Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth has made history in several categories. She was the first Asian-American woman to be elected to Congress by the state of Illinois, she was the first disabled woman…
The Irish Potato Famine was caused by a potato disease in Ireland in the mid‑1800s. The “Great Hunger” killed about 1 million people, forcing another million to emigrate.
_Couscous Israélien au Citron et aux Pistaches_ Every year in Menton, a city near Nice that's on the border of Italy, there's a festival celebrating the famed Menton lemons. Plump and irregularly shaped, they're seasonally available in Paris markets, with their leaves still attached. They are prized by chefs and cooks for their intense lemony flavor (without the harshness of commercial lemons), and their not-too-bitter pith, which makes them perfect for preserving. This nutty, lemony salad makes good use of preserved lemons, which you can easily buy or make yourself (see my website for a recipe). I keep a jar on hand at all times. They take a few weeks to mellow and soften, so don't save making them for the last minute. Their flavor is incomparable, and a jar will last for months in your refrigerator. Chopped-up bits can be tossed with olives for a quick _apéro_, and they also add an assertive citrus flavor to this dish made with pistachios and Israeli couscous. Israeli couscous are little pearls of pasta, elsewhere called pastina, which means "little pasta," and when toasted it's known as _fregola sarda_. Since they have more substance, I think they hold up a little better to North African-style braised meats, like the lamb shank tagine, than traditional couscous. (Orzo is a good substitute for the Israeli couscous.) To change things around a bit, you can vary the dried fruit or swap in fresh mint or cilantro for the parsley. Another nut, such as toasted hazelnuts or almonds or even pine nuts, could be used in place of the pistachios.
Can you spot examples of Christian privilege? Christians get benefits that other people don't have – and during the December holidays, these examples have a big impact.
