Healthy Eats in South Miami

Living in a region of Florida with high restaurant turnover rates, I often hesitate to recommend great spots for fear of walking up to the CLOSED sign on the door.

Meals of yore, as if from another lifetime in a far away land, come to mind. Restaurants the names of which I can no longer recall. But I do remember the succulent, sage, ricotta, nutmeg raviolis slathered in a wine butter sauce on Lincoln Road. Sometimes when I sniff a sprig of rosemary, I'm transported to that tender osso bucco, braised in red wine, on Washington Avenue.

Further inland, the former Kafa Café -- Miami's then only remaining Ethiopian restaurant -- served delicious, home-cooked style fare, but eventually disappeared from its Midtown location. I miss dipping injera bread into those aromatic and spicy sauces.

I hope that such a fate doesn't befall Temple Kitchen, a neighborhood vegan and vegetarian friendly in the heart of South Miami, an area of Miami-Dade that offers many choices -- from Cuban to French to Portuguese and East Indian -- all in a few squares miles. Temple is Sunset Drive's newest addition. Prior to Temple's opening, only Whole Foods offered similar fare.

Even a carnivore would enjoy the flavor combinations at this plant-based eatery, which bears the slogan "joy to the food."

Joy to the tastebuds would be more appropriate.

Yesterday, I tried the Q & A salad and one of Temple's signature house waters (mint, ginger, lemon). The salad was pure heaven: the namesake quinoa and arugula, with roasted beets, mint, cherry tomatoes, almonds, parsley all served with a beet coulis dressing.

It was pretty too; you could almost call it an altarpiece.

Just out of curiosity, I asked for a sample of the Cream of Broccoli soup. In my younger years, when I poured over classic French cookbooks, the idea of creamy and thick -- without a buttery roux -- would have seem impossible, not to mention preposterous.

I'm not sure if any of the other patrons heard me, but I moaned a little when I took one sip of this simple and silky soup: broccoli, coconut milk and vegetable stock. Creamy indeed but supple on the tongue.

I'm not particularly religious, but I do plan on worshipping at this temple regularly. No penance or kneeling required.

You Always Go Back Home

I'm moving back to my old neighborhood so I can be closer to my parents.

I've been a gypsy all my life, moving about in Miami-Dade countless times. Oh yeah, and then there was that surreal yet amazing three-year stint in Venezuela when I was just barely a decade old.

But fast-forward to this century. If you recall, just a few years ago I moved from Miami Beach to South Miami and then had a respite in Silver Bluff until just recently, when my parents began to require more medical attention.

When people ask me why I'm unmarried without children these days, I have a patent reply:  I didn't have children; I had parents.

I skipped that "family" part of life -- went from childless single hood to caregiver in one fell swoop. But hey, isn't this "family" all the same? And aren't we supposed to grow "old" into a space of compassion and patience?

Such is caregiving: the cycle of life, come full circle.

Although I'm happy to report that I'm currently enjoying a relationship. Yes, a relationship that came just in time, completely unexpectedly, with a man whose heart is made of something even more precious than gold, something that broke the mold.

My life has been blessed by even more serendipity lately.  This apartment -- the one I really wanted -- wasn't supposed to be vacant, but the previous tenant got a job in Chicago and had to bolt.

It was meant to be.

The move is a win-win.  Check out my new view.  I miss South Miami -- quite possibly Miami's friendliest, safest and most walkable neighborhood. It's going to be absolutely glorious when that Royal Poinciana blooms.

Once I get settled, Sex and the Beach will resume posting.  I'll be writing from this room with a view, with sunshine and big blue skies, bay breezes gracing the air as the water is just about three miles away.

Virginia Woolf once wrote everyone woman needs a room of her own, but you don't want a such a reclusive space where the heart shrivels and dies, wallowing in misery. No, quite the contrary.  I'll have the best of both worlds now: a "room" for me but a life embraced by love -- love that gives and receives in its many manifestations.

The Sexiest Twilight

Move over vampires, I got your breathtaking sunset for you here at Matheson Hammock Park near South Miami. It's that time of the year again, when cooler breezes caress Biscayne Bay and blood-thirsty mosquitoes are just a memory of summer. The liminal hour offers a spectacular show, making for one of the city's most secluded and romantic strolls. You can have your drama -- mother nature provides just what we need -- only the herons stirring as they fish for their evening meals.

Fresh Eats in South Miami

Inspired by my buddy and neighbor Mike La Monica's post last week on the South Miami Farmer's Market, I finally made a bee line to city hall parking lot, skipping Winn Dixie for a change. I can't believe I've been missing out on this for so long!

The market is small, but I left with a decent variety of veggies and fruit. I would have brought more, but since I'm cooking for one, I'd rather buy just enough at a time so food won't spoil.

A little feast for the single gal's kitchen: cilantro, guava, baby eggplants, mamey, tomato, cucumber, avocado and sugar-free jam.

Freakin' Flamingo posing with her goods.

The best part of my morning was bumping into my Twitter friend Renée Joslyn (@rjflamingo), a very funny gal with whom I've had the pleasure of clinking a glass or two. She is the entrepreneur behind Freakin' Flamingo, where she makes delicious micro-batch jams. She's also a South Miami neighbor. Talk about supporting local business!

I brought the last sugar-free jam today; they're popular and she runs out of those quickly. Sweetened with xylitol, the Starfruit Vanilla is absolutely delicious, especially if you are a fan of that fragrant orchid seed pod. I enjoyed some of the jam over Whole Foods unsweetened peanut butter and Ezequiel toast for breakfast.

Easy peasy quinoa salad. I haven't cooked any rice since I discovered this versatile, high-protein grain.

Lunch was just as good with the produce I had purchased earlier in the day, and the perfect, spontaneous meal for one. Chopped tomatoes, cucumber and cilantro, plus an onion I already had in the fridge, mixed with extra virgin olive oil, white balsamic vinegar and salt -- all added to some cooked and cooled quinoa. So ridiculously easy and tasty! I made two servings, so it will be even better tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to sautéeing the baby eggplants in garlic and making milkshakes with the guava. I'll spoon the mamey pulp straight off the skin, sprinkling it with a little nutmeg.

I spent about $20 on the whole shopping spree. The jam was the most expensive item at $9, but well worth the price. The guava and avocado were grown locally. I'll definitely be going back to South Miami Farmer's Market.

Single ladies, don't tell me it's boring and pointless to cook for one! It's one of the best things you can do for yourself. Look at it this way -- at least you please yourself and don't have to worry about feeding other mouths!

Please stop over at Mike La Monica's blog to see a great video about the people and musicians at the market: Saturday in my little town.