garlic. I rolled the loin and then used some butcher’s twine to keep it together. I threw a little EVOO on the grill, seared the loin on all sides and transferred it to a roasting pan and cooked it to perfection. As an accompaniment, I made a tri-colored quinoa salad with sautéed veggies (pumpkin, zucchini/yellow squash, turnip, parsnip, and eggplant) and chickpeas.

That morning, I waited outside a hotel in Midtown with an insulated cooler and backpack filled with delicious pork, pickled apple broccoli slaw, new plates and knives, sauce, and a whole wheat mini-baguette. When it was my time to shine, I entered a room with 25 other participants. We were given 3 minutes to plate our food, then a professional food taster/critic tasted our food and interviewed us on technique, cooking style, food inspiration, etc. During this time, we also were assessed by personality judge. Although nervous, I passed this stage and was told to go into another room for the next round. The second round consisted of a group interview with the show’s producers. Each person had to tell the judges about themselves and the role food plays in their lives. We also had to answer questions that displayed our knowledge of gastronomy.

While I feel like I did well, I did not make it to the third round. There is a slight chance that I may receive a call in the next week. disclaimer: no disrespect to my family and friends who lack trained palates because i appreciate your compliments as well. It was such an awesome opportunity to have a professional food critic/taster evaluate my food and love it. It was also inspirational to be surrounded by people without formal training who share the same passion for food. Many of the people that I met have small catering companies or food stands at farmer’s markets and other venues. Although you will not see me on the 4^th season of MasterChef, this is not the last you have heard of my pursuits to bring my creations to your home in one form or another.

Final Menu

Moroccan-spiced Pork Roulade Sandwich Stuffed with Goat Cheese and Shitake Mushrooms over Pickled Apple-Broccoli Slaw with Curry Mint Yogurt Sauce on a Whole Wheat Baguette paired with a Tri-Colored Quinoa Salad with Grilled Eggplant, Zucchini, Pumpkin, & Chickpeas.

The Score

I’m Beamin – Lupe Fiasco

"The Matrix is a system, Neo. That system is our enemy. But when you're inside, you look around, what do you see? Businessmen, teachers, lawyers, carpenters. The very minds of the people we are trying to save. But until we do, these people are still a part of that system and that makes them our enemy. You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged. And many of them are so inert, so hopelessly dependent on the system that they will fight to protect it."

As a physical therapist and adjunct professor who operates on a strict schedule, I am guilty of repeating the cyclical pattern called the daily routine. Awaken, class, patients, exercise, meditate, sleep, REPEAT!! Even though I love my career, rest does not come enough. As much as I attempt to do this, I am often unsuccessful and my trip represented food for the soul.

When I envisioned my initial journey as a child, I did not picture a westernized city that floated across the Atlantic and landed on the bottom of the African continent. But that is Cape Town and I have come to love and accept her for that. Although there is comfort in familiar surroundings and scenery during travel, the vulnerability of the unknown forces us to rely on our most basic instincts for survival. And this is also part of the joy of traveling to a foreign land. In elementary school, we would often have projects about our family tree. Most of my peers could trace their ancestry to the original city/country of origin. However, I was never able to share these joys. My family could only trace our to the days of slavery in the South. Although various double-helix structure projects have commenced, it was appeasing to be in a place with people who look just like me and some of my friends who share the same void.

So after indulging in the picturesque Cape Town scenery, Frenchie and I packed up our bags minus my wallet/credit cards and headed to the airport to catch a flight to Jo'burg. Transport was arranged to Phokeng from the airport through Special Olympics Africa to assist with the Africa Unity Cup. Our driver told us it would be about 15 minutes until the other transports arrived. Two lattes and three hours later, I came to discover African time. In order to navigate the terrain, you must be skilled at differentiating between now, just now, and now now.

The ride to Phokeng was anything but pleasant. Imagine seven people crammed into a mini-wagon. No head restraints or arm rests to a person with neck pain is a slow death. When we finally arrived to our destination, we dropped our bags off and hit a local bar. One thing I have discovered is that South Africans (well, the ones I encountered up to this point) love them some Americans. In a bar full of characters, the most compelling one was this guy who changed his last name to Lohan a month before because he worshipped the crazed addict. I thought I escaped this mundane BS but apparently did not.

