With the current stay-at-home routines, are you bored with your cooking? Are you itching to travel again — and do the thoughts of those favorite destinations have you craving some vibrant ethnic dishes? Well, hang in there and start planning those adventures abroad. For now, how about a culinary journey to Tunisia.

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Tunisia sits on the northern coast of Africa overlooking the sparkling Mediterranean Sea. The country's exotic cuisine is one of the most unusual and ceremonious gastronomic pleasures. It’s a feast for all the senses. Not only do the dishes taste wonderful, and are at times punctuated with heat — but visually, the vibrant yellows, reds and greens of the spices, herbs, and fresh vegetables are enticing and exciting.

L'Auberge's Smoking Veranda is 3,000 square feet of open air gaming, featuring over 120 slot machines, including video and reel, classic and premium games and video poker. The veranda also includes two 65' TV screens, six industrial size ceiling fans and gas fired.

Presented in colorful ceramic pottery or copper and brass serving dishes, mounds of steaming couscous or rich tagines offer a sense of welcoming abundance. The dishes are bursting with color, and pungent wafting fragrances of saffron, cumin, coriander and turmeric announce their arrival. Fragrant waters — rose and orange blossom — perfume and enrich the desserts.

You are even invited to touch your food. A stream of warm floral water first washes your hands, and then the entire meal is eaten with your fingers. Lounging on comfortable banquettes or poufs, you are free to take your time and savor the moment — bite by bite.

Living in Tunisia, I learned the art of Tunisian cuisine first-hand from Berber women. It was in Sidi Bou Saïd, near Tunis, that Madame Aicha and Madame Selma taught me how to prepare their exotic dishes. We cleaned and stuffed squid, fresh from the Mediterranean; made couscous with lamb, chickpeas and fresh vegetables; fried yo-yos (doughnuts) in olive oil; rolled pastries with dates and nuts; and filled our tiny courtyard kitchen with laughter and delicious smells. Beyond my attempts to communicate in French and Arabic, we spoke the same language — a passion for food.

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I’ll never forget learning to make Brik à l’Oeuf, a popular first course. In filmy circles of soft pastry, we created a surprise packet of tuna, eggs and fresh herbs that was quickly and carefully fried in olive oil. This golden half-moon was dramatically presented, standing up in an orange. Lifting the hot brik with both hands, I was told to take a bite in the center. With a sparkle in their eyes, amusingly they watched as the soft runny egg was released. A quick slurp saved the day and my clothes. We laughed as I devoured every morsel.

Couscous is the pillar of North African cuisine. In my next column, we will return to Tunisia and explore this signature dish — perfect for cool weather with lamb or chicken, seasonal butternut squash, and root vegetables.

For now, put a little spark on your menu, and get a taste of Tunisia with a delicious brik.

Celia Casey is a columnist for the News Journal. She is a graduate of the Paris Cordon Bleu and teaches classes in French cuisine. Cuisine Française 850-525-6720 or celiacasey@gmail.com.

Brik à l’Oeuf

Ingredients

fillo dough, cut into 9-inch circles

canned tuna in olive oil, drained and seasoned with fresh lemon juice

green onions, chopped

parsley, chopped

eggs

salt and pepper

Directions

Sauté pan with at least 2 inches of olive oil.

Navel oranges — Cut a “V” slot in the top to hold the brik and a small slice across the bottom of the orange to keep it from rolling. Place a paper towel in the cut slot to absorb the juice until it is ready to be used.

Per brik:

Place two circular sheets of fillo dough together on a flat plate. Keep the remainder of the fillo covered with plastic wrap so that it does not become dry. Heat the oil to medium. In the center of the fillo circle, place a tablespoon of tuna, and one teaspoon each of the green onions and parsley. Break an egg over the filling. Season with salt and pepper. Gently fold the fillo sheets together to form a half circle.

Cook the brik as soon as it is assembled. Gently slide the brik off the plate and into the hot oil. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side for a soft yolk. Cook 3-4 minutes per side for a firmer yolk. Transfer the browned briks to paper towels and drain them well. Place a brik in the “V” slot on the orange and serve immediately.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Stuck at home? Take your taste buds on a culinary trip to Tunisia Cooking School

A few Bay Area restaurants have been dabbling in patronage models these days, trying out weekly, monthly, or quarterly subscription plans for meal kits, produce boxes, or wine. And now, a star restaurant group has announced what might be the most ambitious program so far: Quince, the fine dining favorite with three Michelin stars, introduced a new membership program for $5,000 per year. Weeks later, the slots were completely sold out.

Owners Michael and Lindsay Tusk are calling the membership program “Quince & Co.” which includes not just Quince, but sister restaurants Cotogna and Verjus, as well as the Fresh Run Farm in Bolinas. The annual $5K membership includes a variety of benefits: $1,000 in dining budget, which can be spent at any of the three restaurants. A quarterly provisions box, filled with produce from the farm, specialty products such as the chef’s favorite Calabrian chiles, and other pantry staples like olive oil and vinegars. There are also exclusive events, such as apple picking, cider pressing, beekeeping, and cheesemaking workshops on or near the farm.

And never least, prioritized reservations — whenever Quince does reopen for indoor dining, members will get first access, effectively transforming the restaurant into a kind of clubby members-only space. “It was formalizing relationships that have existed for a long time … and creating a community of regulars,” says Lindsay Tusk of the program, which for now they have capped at 80 members. “

We’ve had Quince for 18 years, and Cotogna 11 years … and through serving San Francisco over so many years, we have a really core group of regulars.” She says the idea actually came from a guest, who wanted to support the restaurant during the pandemic. “It creates more stability. You can plan. You can control a little bit more, if you know you have a dedicated stream of revenue coming in.”

San Franciscans are used to subscription models for all kinds of products and services, from Amazon Prime to Netflix, yoga classes to Botox injections. In food, we might be more likely to think of meal kit startups like Blue Apron, that sends dinners for ten or twenty bucks per serving, rather than a three-star restaurant asking for thousands up front. But Michael and Lindsay Tusk have been in this business a long time, and they know and love their customers. Slots sold out within days of the program’s mid-January launch, and Tusk says that no one even mentioned the price.

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“The one question I got a few times, if anything, was people asked a lot if their children could participate” in the events portion of the membership, says Tusk. She believes that for people who are enthusiastic and curious about food, they can’t wait to get out of the city and experience the farm. “It’s probably those mothers who are like, ‘Oh my God, homeschooling. Please put my child in a beekeeping suit, and let them get honey.’”

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But do not despair, regular people who may have missed out on membership: Cotogna reopens for outdoor dining next week, so you can still get that big raviolo that oozes egg yolk when you cut into its golden heart. Quince also is starting back up with farm dinners at Fresh Run, if you want to escape the city and splurge on a full tasting-menu experience. And Verjus will continue operating as a retail shop with weekend farmers’ markets, keeping us in natural wine and the most beautiful radicchio.