Kaddo Bourani

I know I'm supposed to be done with Afghanistan-- a girl's gotta move on to Albania sometime, right? However, I feel compelled to put in just two more cents!

Last year, my friend Jessica and I went to The Helmand, a classy Afghan restaurant in Baltimore. I still think about that meal! We shared a wonderful appetizer, called kaddo bourani, which is pan-fried and baked baby pumpkin seasoned with sugar and served with a garlicky yogurt sauce. A few months ago, I was delighted to find this recipe for kaddo bourani. I tried to use canned pumpkin instead of the specified fresh baby sugar pumpkin, which is a pathetic shortcut. Amazingly, it was still delicious, which is a testament to the innate brilliance of this dish!

You know what, I've never seen a casual Afghan restaurant. And I sure haven't seen any that resemble the vast multitudes of Chinese carry-outs and Mexican taco stands. Does this speak to Afghans' incredible pride in their culture? Not trying to infer too much here, but just a thought...

Another item of note is that the owner of The Helmand, Quayam Karzai, is the brother of Afghan president Hamid Karzai!

Hmm...I just read that there is another restaurant called The Helmand. This one is located in San Francisco, and its owner Mahmoud Karzai also claims to be the brother of Hamid. Curious and curiouser....