I’ve been trying to strive for the feelings of belonging through food ever since I’ve been here. An “exotic” food supermarket called Prosi, carries all the ingredients I need to make Dominican meals here in Vienna. From platanos (plantains)to habichuelas (beans) to sopita(soup packets) to adobo(seasoning), they have it all. I can also find items like plantains at Naschmarkt, an outdoor food market with fresh fruit and veggie vendors. At Hofer, which is the name for Aldi’s here, I was able to find a sausage that really closely resembles salami. In my shared kitchen, I’ve made mangú, rice with beans, jugo de chinola (Passion fruit juice), salmon in a coconut sauce, and pastelon(casserole), just to name a few. Food is strongly tied with identity and I just feel such a strong sense of Domincaness when I’m frying plantains in Vienna.
I tried Kübiscremesuppe-- pumpkin soup! It is a pumpkin puree soup decorated with a drizzle of pumpkin seed oil and a splash of heavy cream.
Eating pumpkin soup makes me feel cozy. If I close my eyes while taking a spoonful of this soup, I can imagine myself curled up with a blanket next to a fireplace. Pumpkin soup has as much flavor as its bright orange hue. It is creamy, with notes of garlic, seasoned with baking spices like nutmeg. The vegetable broth used to make the soup gives it an underlying vegetable-like flavor of onions with a hint of celery. Then there's the drizzle of squid-ink-black pumpkin seed oil that gives the soup a nice nutty flavor. I'm craving a bowl just talking about it.
