How do you feel when your kid sister lands back home from Russia, where she taught English to cute little kids with big eyes whose names all end in -sia or -tia (the girls, anyway), and where she took cooking classes in her off-time?
And how do you feel when, in your company, she applies her newfound talent for adapting Russian dishes based on American supermarket availability?
Happy, that’s how you feel. And full. Happy and full. Full and happy.
Especially when said sister gets to the dessert part of the Russian food extravaganza.
Behold the so-called Tower of Happiness. It must have an official Russian name, and surely it’s served for a Russian purpose somewhere in Russia. But my sister referred to this — this construction of egg whites and sugar and homemade dulce de leche (yes, I know that’s not Russian) — as the Tower of Happiness.
I must say, that after I consumed way too much of it that first night, and way too much of it at subsequent, and regular, intervals, I most definitely felt happy. And full.
And when one night I poked my nose in the refrigerator and asked, “Is the happiness all gone?” and learned that indeed it was, I felt a teeny bit sad. Not heart-ripped-to-pieces sad. Not wailing and teeth-gnashing sad. More of a bite-lower-lip-and-carry-on-through-the-emptiness kind of sad.
But even when the dessert is gone, there’s always happiness left to spread: Sarah, at Life is Still Sweet, passed this lovely award to me, and I’d like to forward it on to the following amazing bloggers.
“This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY – nearness in space, time and relationships! These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!”
Batter-Splattered (for her site’s literary and atmospheric quality); My Kitchen in Half-Cups (because that sums up what food blogging’s all about, anyway); Britt’s Got Boys (for her wry delight of momhood, and for making me glad I don’t have boys); An Edible Symphony (because she tells food-as-life stories). Read, view, enjoy!
the zest 
Muneeba said,
January 15, 2009 @ 7:21 am
Thks Trisha for this cute little award! It’s my first one (the rookie is excited!), and I’m more than happy to pass it along. It’s true that I don’t have any over-the-top ambitions for my little blog … nothing makes me happier than simply sharing my life and recipes with new friends, helping people add new recipes to their repertoire, and learning from my readers!
desmone007 said,
January 15, 2009 @ 4:13 pm
Wow just looking at the pictures I feel full and happy! I would love to invite you to share this and more recipes and cooking tips with us at Foodista – the cooking encyclopedia everyone can edit. We also have small embeddable widgets that can help you build traffic from Foodista-related pages. Check it out here. Thanks!
mudag said,
January 17, 2009 @ 6:13 am
it is really true???
Elle said,
January 19, 2009 @ 1:18 pm
Oh my gosh, that looks and sounds incredible! And congratulations on your award-you deserve it!
Trisha said,
January 19, 2009 @ 2:28 pm
Muneeba: You’re welcome! Welcome to the fun world of food blogging!
Desmone007: Glad you stopped by. Thanks for telling me about Foodista — cool concept!
Mudag: Is what really true? My story? It is true — I tell true food stories here at The Zest. I checked with my sister about the true name of the Tower, and she says it’s called Torte Beze.
Elle: Thanks, Elle! You’re the best.
Elisa said,
January 20, 2009 @ 8:39 pm
It does kind of fill you with happy, doesn’t it? Of course, partaking with family makes all the difference. And I’ll join the others in congratulating you on your award–it characterizes your posts perfectly. Thanks for sharing it all with us!
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