⧉ In season
Welcome to the ninth issue of OVERLAP ⧉
In season
“What is this?”
The grocery store cashier gestures toward a bundle of greenish pink stalks, hanging awkwardly out the end of a too-small produce bag.
“Oh, that? It’s rhubarb.” It’s a strange thing to buy rhubarb in a grocery store. I don’t ever remember paying for it when I was a kid. Rhubarb is a common perennial in rural Pennsylvania gardens, and my grandmother’s rhubarb patch was especially prolific.
Rhubarb leaves are poisonous; the stalks are safe, but only worth eating if they’re cooked and sweetened. Sugar balances out the tartness and enhances the flavor. It’s difficult to describe if you haven’t had it before … it’s a little herbal, maybe. Slight notes of citrus? It tastes like spring.
I get home and start looking for a recipe worthy of this rare purchase. (Rhubarb season is short, and it can be hard to find in the city.) I settle on Mark Bittman’s rhubarb crisp, with some adjustments.
My grandmother was not a confident cook. Anything more complicated than hot dogs with peas usually resulted in spontaneous swearing fits and the smell of something burning, but she had a couple dessert tricks up her sleeve. One was a frozen strawberry cream cake. The other was rhubarb pie with meringue topping — something I’d never seen anyone else make.
I briefly consider grandma’s recipe. Should I make the meringue instead? That’s when I realize: it’s Mother’s Day weekend. My mother’s first Mother’s Day without her own mother; my first without a grandmother.
My relationship with my grandmother was complicated. (To be fair, I think most of her relationships were complicated.) She was smart and calculating, opinionated and judgmental — but also playful and generous, caring and supportive. She was endlessly curious about the world and delighted by everyday things, but at her low points, overwhelmingly acerbic.
I cut the rhubarb and make so many changes to the recipe that Mark Bittman would scarcely recognize it: equal parts rhubarb and strawberries, a spoonful of tapioca, almonds instead of pecans, melted butter, oats in lieu of flour, twice as much cinnamon.
I call my mom on Sunday morning, then brave a rainy walk to the bodega for a pint of ice cream. Back at home, I add a scoop of vanilla to the first piece of crisp. As I get older, sweet things taste sweeter and bitter flavors become more complex and interesting. I scrape the bowl clean. The rhubarb isn’t nearly as sour as I remembered it.
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In the eighth issue of this newsletter, I shared a few brief thoughts about being on the receiving end of an SMS publishing experiment. A few days after I hit ‘send,’ the Electric Eel went much deeper (and much smarter) when it featured MCDxFSG’s interview with Craig Mod. Go read it.
I’d love to hear what you think — reply to this email or send a note through my website. You can also forward this to a friend or two and invite them to subscribe. All the archives are online, if you’ve missed any previous transmissions.
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Auntie Jess recommends:
Buttondown. This email service is everything I need — and nothing I don’t need — to send a newsletter. I’ve been impressed with the founder’s responsiveness and transparency about what it takes to build a software tool.
Muji lint rollers. If you have a cat, you already know: it’s shedding season. These lint rollers are cheaper, prettier, and more effective than conventional drugstore options.
Risolve Studio. I’m thinking about making a zine. Specifically, a risograph zine from this Philadelphia-area print shop.
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Thanks for reading. I’d love to hear from you — hit reply to share your favorite family recipes, cleaning tools, printing techniques, or anything else that’s on your mind.
Until next time,
Jessica
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