Culinary immersion with Alyssa Rosenheck, Maneet Chauhan, and The Bitter Southerner

Heritage is often tied to our culinary traditions. We love and learn through food. I remember growing up in the kitchen with my mom. It became less about what she was cooking and more about the stories that traveled with family recipes. This is where I learned and took pride in my Jewish and Italian heritage, and this is when we would sit around the table and light candles to commemorate the living traditions that were not only time-honored but helped shape a foundation for identity and resilience. 

I recently had the pleasure to explore a culinary mecca in Nashville with my dear friend Maneet Chauhan. For those who aren't familiar with Maneet, STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING and turn to page 286 of The New Southern Style to see how this changemaker is shifting the culinary landscape in the South. Together we explored the important neighborhood in South Nashville along Nolensville Pike, which is home to one of the largest refugee resettlement populations in the United States. 

According to Avi Mediratta at Vanderbilt University, refugee groups who are  Sudanese, Somali, Kurdish, Bosnian, and Hispanic have come to smaller Southern cities “partially because in 2001, the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) chose three nontraditional locations in the South as new targets for incoming refugees. The idea was that new refugee communities could be built in these cities and have a relatively larger political influence in smaller cities rather than large ones.”

Exploring this neighborhood and all it has to offer through the lens of a foodie was a gift in and of itself. Maneet and I were with The Bitter Southerner’s crew as we blocked off our afternoon, tuned out the outside world, and dialed into what mattered most — connection to food and connection to heritage.  

Here are the spots we visited during our time together:

• Surati Indian Street Food

• Patel Brothers

• Taqueria Express Food Truck

• K&S World Market

• La Conchita Panaderia y Pasteleria

• Baraka International Market & Bakery

• Sichuan Hot Pot & Asian Cuisine

To read more about our must visit food markets and restaurant list, check out the beautiful feature with The Bitter Southerner, and for a few of my family recipes, click here or here to watch. 

If you’re inspired to donate to an organization that supports refugees in Nashville after reading and watching — as I hope you are — here are three to explore:

• Nashville International Center for Empowerment

• Casa Azafran

• World Relief

To help refugees around the world, head here for a comprehensive list.

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Alyssa’s debut Coffee Table book, The New Southern, Out now via Abrams!

The New Southern | Grabbing Life By the Meatballs + Holiday Meal Prep

The New Southern is a movement grounded in cultural change where we are honoring and humanizing our differences through the lens of creativity. Today, lets honor a little comfort food that is great for the weekends or a holiday show stopper. This is a casual meal that goes beautifully with Austin Hope or Daou (Two of my favorite cabs) when we are entertaining guests. My mom spent the holdays with us a few years ago and to have her in my kitchen helping me cook was a gift (See the video). We laughed, we cried, we honored the moments that marinated with old family recipes. Growing up with both parents having diverse cultural backgrounds, our common ground in celebrating life and love was and is through food… so from my home to yours…. I am sending you health, happiness, connection and much love through this meal.

RECIPE | HERE’s TO Grabbing Life By the MEATBALLS!

(Serves arounD 4-6)

1 lb Ground Beef (I use 90% lean)
1/2 lb Ground VEAL
1/2 lb Ground Pork
1 White Onion (Finely Chopped)
2 Large Eggs
1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
1 teaspoon of Minced Garlic
1 teaspoon Dried Thyme
1 teaspoon Salt and Pepper
1/2 cup Milk (I use skim, but any is fine)
1 1/2 cups Bread Crumbs
1 cup Finely Grated Parmesan
1 cup of Fresh Parsley, chopped
1 lb Spaghetti or Penne
4 Jars RAO’s Homemade Tomato Basil Sauce

1. In a large glass mixing bowl whisk together the Eggs, Milk, Chopped Onion, Oregano, Garlic, Thyme, Salt, Pepper, Parmesan, Chopped Parsley and Bread Crumbs. Loosely stir the mixture and then add all the meat (Beef, Lamb, Pork) . With your hands, knead the meat and the mixture until it is evenly consistent and all combined.

2. With Extra Virgin Olive Oil evenly coat the bottom of the skillet (quarter of an inch) on medium to hight heat. Roll the meatballs into golfball sizes and fill the skillet. We want to sear the sides and get them golden brown. The meatballs won’t be cooked all the way through and we will bake them next.

3. Take a cookie sheet and cover with tin foil. Place all the meatballs on the cookie sheet. I normally only use one cookie sheet to do this. Turn the oven on bake or convection bake 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

4. While the meatballs are baking, warm up the Rao’s sauce on the stove (I use 3 Jars for this). And, if the meatballs are done… add a few of them to the sauce for extra flavor.

5. Pasta Time!! In a large pot bring water to boil on the stove and add a pinch of salt and some olive oil to the water. Cook pasta until al dente or to your preference and drain in colander. While pasta is draining, take the pasta pot and put it back on the stove over low heat. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and 5 tablespoons of sauce. Stir this and then add all the dry pasta to this mixture. Combine pasta and mixture thoroughly.

6. Next, MANGIA and ENJOY!!!

Sweet Day For A Sweet Lyon Xx

Creative forces have aligned and a website is finally launched!! I am so proud to announce Sweet Lyon is live and with a special thanks to She Made. This was such a fun project incorporating my photography and styling with this talented baker. I am proud of this Chicago project and I am incredibly excited to watch Sweet Lyon continue to grow and expand her sweets into additional markets.  I hope everyone has a sweet sweet week. Xx

Weekend Branding + Emerald Events

I'm a girl blessed with fabulous friends,  one of which needed logos and branding for her catering company. I realized this weekend combinations were endless with her concept of Emerald Events but here is a taste of just a few ideas. Happy viewing x + o.