april 2010 poetry month potluck: starters and a giveaway

#1 in the Poetry Potluck Series, celebrating National Poetry Month 2010.

This is just to say,

Happy April and Welcome to the Alphabet Soup Poetry Potluck!

I’ve set the table, chilled the wine, hired a string quartet (don’t worry, some jazz musicians will be joining us later), and am ready to enjoy a month’s worth of poems written by some of the wonderful folks I’ve met through Poetry Friday.

I’ve been hooked on PF ever since I first started blogging in 2007. Every week, I look forward to seeing what beautiful, inspiring, funny, or thought provoking poems these friends will post. Whether they’ve written the poems themselves, or have chosen the work of others, I’m grateful for the momentary glimpse into their emotional lives.

I thought inviting them to the alphabet soup kitchen for a potluck would be the perfect way to celebrate National Poetry Month. I asked each to share an original poem and a favorite recipe, and they all, without hesitation, enthusiastically agreed (further evidence of their overall awesomeness). They came through for me in a big way, even sharing recipe photos. Friends, this is going to be a supremely delicious month — a bountiful, nourishing feast for body, mind, and spirit!

Our first Potluck Poet will be here on Monday, but for now, let’s get started with a few appetizers:

THE POETS IN MY LIFE MEET ON THE THIRD SUNDAY

They bring fettuccini or humus
Roast Lamb or water cress salad
Bright with nasturtium flowers

They bring bounty from Farmer’s Markets
Miner’s lettuce, pineapple guavas or mangos
Or doughnuts from the corner store

They bring pontoons or sonnets
Formal verse or free
On crisp white paper

The poets in my life meet on the third Sunday
They bring laughter and tears
They bring love

© 2009 Jean Emerson. All rights reserved.
~ from The Poet’s Cookbook: Recipes from Tuscany (Bordighera Press, 2009).

And now (drum roll, please), here are the Potluck Poets (in no particular order):

Sara Lewis Holmes
J. Patrick Lewis
Liz Garton Scanlon
Tanita S. Davis
Andromeda Jazmon
Laura Purdie Salas
Kelly R. Fineman
Tricia Stohr-Hunt
Elaine Magliaro
Kelly Polark
Greg Pincus
Karen Edmisten
Julie Larios
Kristy Dempsey
Jeannine Atkins
Mary Lee Hahn
Charles and Debra Ghigna
Laura Shovan
Douglas Florian
+ 2 surprise guests!

I know. Just seeing their names makes you hungry. Please help yourself to some crudité, fresh fruit, or shrimp cocktail:

photo by Maxfood.

photo by ngawangchodron.

photo by davidncox.

POETRY MONTH BOOK GIVEAWAY

I’ll be giving away these two thoroughly delectable books as part of Kelli Russell Agodon’s Poetry Book Giveaway at Book of Kells. For a chance to win either one, just leave a comment at any post, any time this month by April 30th. I will draw the winners on May 1st. Open to poetry fans anywhere in the world! (If you comment as Anonymous, please leave contact information.)

1) The Poet’s Cookbook: Recipes from Tuscany, edited by Grace Cavalieri & Sabine Pascarelli (Bordighera Press, 2009). A mouthwatering collection featuring 28 different poets and easy recipes from Appetizers to Desserts (both poems in this post are from this book). Poems are in English and Italian. (I reviewed the book and included “Love at the Grocery” by Carly Sachs here.)

2) The Alchemist’s Kitchen by Susan Rich (White Pine Press, 2010). Thought this would be a good choice since so many of you loved Susan’s, “A Poem For Will, Baking,” which I posted here. TAK is brand new, and will be officially released May 1st! To see some sample poems, click here.

Please visit Book of Kells for all the details about the Poetry Book Giveaway and to see the full list of participating bloggers. You may enter any of the drawings even if you are not a poet or aren’t giving away books on your blog. This is a great opportunity to learn about new poets!

I’ll leave you with a prayer and a toast:

A Tuscan kitchen “Foodscape,” created by Carl Warner.
(Everything in the photo is made from food.)

A GOURMAND’S PRAYER

Yellowtail snapper with citrus beurre blanc, filet
mignon in demi-glace cabernet, roast duck garnished
with mint jellied peaches, angels on horseback — dates
stuffed with garlic cloves wrapped in bacon and served
in a hot honey-pepper sauce, bananas foster, key
lime pie, dense, flourless chocolate cake drizzled
with a raspberry coulis, Lord, grant me the power
to well digest all that I have well eaten.

photo by victor_nuno.