By Mid-July. The approach to forty is the approach to a mirror — the number forces a reckoning, a looking-at, an honest assessment of the face that stares back. The face is: thirty-nine years old, divorced, medicated, a mother, a writer, a yoga teacher, a cooking class instructor, a woman who went off medication and came back and is not ashamed. The face is: tired and alive and not done. The not-done is the answer to the question that forty asks: are you finished? No. I am not finished. I am the opposite of finished. I am beginning. The forties are the beginning. The thirties were the fire. The forties are what grows from the ash.
I made summer tempura — shiso, shishito peppers, corn — and served it on the balcony with Miya and the evening light that is long and gold in July. The tempura was crispy and the evening was warm and the combination was summer perfected, the season at its most generous, offering light and heat and vegetables and the time to eat them slowly, without urgency. The without-urgency is the forty-ness approaching: the sense that the rushing is over, the proving is done, the woman standing at the stove does not need to prove anything to anyone, least of all herself. The proving is the thirties. The being is the forties.
The blog is approaching thirty-five thousand readers. The cooking classes are twice monthly now, waitlisted regularly. The first book continues to sell steadily, eighteen months after publication. The second book is with the publisher, in the editing phase. The magazine column continues. The career has four pillars and the four pillars are strong and the strength is the practice, eleven years of showing up, one blog post at a time, one cooking class at a time, one bowl of miso soup at a time.
The tempura was the centerpiece, but it was the Golden Glow Salad alongside it that I keep thinking about — something cool and bright and unhurried, the color of that July light I described, the color of evenings that don’t rush toward dark. If the without-urgency is the forty-ness approaching, this salad is its edible form: nothing to prove, nothing to rush, just good ingredients doing exactly what they are. I made it for Miya and me and we ate it slowly, which is the whole point.
Golden Glow Salad
Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Total Time: 15 min | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 can (20 oz) pineapple tidbits, drained, juice reserved
- 1 can (11 oz) mandarin orange segments, drained
- 2 medium carrots, shredded (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup golden raisins
- 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons reserved pineapple juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Combine the fruit and vegetables. In a large bowl, gently toss together the drained pineapple tidbits, mandarin orange segments, shredded carrots, golden raisins, and shredded coconut until evenly distributed.
- Make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, reserved pineapple juice, honey, ground ginger, and a pinch of salt until smooth and well combined.
- Dress the salad. Pour the dressing over the fruit and carrot mixture. Fold gently until everything is lightly coated — do not overmix, as you want the fruit to stay intact.
- Chill before serving. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. The salad will keep well for up to 2 days covered in the refrigerator.
- Serve. Spoon into bowls or onto a platter. Best served cold, alongside something crispy — or simply on its own in the long evening light.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 195 | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 65mg