LETTER FROM THE FOUNDER
Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Zap.Cooking newsletter!
What began as a simple idea and a collaborative effort has grown into a vibrant community. Food, in its unique way, transcends culture and connects us all. It’s at the dinner table where we break bread and share our lives. Here, we’ve created a space where people come together to exchange ideas and celebrate a shared passion for cooking and culinary excellence.
This is the Nostr way—a community built on shared ideas and a constructive culture. We are excited to embark on this new journey of sharing a newsletter with friends of Nostr and Zap.Cooking. We hope you enjoy this fresh approach and look forward to many shared recipes and conversations.
Bon appétit!
Seth, Founder of Zap.Cooking
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Food Clubs For Life Outside The System
Jack Spirko is the founder and host of The Survival Podcast. In episode 3552, titled “Food Clubs for Life Outside The System,” Jack engages in a fascinating two-hour conversation with Joshua Longbrook, who established a food club and hub in Chattanooga, TN, as a means of building a parallel society that respects food freedom and self-sovereignty. Agora Food Club is a private association of members who value natural, organic food and regenerative farming practices, creating and sustaining a locally based alternative food system. In this episode, they discuss the blueprint and what it takes to start a food club in your neighborhood.
Links to YT video and Food Club:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uPcAfG-9AU
The Six-Ingredient Grandma Betty’s Chicken Dijon Family Recipe
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“Growing up there are a few staple foods that stick with you. For me, it was my Grandma Betty’s Chicken Dijon. It was my birthday request every year and every time we cook it up it touches my heart. Grandma Betty passed away 7 years ago. This dish is dedicated to her, directly from her recipe book.” - Quiet Warrior
Grandma Betty’s Chicken Dijon on zap.cooking
Glowing Rolls: Raw Vegan Sushi for a Healthy Boost!
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“All you need are your favorite vegetables, nori sheets, a bamboo mat, a cutting board, and a knife. For the dip, you can simply use soy sauce, or try this recipe for a delicious creamy dip. I make my own cream cheese with soaked cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, lime juice, and vinegar. You can also find vegan cream cheese or cashew cheese at a health food store. Feel free to add other veggies like bell pepper, chili, cucumber, fresh onion or anything you like! In the image I also used red bell pepper and shiitake.” - Essencial
Glowing Rolls: Raw Vegan Sushi for a Healthy Boost! on zap.cooking
Slow Cookin’ Tender Sweet-and-Sour Brisket
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“In this case, sweet-and-sour doesn’t mean Americanized Chinese food but rather the sauce that dominated the Shabbos and Pesach dinner table among American Jewish immigrants in the early 20th century.” - Lizsweig
Sweet-and-Sour Brisket on zap.cooking
2024 Nostriga Photo Album
Community Photos by AZA_to_₿_myself, Jeroen, elsat, Derek Ross, realjode, and SimplySarah
To share your Nostr community photos, please DM @ZapCooking on Nostr
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UPCOMING NOSTR HAPPENINGS
To submit your Nostr event, please DM @ZapCooking on Nostr
Nostr Valley @ Happy Valley Brewing Company - October 12, 2024 - 12pm to 4pm (est)
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Nostrville 2.0 No Panels, All Party! @ Bitcoin Park - November 6, 2024 - 4:30pm to 7:30pm (cst)
Nostrville 2.0 - No panels, all party!, Wed, Nov 6, 2024, 4:30 PM | Meetup
ZAP.COOKING PRESENTS: LACE
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SimplySarah: Let’s start by learning a little background on Lace. What is your food story?
Lace: Food for me runs in my veins. My family is from Jamaica and my grandmother began cooking as a girl. She brought her recipes with her to the UK in the 1950s and cooks the most delicious dishes. My mother has been a professional chef for over 40 years. Family meals at Christmas were always a big deal. However, it wasn’t until 18, I began cooking at university where I vowed my children would know how to cook a healthy meal and not end up like the people around me living on take out and micro meals. As a student, I just recreated things I ate at home and when I was unsure, I’d call my mum or my grandmother for help. When I had kids, I put them in the kitchen at age 2 and my eldest, now 15, is an incredible chef. We are also well traveled and always enjoying local cuisine which also inspires our cooking.
SimplySarah: That is a lovely background. It seems it was a natural progression to want to get into writing cookbooks. I understand you are working on your second currently, but let’s backtrack and talk about how the first one came to life.
Lace: It would seem so. I always wanted to write a book but a cookbook wasn’t what I thought I would write first 😅 And yes, the second is coming next year, a co-authored book. The first, came about because of Facebook, actually. Admittedly, I am one of those people who posts food pictures. And my Facebook followers began asking me for my recipes all the time. And I would write them out… and then decided it made more sense to write them once inside a book and sell it. Hence Lace’s Bad Ass Yard Food was born.
