TRUST YOUR GUT

hunger can be helpful

We’ve all been there- our stomach is so empty it starts eating itself and blood sugar is so low that we turn “hangry”. We become one track minded, focused to resolve this persistent and inner ache, knowing the longer we ignore it the louder it will grow. Our priorities slinky down to the bottom of Maslow’s Pyramid of Needs. When you’re hungry as hell, little else matters.

me, watching my blood sugar bottom out

There’s a reason food is at the base of the pyramid, hunger is a powerful motivator. For the same reason our ancestors got tired of hunting and gathering every day and were eventually like “fuck this we’re gonna figure out farming”. Hunger, when it’s not about survival, can be a tool for meeting new challenges and embracing change. 

My dad was born and raised in Texas, he’s a fajita aficionado and BBQ baron. So when I stopped eating animal products, my dad wasn’t sure how to adapt to that. But I remembered how much my dad loves eggplant. No, seriously, when pops was a kid he’d ride his bike to the farmer’s market and buy the largest eggplant he could find. He’d also snag a Dr. Pepper and comic book with whatever leftover money he had but he’d hurry home with an eggplant the size of his head to give to my grandmother Mary to roast for him. This lore is well-known in our family, so when Michelle developed some epic eggplant recipes for the new book, I knew exactly who needed to try them.

When my pops visits me, he does his best to eat plant-based food. Considering I do most of the cooking he doesn’t have much choice lol. BUT this is where hunger meets opportunity. So while we were in production on Hungry as Hell I thought this is the perfect chance to test out our eggplant polpetti. “You don’t hafta cook, we can just go grab something” dad would suggest and I countered with “Nonsense, help me roll these balls and we’ll be eating before you know it.” I sold my dad on the idea of resolving our collective hunger using his favorite ingredient, eggplant.

There’s plenty of stuff in our new cookbook that I’m proud of. I am regularly impressed by Michelle’s talent to fuse flavor and textures that I wouldn’t have considered, like the falafel waffles. I’m stoked that I was able to try some new photography tricks I had picked up since shooting our last cookbook. But my favorite memory has to be making eggplant polpetti with my pops with Hank Williams playing in the background. While we ate I stared at my dad, wondering if it tapped into his inner child frantically biking home under the Texas sun with an eggplant in his backpack. Dad would later tell me while we were washing dishes that this was one of his favorite meals and asked if I could share the recipe with him ahead of the book release. If we only sold one copy and it was to my dad, that would be enough for me. 

Eggplant Polpetti, an instant classic from our new book

Having tested the hunger of my family, I’m confident y’all will enjoy cooking from this book. I hope it makes you consider your own appetite and motivations. Sit with it. Think about what it is you *really* want and make that shit a reality. Obviously, I’m not just talking about food here. Do difficult and challenging things while you’re still capable of making mistakes. EMBRACE STRUGGLE. BE UNCOMFORTABLE. EVOLVE INTO THE BEST VERSION OF YOU. STAY HUNGRY AS HELL.

Thanks for joining us in the Broiler Room. Tomorrow Michelle is gonna give our Sunday subscribers a flatbread recipe that you’re gonna love. If you’ve preordered Hungry as Hell already, be sure to collect your gift from us HERE. And if you haven’t preordered, well there’s an easy way to fix that.

Till next week, I hope your knives stay sharp and sink remains empty.