I Made Lunch

Hello newsletter friends. Dispatches have been few and far between these days while I tend to the other children (sauce, store, etc.). No First Bloom Brooklyn updates to speak of, though I was recently in Thee New York Times speaking about Montague Street and the forthcoming store of dreams. You can read that here. 

I’ve been doing a lot of events lately with authors on their book tours, which is always a dream (Ina!!), but in 2027 I’ll be traveling to do some speaking events of my own. I’ll be returning to a few favorite cities, plus some places I’ve never been. You know the drill: we chat, we take live questions, we laugh, we learn. Above all: We have fun. Find me in select cities next year—more dates to be announced soon.

Lately, at the suggestion of my therapist and also my husband, I’ve been trying to do one thing every day that’s ostensibly “just for me.” The thing can not be for work (though I love to work, so isn’t work always “for me”?) or for anyone in my family (though I love them so much, isn’t caring for them also “for me”?). This is actually hard for some reason. Some things I’ve done lately:

1. I sat alone at the bar of my neighborhood restaurant and ate breakfast (eggs with broccoli rabe and toast, one whole milk cappuccino).  
2. I did not look at Instagram for three whole hours. 
3. I started reading a book (Josh Silver’s Fruit Fly). 
4. I let myself stop reading when what I really wanted to do was watch three Law & Order: SVU episodes back-to-back and not feel guilty that “I should have been reading.”

And then, yesterday, I made lunch for myself. I did not make a large batch of soup to feed everyone or text my husband to ask if he wanted lunch. I made a small pot of soup, enough for myself and maybe a small cup of leftovers (also for me). A lovely little pot of cauliflower cooked until soft, golden from the long cooking and a touch of turmeric, simmered with crushed chickpeas and broth, finished with a pleasing amount of lemon juice and lots of black pepper and Parmesan. This soup—a soup made with (frankly) such little intention and so few ingredients—should maybe not have been as good as it was, but it really was. Most cooking does not reward this kind of cavalier attitude, but soup, made with the right ingredients cooked in the right way and finished with the right things, always has potential to be both supremely casual and impossibly delicious.  

While you do not need to do this, I accompanied this perfect little soup with a perfect grilled cheese: both sides of bread buttered, salt and pepper between slices of sharp cheddar, griddled in a small non-stick skillet over medium heat until the bread was crisp. I cut it into triangles and kept the crusts on. 

Recipe below (though I have scaled it up to serve 4). 

• I have been wearing my Margaux shoes nonstop since their release. The mules are officially my new Going to Dinner shoe. Wearing the clogs to the playground at 7:30 a.m. makes me feel like I “have it together” even if I’m also wearing loose-fitting pants and a sweatshirt with no bra. And, yes, the boots really can clock many miles walking around the city, day to night—and, perhaps most importantly, they fit my calves, which was a design non-negotiable. (This should not have been a tall ask given my seemingly average-sized calves, and yet most knee-high boots did not fit my calves??) Free shipping through 11/7 with the code ARXMARGAUX.

• If you or someone you love in New York is recovering from surgery, or will be postpartum in the near future, I highly recommend Bé Bêp Kitchen for meal delivery services. Phoebe is an incredible cook, and her food will heal you—this is a great gift, just make sure the recipient has ample freezer space. 
• Do yourself a favor and make a grilled cheese on regular bread from the grocery store, the kind that comes in a bag, pre-sliced and is shelf stable for a long time. While I have a soft spot for sliced wheat bread of all sorts, Food For Life Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Bread will always have my heart. This bread does not come from a bakery that you can go to, it is not sourdough, it is not cool and it is not “artisanal.” It’s the Dr. Bronner’s of bread, and the throwback 1970s packaging makes it feel like it is perhaps good for you.

Golden Cauliflower Soup with Chickpeas

Serves 4

Another one for fans of the Something from Nothing lifestyle. The trick, as with many few-ingredient recipes, is in how each thing gets treated, each step building flavor to get you to the promised result (fabulous soup). The shallots are frizzled, the cauliflower is cooked long enough that it browns nicely and begins to fall apart, the chickpeas are crushed to give a bit of body to the broth. From there, it’s the holy trinity of lemon juice, Parmesan and black pepper that make this a tangy, salty, piquant delight. This soup would happily take a handful of dark leafy greens wilted into it, or a dollop of sour cream right at the end. And, for anyone curious, it does freeze beautifully.