Closed Loop Cooking Weekly Newsletter 7.28.23

July 28th, 2023

Hi friends,

What are we feeding our alien overlords? 

Like with close encounters of any kind, I’m reexamining nebulous culinary experiences for life lessons I may have missed previously. Considering key takeaways from failed dishes, dinner parties for one, and funked out ferment attempts. Successes are informative in their own way but there is no humble pie quite like marketing a pop-up dinner with a menu no one’s ever heard of. 

That is to say, I'm always learning. Doing my best to expand on these experiences and look towards the bigger picture. What has 10 years of restaurant work and running my own pop-up series taught me? How can I apply these things moving forward? Not to say I have the answers, or any really, but sharing in these learnings is the best way I can inform my practice and hopefully inspire yours.

So this week we’re slicing into the best of–a round-up of my sageliest wisdoms for your pleasure. After all, what’s more enticing than 50 of my own identified aerial phenoms? (Aka pies in the skies.)

Stay hungry,Hawnuh Lee | Founder, Closed Loop Cooking

Berry much. // @hawnuhlee

The dish >>

• Rejoice! Blackberry season has blessed us and we can properly enjoy these creamy, vegan blackberry cheesecake bars. 

• All the more reason to enjoy a plant-based diet.

• Lettuce embrace leafy chandeliers. 

• I’ll be eco-panicking while reclining out on my fav lawn chair.

• We need to talk more about protecting farmworkers.

• Recipe riffs on BA’s latest Dinner SOS pod.

• Building a climate narrative. New from the Closed Loop Studio blog. 

• The intricacies of butter dishes. Part I and part II.

 50 life lessons from putting on pop-up dinners 

by Hawnuh Lee

In the vein of Brianna Wiest, I’m in my essay era and ideating on takeaways from my extensive experience serving up plates. Navigating tough moments and running on adrenaline aren’t always optimal for moment-of reflection. So taking the time now to ruminate on throughlines and of course, what’s on the menu for next time.

1. Bring your own tools. Never expect a place or person is fully equipped to support all your needs.

2. Flavor first. If GGBO has taught us anything, presentation is finesse, focus on substance and making all those tastebuds sing.

3. Allow others to show up. The people who want to support you will make space, and when they do, receive them with love.

4. Yes, and. Improv skills will always serve you well in the kitchen, and in life, generally.

5. You are the first person who must believe in your work.

6. Systems in all things. Organization down to the shape and color of your labels is an act of self care.

7. And if folks don’t show up, remember cultivating community takes time. Set the intention to continue your practice, even in tough moments.

8. Choose work you would do even if no one was looking.

9. If you’re feeding 30 people you best make something you like because there will inevitably be leftovers.

10. Clean as you go.

11. The people you build deep relationships with now will show up with a forgotten item in a moment of rush. Treat them as such.

12. Keep a stone soup ethos. There will be moments you feel alone in your work. Start anyway, let people see your practice and they will add to the pot.

13. Know where your food comes from. Buy local when you can and understand your privilege in that.

14. Bring an extra tote. You never know when 10 lbs of cucumbers will make themselves available.

15. Welcome in a range of experiences and cook with inclusivity in mind. You will find your biggest fans in those most underserved.

16. Do it before you’re ready. There is never a perfect moment to jump in, you will never have everything you need to get started and the time will pass anyways.

17. You can plan a dinner for 30 people and if no one buys a ticket you have still learned something.

18. Take care of your instruments. Maintenance over new purchases, invest in your tools for life.

19. Experience extends to before and after an event. How you connect before and after says just as much as the moment.

20. AND, be present for the moment. Have or hire someone else to take the photos.

21. Cultivate calm. Whatever that looks like for yourself, come back to that in the rush.

22. Always leave a space better than you found it.

23. It is ok to ask for help. And when you find the folks that do the thing well, make sure they know how appreciative you are.

24. You’re going to learn on the job. Menus can be aspirational too. 

25. In life, look for the connectors. Support them and they will support you.

26. Olives need a separate dish for pits. 

27. Create ritual in your work and it will become its own meditation.

28. A damp towel under your cutting board will keep it from moving and save you several near-misses.

29. A meal is an experience in tactility as much as taste. Consider everything your food touches as an extension of such.30. You will need more forks than you think you do.

31. Curate your pump-up playlist well. When exhaustion hits you will need every ounce of booty shaking inspiration to push through.

32. Pop-up prep can be the best way to build relationships. Best friendships are forged in the late-night work of rolling gnocchi, making pesto, and taste testing coconut custard. Enjoy this time.

33. You do not have to give up entirely if one dinner bombs. You just have to approach things differently. Failure is a practice in resiliency.

34. Reduce your impact in all ways. Compost, make use of what’s on hand, upcycle. You will save time, money, and build better systems others can take inspiration from.

35. Set boundaries on your time. An unexpected guest can always squeeze in but an additional 5 may not be worth your sanity.

36. Elevate the work of others. An event is an opportunity to showcase your best skills and those closest to you. Mutual support creates empathy, curiosity, and community.

37. You will never regret lingering at the end of your own event. Savor those experiences.

38. Cleanup help is vital. Make sure your people are reliable.

39. A pop-up is a form of intimacy, treat it as much. Share with people who know its value and can support you in that work.

40. Onion prep is a form of self love.

41. You are capable of more than you know. And we can do hard things. They get easier with time and experience and you will look back a year from today and wonder why you were ever scared.

42. And even if you’ve done something 100 times, doubt will prevail. It’s on you to speak louder than that questioning voice.

43. A successful pop-up is defined by good bread and good dessert.

44. Nostalgia is a flavor.

45. Storytell with intention. A dish served with narrative will resonate far deeper than one without.

46. It’s more than ok to speak with excitement. Eagerness is cool now.

47. Invest in LARGE bowls, they will support you in every future gathering.

48. If something isn’t working well, don’t force it. Set it down and come back to it at a different time. Your perspective will shift or you will figure out a better solution.

49. Those you sit next to at dinner will shape your experience of it–building intimacy with them will enrichen your meal.

50. Sometimes, simplicity is best. In flavor, in life.

Most importantly, learning all the right skills to be a dessert person.

Let me eat at this table.

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