The Monday Digest, September 2024

What happened last month on the newsletter, what’s to come and links to articles I enjoyed

Sep 02, 2024

This is the extra newsletter you get every first Monday of the month to sum up what I published the previous month and to tell you what you can expect on this one.

As a reminder, here’s what you will find on My Cup of Tea:

The Monday Digest: The first Monday of every month you’ll get a summary of what I sent out the previous month, a sneak peak of what you’ll get the current month and a curated list of latest food news as well as personal notes.
Every Thursday: a new newsletter on the following topics (a different one each week): 1 recipe, 1 educational blog on food photography, 1 in-depth essay about the history and uses of a dish or ingredient (mostly focused on New England), 1 personal essay/travel guide/chronicle.

August’s summary

Last month’s recipe helped you cool down while enjoying a beautiful mid-summer fruit: Fresh Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
Last month’s piece on photography I started a new series that already proved to be popular (and hopefully also helpful!): A List of my Favorite Photo Props and Where to Find Them: Ceramics
Last month’s food history piece was focused on Maine’s lobstering and its most famous sandwich. The state fishes and exports the most lobsters in the USA, and I went to know how: Lobstering in Maine & The Lobster Roll
The last article of August was my summer story in pictures (and with recommendations): A (Local) Summer in New England

Thanks for reading My Cup of Tea! This post is public so feel free to share it.

What’s to come this September

Thursday the 5th: This month’s recipe not only praises a fantastic end-of-summer fruit but also lets us extend the season for a bit longer: Fig, Goat Cheese and Crispy Prosciutto Salad

Thursday the 12th: This month’s piece on photography is a fun one as I take you behind the scenes on composing an image for a magazine: How I Shot This: An Ingredient Page for a Magazine

Thursday the 19th: As temperatures drop, New Englanders start craving for this treat. Its production and history will be this month’s food history piece: Cider Donuts

Thursday the 26th: We finish the month with a travel guide, as I am now in the state taking notes and photographs: A Trip to Vermont

Food News

I Ate at Every Buffet on the Las Vegas Strip in One Week - (Janna Karel) Eater

Grief, Solidarity, and Molokhia - (Nylah Iqbal Muhammad) Eater

Why a crab feast is the ultimate late-summer flex - Eater

Mutton’s Big Comeback - (Mehr Singh) Taste

Will We Ever Shut Up About Caesar Salad? - (Arabella Paulovich) Taste

From drought to severe storms, climate change is a challenge for Maine’s iconic wild blueberries - (Ivy Scott) The Boston Globe

Want to eat sustainably? Learn to cook something new - (Alicia Kennedy) The Washington Post

“The Demand Is Unstoppable”: Can Barcelona Survive Mass Tourism? - (Lisa Abend) The New York Times

Substacks I loved

Why Ultra Processed Foods Save Family Dinners - (Virginia Sole-Smith and Laura Thomas) Burnt Toast by Virginia Sole-Smith

3 stories for Julia Child on her birthday (+ 3 recipes) - (Dorie Greenspan) xoxoDorie

Food Restriction In Response To Global Crisis - (Stephanie Voytek) a spoonful of stories

I'm a Dietitian and I Don't Know How to Have a Healthy Lifestyle Either - (Stephanie Voytek) A spoonful of stories

Breton Desserts - (David Lebovitz) David Lebovitz Newsletter

A biased review of Pasta shapes. - (The Venetian Pantry) The Venetian Pantry

VOICE NOTE RECIPES: Nonno Giggi’s Roman, Almost-Aglio-e-Olio Tomato Spaghettini - (Valentina) L’appetito

Celebrating Nonna: 70 years of Cooking - (Valentina) L’appetito

Bringing migrants and communities together with food - (Sue Quinn) Pen&Spoon

Edna Lewis! Edna Lewis! Edna Lewis! - (Ruth Reichl) La Briffe

A Look into My Father’s Studio: The Making of a Cherished Portrait - (Zaira Zarotti) The Freaky Table

On food and hospitality - (Giulia Scarpaleggia) Letters from Tuscany

Pay Writers for Their Work. There Is No Alternative. - (Olga Koutseridi) Local Bread Baker’s Newsletter

Croque-Monsieur - (Jamie Schler) Life’s a Feast by Jamie Schler

Is overtourism killing Florence's dining scene? - (Emiko Davies) Notes from Emiko’s Kitchen

Table for One - (Shailee Koranne) Midnight snack

The Tomato, part 1, The Tomato, part 2 and The Tomato, part 3 (Victoria Flexner) Edible History

Zadar: In which I travel literally to the unknown - (Lisa Abend) The Unplugged Traveler

Episode #93: Lisa Abend - (Nicholas Gill and Lisa Abend) New Worlder

Cookbook Chronicles: The Science & Art of Recipe Development - (Martin Sorge) Great Bakes by Martin Sorge

On the Sublime - (Lou Tamposi) Cow We Doin'

Personal Notes

After the hot summer in Boston, I am ready for the cozy fall to arrive. The season in New England it’s like nowhere else. But before summer comes to an end, I am travelling to Vermont and hopefully taking lots of photos and videos. Perhaps even from the air, as I bought a drone!

It’s a funny story. When I went to Savannah, GA, my flight was overbooked. They asked politely if anybody would like to wait for the following flight and after no response they started offering money. When it got to $700 (per person!) Ross and I volunteered! We decided to spend the money in something fun. So… I bought myself a drone!