Being Gursha-fied

Last evening Donovan and I celebrated the Ethiopian Christmas at a dinner prepared by our friend, Etayehu Zenebe. Etayehu sponsored a Christmas celebration where she catered for over 100 people. We dined on her organic, free-range eatables, which are all locally grown. I think my favorites of her creations are siga wat, beef cooked with caramelized onions and a berbere (hot pepper) sauce and ater allcha, her split peas with more onions, lemon and ginger. Yum. Despite the fact that I have a pretty adventurous palette I am not yet a raving fan of injera, the unleavened bread that is such a staple in Ethiopia and is used to hand-scoop all of the food on one’s plate (go ahead, boo me now). It might just be an acquired taste for me. Before leaving, we purchased a jar of her homemade kulet (caramelized onions) so that I can meagerly attempt to prepare some beef or lamb of my own.

For those of you who are local-schmocals, Etayehu has a stand at Eastern Market, which is now closed until June and a stand on Sundays at Building Character. She also has a busy catering business called Gursha, which means “a bite.” This refers to the Ethiopian custom of hand-feeding someone you love.

To find out more, visit her website at www.gurshaorganic.com. Thank you, Etayehu, for helping us properly celebrate the feast of the Epiphany!