Bite of the Best

Located on 30th Street in Miami Beach (FL), the more tranquil north side of South Beach, The Palms hotel was just far enough from the South Beach Wine and Food Festival — held on the beach from 10th Street to 14th Street — to walk-off some of the incredible delicacies I consumed during the festivities.

The Palms, a family-owned hotel, is getting a facelift. They're in the midst of adding a spa (Who isn't?) and upgrading their rooms.

I wanted to share with you this unusual soup I sampled at the hotel. From the name you'd think it would be sweet, but it's not. Instead the acidity of the yellow tomatoes balances the sweetness of the mangoes. My preference, though, would be to stir in some diced jalapeño pepper or a few drops of Tabasco sauce.

(Since this just arrived in my inbox, I have not kitchen-tested it.)

Executive Chef Gerd Richter’s Tropical Mango Gazpacho

4 cups water
4 peeled and diced ripe mangoes
1 cup mango puree
1 cup white wine vinegar
1 yellow Spanish onion, diced
8 yellow tomatoes, diced
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro
2 European cucumbers, peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 Tablespoon white pepper
1 Tablespoon salt
For garnish: 8 crispy plantain chips

Process all the ingredients (except garnish) in a blender until smooth. Serve in martini glass garnished with plantain chips and fresh cilantro. Makes 8 servings.

Note: The chef garnished my serving with the plantain and diced red, yellow and green peppers

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Wanting to take a short (4-day) safari during my recent trip to Africa, I was instructed to “Skip the Serengeti and head to the Selous”. Three times larger than the Serengeti and twice the size of Belgium, the Selous is the largest protected game reserve on the African continent. Instead of being in a jeep all day, our safari experience included both a river ride and a walking safari as well.

I listened and was glad I did.

We arrived at the Selous Riverside Safari Camp after a 5 1/2-hour Land Cruiser ride from Dar es Salaam, mostly on unpaved roads. The camp is located on the banks of the Rufiji River, a few kilometers outside the game reserve. When we arrived we were presented with icy-cold washcloths and fresh-chilled fruit juice by Sharon Moore and John Anderson.

Sharon, raised in Swaziland, had arrived at the camp the previous month, just in time for a visit from Tanzania’s president. John Anderson, from Mozambique, had been there about six months — since the camp opened. Our welcome was exceptionally royal, as we learned later that Sharon and John had been incorrectly informed that I was a Zanzibarian hotel magnate. Wrong. We ended up having the entire camp and staff to ourselves.

During one dinner on the deck overlooking the Rufiji, our servers placed bowls of peppery pumpkin soup in front of us. It was so delicious we had to restrain ourselves from licking the bowls. When asked, Chef Fadhil Kondo Mangala gladly provided his recipe to me. I recreated it using butternut squash.

To make Chef Fadhil Kondo Mangala’s Peppery Pumpkin (or Butternut Squash) Soup, cook 1 peeled, seeded and cubed melon-size pumpkin or large butternut squash, 1 medium-sized chopped onion, and 2 cloves mashed garlic in 2 tablespoons butter in a stock pot over medium heat for 15 minutes until the squash and onion are tender. Add 4 cups water and 2 stock cubes (or one 32-ounce container chicken broth), bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Add 2 1/2 teaspoons coarse black pepper and salt to taste. (The amount will vary depending on the stock cubes or broth you added.)

Either use an immersion blender to purée the soup or let it cool slightly, then process in a blender to purée. Taste and adjust seasoning. The soup should be peppery. Just before serving stir in 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Selous Riverside Safari Camp. About $195 a night from October thru March, includes breakfast, a picnic lunch and dinner; +255 22 2128161; www.selousriversidecamp.com

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When I agreed to go on a desert dinner safari to a Bedouin campsite outside Dubai (UAE), I hadn’t a clue that I was getting myself an into adrenaline-pumping ride that would make Disney’s Space Mountain seem like a merry-go-round.

“Eat early so you won’t lose your lunch,” advised Mustafa, our 23-year-old city guide. That should have tipped me off. So should have the Lama Desert Tours website advisory “The tour is not recommended to heart patients (or those) with neck and back problems.”