The next day we woke up at the buttcrack of dawn and headed to Pilanesburg Game Reserve. Our hired driver transported us to the park and we climbed aboard a 4 x 4 with another group that paid full-price. Before arriving at the park, many people warned us that we wouldn’t see many animals. But as the sunrays beamed on that cold morning day, we were greeted a few hundred yards from the park’s gates by a couple white rhinos and some hungry hippos. As we traversed the terrain, we saw giraffes, a herd of elephants, zebras, warthogs, and buffaloes. The highlight of the day was seeing animals run in every direction. The closer were scanned the reserve, we saw they were running from a majestic pride of lions. Pilanesburg has a reputation for being scarce when it comes to animals, but I was fortunate enough to see more animals than some people I know who went to Kruger.

That evening, we headed to Lebone II - College of the Royal Bafokeng in the township of Phokeng. Phokeng is town in the North West province of South Africa. It is the capital of the Royal Bafokeng Nation and is located just outside of Rustenburg. This may not sound like much but Phokeng is also home to the one of the world's largest platinum reef. The money produced from mining has enabled the Royal Bafokeng Nation to build schools, roads and FIFA stadium as well as install water and electrical systems. Now, I had to check myself for a minute. This school was on another level. Therefore, the top students in the township are able to reap the benefits. That night I helped two Lebone II alum and film students with an iMovie commercial although I have never worked with the software. I felt bad for them. As we talked, I learned that one of the girls did not originally attend the school but walked to the secondary school and pleaded her case to the administration. She not only graduated from Lebone II but now she works there. If anyone in the film industry can help these girls, please let me know and I will connect you.

Other youth events I attended through Special Olympics were a summit and talent show. The talent show was bananas. I recently told a friend at Hugh Masekela's 'Songs of Migration' at the Kennedy Center that South Africans have the natural gift of song. Local artist performances included dancing to South African House music (i.e., like our House with heavy hand of soul), a folk singer, hip hop artists, two mini-operas, and many other interesting acts.

In addition to visiting my dear friend, I was also given the opportunity to provide physical therapy to children and adolescents participating in the Special Olympics African Unity Cup. I performed screenings on male and female athletes from numerous countries on the continent. Having a career with purpose, I consider myself lucky to wake up each morning and never dread going to the office or campus. During my short career, I have been recognized by patients, colleagues, and students. But there is something special about a kid from across the globe remembering your name after only spending a few minutes with them. Whether it was a smile, a thank you, or a plea for additional treatment, the athletes have no idea how fortunate I feel to have been able to work with them.

Now, the reason I choose to visit South Africa was one of my best friends, Meisha. After running the rat race, she gave up her executive position with a Fortune 500 to re-discover her purpose in life. She originally intended to trot the globe but accepted a position with Peace Corps to assist with the games instead. I never knew what type of role she played because we barely talk about work. But once you hear your friend’s name mentioned by everyone under the sun including the King of the Royal Bafokeng Nation Kgosi Leruo T. Molotlegi, Special Olympics Chairman and CEO Timothy Shriver, Peace Corps/South Africa Country Director John Jacoby, NBA Africa execs and players, and the people of Phokeng and beyond, you realize the impact she has made in only 9 months. She literally exemplifies Rudyard Kipling’s verse in 'If' when he talks about walking with kings but not losing the common touch. It is for this reason that I surround myself with friends like Meisha who stay in a state of continuous evolution and growth. Whether they know it or not, my closest friends serve as a source of inspiration. And because she was a VIP, I received many perks which included being able to meet dignitaries such as the King, Georgetown Hoyas and NBA humanitarian Dikembe Mutombo, Tim Shriver, the US Ambassador to South Africa, oSpecial Olympics executives, and many other people I'll never forget.

Many of us get out of bed and sleepwalk through life. Instead of indulging in self-discovery, we would rather read the latest gossip about celebrities who we will never meet. Instead of meditating in silence, we are caught in a trance created by the buzz of conformity. In the Matrix, Morpheus tells Neo, “There is a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.” South Africa has been enabled me to reconnect with the universe. As I march down the path before me, I hope that I run right through the door when opportunity knocks.