I Can Savor Again
Thank you
For This Meal
Thanksgiving recipes from survivors of the coronavirus who are approaching the day with a renewed sense of gratitude.
Kelynne Edmond, 46, a nurse practitioner, was bed-ridden for about six weeks after becoming infected with coronavirus in March. She lost her sense of taste and smell – a common symptom of the virus. Ms. Edmond, who is president of the Haitian American Nurses Association of Greater New York, also had trouble breathing and staying hydrated.
“My breathing was bad, but I didn’t need to be on a respirator,” she said with a sense of gratitude. Ms. Edmond has returned to work at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and is teaching virtually at Medgar Evers College, where she is an assistant professor of nursing.
The long-term effects of Covid-19 still plague her. She became anemic. She has trouble with dehydration, breathing and maintaining her appetite. “One minute, I’m fine, and the next minute, I have this sudden onset of weakness,” she said.
Before getting sick, Ms. Edmond was trying to live a healthier life – a process she began about a year ago when she re-evaluated her relationship with food. “I wanted a healthier lifestyle, and I dropped 85 pounds,” she said.
She lost weight when she was sick, too. But these were the pounds she needed to regain. Mindfully eating and maintaining a positive outlook helped her to get back to a healthier place physically.
This Thanksgiving has taken on an entirely new meaning for her family, which includes her husband, Daniel, who manages a catering business, and four boys.
“We’re not celebrating Thanksgiving in the sense of its original origin,” she said. This year, “we take the time to make it about friends, family and loss, and really being grateful, especially post-Covid, about the opportunity to be alive.” She’s most looking forward to enjoying Diri ak djon djon, a Haitian rice dish that her husband makes on special occasions.
Diri ak djon djon
8 servings | Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Photograph of Kelynne Edmond, top, is by Jenny Anderson for ISLAND AND SPICE MAGAZINE. A bowl of diri ak djon djon, above, a Haitian rice dish made with a black mushroom stock and lima beans. The darker the rice, the richer the flavor. ISLAND AND SPICE MAGAZINE
Ingredients:
2 cups djon djon (dried black mushrooms)
4 cups water
1 tbs epis, a Haitian seasoning base
2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbs olive oil
½ cup white onion, chopped
Pinch of salt
½ tsp ground cloves
1 (12-oz) can lima beans
1 fresh thyme sprig
1 Scotch bonnet pepper, whole
2 cups Madame Gougousse or any jasmine rice
Preparation:
Place the mushrooms in a bowl and remove any foreign impurities. Place the mushrooms that have been picked clean in a pan of water and let it sit for 30 minutes. Next, bring the mushrooms and water to a boil, then turn it off to cool. Use a strainer to separate the mushrooms from the stock. Set aside the stock for later, and discard the mushrooms.
Heat a rice pot on medium. Heat the oil before adding the epis, garlic, onions, salt, cloves and lima beans. Sauté for 5 minutes or until onions brown. Add the rice and stir for 3 to 5 minutes.
Add two cups of the mushroom stock. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat when most of the water evaporates (approximately 10-15 minutes). Stir the rice, set the temperature to low. Add the thyme and pepper. Cover the pot and steam the rice for 15 to 30 minutes. Remove both the thyme and pepper before serving.
A healthy serving portion is between one half and one cup.
