Garam Masala; Saté

For a while a several months ago my cooking habits began to venture across the seas toward Moroccan cuisine...chicken apricots and chickpeas slow-cooked in a tagine, ras al-hanut, and harissa sauces.

Recently, though, after a trip to my local spice store, I've discovered the joys of garam masala and saté seasoning.



Garam masala, a traditional punjabi seasoning, is a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cumin carrdamom and coriander seeds, a few saffron strings black peppercorns, cloves, ground mace and bay leaves. The other night I cooked up some gulf bay Redfish seasoned in garam masala, with seasoned rice, roasted bell peppers and asparagus. The meal was delightful.



I also happened to purchase some Indonesian Saté seasoning. Perhaps the most famous and distinctive Indonesian spice, saté is wonderful for almost any type of grilled meat. I'm eagerly waiting my friends fresh gulf shrimp delivery connection to concoct some grilled saté shrimp skewers with peanut sauce for an afternoon of cold beer and spiced shrimp in the sun!

Houston International Festival

I made it downtown yesterday on a wonderful Sunday afternoon for the Houston International Festival. After getting my bearings, I caught the end of a set by the Garifuna Collective.


Founded by Andy Palacio, a Garifunan from Belize, the Garifuna Collective exposed ears around the world to one of the smallest subcultures in Latin America. The music presented a unique blend of native, Cuban, Brazilian and African inspirations, all sung in the Garifuna language and structured by the traditional folk rhythms of Belize. Andy passed away in January of this year, and the Garifuna Collective continues to tour in his memory.

Malian guitarist Habib Koité took the stage next, and performed with his band Bamada. Habib who was raised in a musical family, learning to sing and play the guitar by watching his parents, has been described by Rolling Stone as "the biggest pop star of the West African nation of Mali." His sound is best described as relaxed and soothing--perfect for a Sunday afternoon.



The final act I saw was the Houston based duo of Spain Colored Orange. With an aural calaidescope of piano, trumpet and organ, Spain Colored Orange put a smile on my face when I realized that Houston could spawn such original and interesting sounds.

Dumas - Au gré des saisons

In honor of Le Habs recent victory, I present one of my newly discovered Montreal-based musicians.

Au gré des saisons tu verras
Tôt ou tard...Tôt ou tard
Que la vie me prend
Et elle me jette
Tôt ou tard...Tôt ou tard