In spite of these warnings, I cluelessly climbed into the front seat of the Toyota Land Cruiser. We stopped just short of the desert at a small shop where Mustafa urged us to use the bathroom facilities. Of course we listened. (Didn’t your mom tell you to go when you had the chance?) We later learned that while we were inside, Mustafa was letting air out of the tires for the breathtaking ride of a lifetime.

I can only describe the experience by asking you to imagine a 23-year old in a Land Cruiser who’s been instructed to drive as fast as possible through the desert, jumping over as many dunes as feasible.

That hour-long roller coaster left us speechless. And breathless. At times, the car tipped to a 90-degree angle and we were sure it would flip over. None of the vehicles, btw, had roll bars. Our worst fear was crashing into one of the 50 other vehicles, including ATVs, that were also hurdling dunes. Although we witnessed no accidents, we did notice the remnants of bumpers and other non-essential car parts strewn throughout the desert.

When we arrived at our destination, feeling as though our stomachs were up in our throats, we had little interest in food. We skipped the appetizers (although the roasted corn on a stick looked yummy) and got involved in the festivities. Activities included everything from camel riding to henna painting and window shopping for local artifacts, costume jewelry and belly dancers’ harem costumes.

Eventually, the smell of the barbecuing meat on the grill reignited our appetites. Was it the desert air that heightened the flavor of the baba ganoush, tzatziki, hummus, tabbouleh and fresh naan, or was it all exceptionally delicious? We’ll never know.

Lama Desert Tours & Cruises, about $65 per adult for Dune Safari with BBQ; 971 4 3344 330, www.lama.ae/Static/index.aspx

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Just back from my trip to Africa — Tanzania actually — with a 36-hour stopover in Dubai (UAE). I discovered the secret to a true vacation; get unwired. Seriously. Two plus weeks without mail — e, voice and snail — is a real getaway. I recommend it to one and all.

I hadn’t taken a two-week vacation since biking around Peloponneses and Zakynthos in Greece back in (gulp) 1985. What a difference that second week makes to unwinding. Even more so doing it unplugged.

I’m not the only one who stays wired. At Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain in Arizona recently, almost every other person lounged by the pool working on his or her PDAs — including my traveling companion Melanie Young. And in a conversation with Laura C. this week, she admitted to even checking her BlackBerry during her honeymoon in St. Lucia last year.

Unplug when on holiday. Get away and unwind. It’s what vacations are all about. Okay, okay. I’ll get off my soapbox….(for now)…

In the next few weeks, I’ll be blogging about Dubai (with such a building boom, it’s said to currently have in use 20 to 25 percent of all the cranes in the world) and Tanzania, highlighted by my safari to the southern Selous Reserve and relaxation at Blue Bay Resort on the beach in Zanzibar, where Eric is doing his internship.

Stay tuned for more details, recipes, menus and photos…

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Last time I headed to Atlanta, the answer from my food buddies as to where I should eat was Scott Peacock’s Watershed.

First time down West Ponce De Leon, we drove right past the gas-station turned casual-with-personality restaurant. Once finally inside, the hostess greeted us as if we were guests in her home. Then, while we were trying to decide what to select, Chef Scott Peacock came by the table to welcome us and suggested he send out their Creamy Stone Ground Shrimp Grits with Pullman Plank.

The grits arrived as a spread for the accompanying thick piece of toasted bread. ‘Unusual way to serve grits,’ I thought, but we all dug in and marveled at the not-too-shrimpy, not-too-grits-y delicious flavor.

Scott explained how he processes into a paste shrimp that he’s cooked in butter, sherry, lemon and cayenne. He then adds a large dollop of the paste into the hot steamy grits.

If you’d like the real scoop on making this delicious southern dish, you’ll find a detailed recipe in Scott and the late Edna Lewis’s book, “The Gift of Southern Cooking.” And if you want to try the dish with a dash of Watershed’s Southern hospitality, go to 406 West Ponce De Leon Ave., Decatur, GA. (404.378.4900) www.watershedrestaurant.com

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