THAT SMELLS DELICIOUS: A COLLECTION OF RECIPES THAT WORK

1967. It was a hot, blistering morning with the heat reaching 90+ degrees before noon. I was awakened to the singing of women in unison as they walked down my dirt-paved street with groceries balanced upon their heads. The singing was harmonic and the balancing act of walking with several pounds of food atop their heads was a sight to be seen. They were coming from the local market several miles away from their villages. This was a daily routine and one that I enjoyed watching from my bedroom window.Each morning, I would leap from my single, wooden bed, surrounded by netting to prevent malaria, and venture out the front door to watch the parade. I could instantly smell the aroma of food cooking from the surrounding houses. The air was filled with the deliciousness of the region’s most common spices, enough to make anyone hungry. I can still smell the garlic, curry powder and thyme blowing in the wind and hear the loud chatter sweeping in from the entire street. This was the loving chaos of Nigeria every day. The memories are forever embedded into my mind and the smells will always bring me to a smile.Around 9am or 10am each day, the local children would be out playing, running, chasing cars and laughing endlessly. As a young child living in Africa, I quickly became fluent in the native language of Swahili. Like clockwork, my friend and neighbor (who was probably around six years of age) would yell daily for me to come and play. It was always a welcome invitation to run around and explore the beautiful land and its amazing culture. My friend, Ka-Gwa, was tall and thin and his skin glowed with a beautiful tone of darkness. His smile could be seen from a mile away as his full set of beautiful white teeth would enter a room before he did. He was funny and full of endless energy. He was my tour guide, my exploring buddy and my friend.One morning, we ventured out into the back of my house into some woods and farmland. Ka-Gwa always had a pocketknife in his shorts to scare away any wild animals we might have run into or to chop down some bush that we might have needed to get through.On this particular day, he introduced me to sugarcane. The thick root stuck up from the dirt in abundance. Ka-Gwa explained to me that by sucking on the juice of the root, it would give us energy. He proceeded to take his pocketknife and cut a three-inch piece of the root. Chopping it into squares, he put a piece into his mouth. He produced a noisy crunch and a smile for the world to see; it was as if he had just gone to Heaven. I was so curious that I had to try. He gave me a piece and instructed me to bite down, consume the juice and spit out the root. I did as he said and BOOM! It was like a boost of energy wrapped in love. This was my earliest discovery of the delicious flavor of nature.I had the amazing opportunity to live in Africa as a small child thanks to my father being a regional director of the Peace Corps. In 1968, we moved to Uganda where I would continue to grow and learn about the beautiful continent. Not long after our move, the Nigerian Civil War broke out, forcing our evacuation back to the United States. The memories of the food, the smell of the spices and the joy of the people will never leave me. It was just the beginning of my delicious journey. Read more