I try to keep politics away from this blog, but now I can’t hold back. I always knew Trump was an insane white supremacist and yesterday, he confirmed it. The President of the United States, the “leader” of the free world, supports Nazis and the alt-right. Is this the kind of country we want to be living in? I think I speak for myself and any other reasonably sane person when I say, no.

I’ve cycled through a lot of emotions the last 24 hours, including anger, disgust, rage, and sadness. When I saw Trump’s Robert E. Lee comments yesterday afternoon, I started having a panic attack at my desk. I felt a lot of hatred toward Trump. I wanted to step on him like a bug.

The latter emotion is probably counterproductive, given what this country faces. It will take a unified effort by informed citizens to deal with the next three-plus years of Trump’s presidency (if it lasts that long). It’s easy to hope that he disappears but more realistic to assume that he won’t. Anger is good because it can be channeled into action.

Yesterday night, I needed something comforting to eat for dinner. I decided to make Maque Choux, a Créole dish that mixes fresh corn, okra, tomatoes, and onion. I added in some jalapeños for spice.

The dish was exactly what I needed. I added so much jalapeño that it felt like a four-alarm fire in my mouth. That’s okay, though, because it temporarily distracted me from my anger. It was almost cleansing. I let some of the emotions from the past few hours go and focused on the Maque Choux.

The corn was warm and fragrant, the tomatoes and shallot added some sweetness, and the okra was tender and flavorful. I wanted to eat the whole pan but I saved some for lunch today. I’m looking forward to seeing what it tastes like on day two.

In semi-related news (and definitely on a more positive note), I discovered the band Sunflower Bean yesterday. I like all their songs but this one really stuck out. It was soothing to listen to at almost full volume as I drove home from work and fantasized about seeking asylum in France.

Maque Choux

Ingredients

4 ears of sweet corn, kernels removed
1 medium sized shallot, diced
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup sliced okra
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced
1 jalapeño, sliced thin
salt and pepper for garnish
rice for serving (I used brown basmati)

Directions

Melt some salted butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the corn kernels, shallot, garlic, and green pepper and cook until soft. It should take about 5 minutes.

Once the corn mixture is cooked, add the okra, tomatoes, jalapeño, and a little salt and pepper. Mix together and let it cook for about 10 minutes, stirring often. Be careful not to stir too much, though, because okra tends to get slimy when you move it around.

Garnish with more salt and pepper to taste and serve over rice. Enjoy!