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SimplySarah: That’s an awesome title! What IS Bad Ass Yard Food?
Lace: Hahaha, thank you! Yard food is what we (as Jamaicans in my family) call our cuisine. Yard food. Yard means home. So it’s basically great homemade food. Typically, this is things like Curry Chicken, Fry Fish, Jerk Chicken, Rice and Peas, Hard Food (yam, dumplings and green bananas) and many other things.
SimplySarah: All those dishes sound phenomenal. If you had a go-to dish from the first cookbook what would you select? Maybe something that is always served on a weekly or regular basis at your home?
Lace: Oh they are! My favorite is curry goat. Curry Chicken has got to be the go to, I still cook it weekly now! And no matter where I’ve lived in the world, I can always prepare it.
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SimplySarah: Funny, I believe you just posted on Nostr that you were in the process of making curry chicken if I recall correctly. Is the next cookbook following the same roots? Or are you and your partner exploring different cuisines?
Lace: That’s right! I did just post that curry on Nostr. The next book is going to feature 8 of my favorite recipes. Some will be Jamaican but I also happen to love Asian inspired dishes and have some European favorites too which will be featured. This will be the first time I’m sharing non Caribbean dishes. As for me and my boyfriend, he is Colombian and an ex-military Chef. He has been sharing his food with us and has been enjoying eating food from different regions for the first time as a result of meeting me. It’s great fun to bond through food.
Lace’s Curry Chicken with Purple Cabbage, Plantains, and White Rice:
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SimplySarah: Is he the co-author you are speaking about?
Lace: Nope. The other Authors of the book are all entrepreneurs who love food. The first edition will be available in november, it’s called Made with Love. I will be featured in the second coming 2025.
SimplySarah: Oh, nice! How did you get tapped into this project?
Lace: Again, my facebook network. I was chatting with a lady who is a self made millionaire about money. She checked out my fb profile and said.. ohh I love your cooking videos, what a fun way to market (my tech business) and then invited me to check out the cookbook project and be part of it. And just like that I was in.
SimplySarah: Facebook definitely brings a lot of people together based on their favorite topics. Now that you are exploring Nostr and have such an incredible background with culinary arts, what do you hope to achieve here on this social protocol?
Lace: Yes, socials are great for that! Honestly, I just want to connect with folks who love great food and are into self development, natural living, love travel and sovereignty. On my second day on Nostr, I met you, a fellow foodie, so it’s certainly working out well so far. :) And without all the ads and other crap fb force on it’s users
SimplySarah: Personally, I am super thrilled you have joined Nostr. We need more foodies, and I love nerding out about anything food related, especially the food travel stories. I would absolutely love to follow your food journey, and I think all the Nostr foodies should too. Where can everyone find you, follow you, and maybe buy a cookbook?
Lace: Yay! Thank you. I love talking about food, cooking, sharing food, buying ingredients and trying food. You can find me on Facebook - the loved and hated, Nostr, and my personal website. There’s no fancy sales page for the cookbook yet! 11 of my Jamaican recipes in one cute ebook :) I’m coming over to Zap Cooking too.
SimplySarah: One day you will be Nostr Only and forget all about Facebook. Haha! We look forward to having you on Zap.Cooking. We have a lot of ideas in the works and would love for you to be involved! I have one final question. First, I want to thank you for taking your time to spend your Saturday morning with me. This was fun. You mentioned you put your children in the kitchen at an early age. I’m a big fan of teaching kids life skills when they are young. Do you have any tips for parents to help them in the kitchen with their children?
Lace: I’m sure that will happen. My fb network has been instrumental in my success and surviving the rough time in my travel. Do tell me all about your ideas for Zap, I’d love to see how I can be involved!
Yes, tips for parents, When kids are eating solids, feed them home cooked meals, no jars, no processed stuff, healthy, varied, adventurous meals you eat. If you’re eating octopus, let ‘em try. If you’re eating veg, let them try. If you’re eating chicken liver pate, let them try. Encourage a varied diet and pallet. Then at 2, get them in the kitchen. Let them peel garlic cloves, add herbs to meat, make meatballs, mix and taste things. Invite them to cook everyday. And have fun with it!
It’s been my pleasure to spend time with you this Saturday morning Sarah. Thank YOU.
You can find the talented Lace at:
https://www.facebook.com/iamlaceflowers
https://primal.net/p/npub1ruhmx2wy663u9k2sams6qrlvgq86t3p4q3ygwgp5wqzcrgd6fh7sr20ys2
https://www.iamlaceflowers.com/workwithme
Follow Zap.Cooking Content Coordinator SimplySarah at:
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