Slowing Down Time

...and a delicious eggplant parmigiana recipe

As many of us face the prospect of a few months of winter ahead, it may seem counterintuitive to want to slow time down. Don’t we want summer to be here, the walk in the sun, to be outdoors?

Slow down time

But I’ve been thinking about exactly that. Because even though it feels like we’re locked in an interminable winter, the fact is time is rushing by at warp speed. So how is it that, even when we are doing so much less than before, that the months are flying by? It turns out there’s a scientific reason for that. And making new memories is an important key to slowing down time.

In her book, Time Warped: Unlocking The Secrets Of Time Perception, author Claudia Hammond uses original and existing research from the fields of psychology, neuroscience, and biology to explain not only how to manage our time, but how to bend it to our will. In this excellent article Hammond explains:

…part of our sense of time passing is dictated by the number of new memories we have made. When you look back on a busy holiday, even though it went quickly at the time, in retrospect it can feel as though you were away for ages. This is because of all those new memories you made by spending a week outside your usual routine.

What’s happening is that we’re making very few new memories now. Our lives have slipped into a routine that feels narrow, predictable and yet fast, in ways we couldn‘t have imagined.

A memory-making hack

So here’s the hack. If the science tells us that the more memories you can create for yourself in everyday life, the longer your life will feel when you look back, then let’s get imaginative about how we’re spending our time.  

Of course I’m cooking new things. But beyond the kitchen, we’re challenging ourselves to be inspired. Call it a Memory-Making Activity Jar. We’re filling it with random and diverse things to do: take a walk; do a crossword puzzle; read a book; catch up back issues of The New Yorker; find three things to get rid of; watch a documentary; play checkers; register for an online course; attempt a haiku; read some Shakespeare; write a letter; visit an online museum; watch a virtual concert; meditate. Every time we feel those walls get narrower, we can reach in and be surprised into doing the unexpected. In the moment and unplanned.

It’s what led us to play cribbage this past week. The cribbage board, a 15th birthday gift that Richard got from his grandparents, brought back incredible memories for him, even as we made new ones.

As Hammond says,

…routine, of course, is unavoidable. But if you can create a life which feels both novel and entertaining in the present, the weeks and years will feel long in retrospect. The more memories you can create for yourself in everyday life, the longer your life will feel when you look back.

If you find a Sunday afternoon ahead of you, try this delicious recipe for Eggplant Parmigiana. It will slow down time in the most delicious of ways. And dig out that cribbage board or checker set and feel like a kid again.

Paola’s Parmigiana di Melanzane

makes 8-10 individual ramekins, perfect for freezing (or you can make on 9x15 casserole too).

This recipe is one I learned from Paola Zocchi, co-owner with her husband Stefano of the magical La Palazzetta del Vescovo in Umbria. The afternoon we spent cooking with Paola is a memory I’ll always treasure.

Paola's Homemade Tomato Sauce
makes about 3 cups

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 small garlic clove, whole, peeled
1 whole, dried peperoncino or pinch red pepper flakes
Whole peeled canned tomatoes, pureed and strained to remove seeds and skin, enough to measure approximately 3 cups
Water

Salt to taste

1.  Put the oil, garlic and peperoncino in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and heat until the garlic and peperoncino are fragrant.  Remove garlic and pepperoncino.

2.  Add tomatoes and about 1¼ cups water.  Add two pinches of salt (or to taste) Simmer for one hour. Can be made ahead and refrigerated or frozen.

For the eggplant parmigiana

3 medium eggplants
Kosher salt
3 large mozzarella balls, preferably bufalo di mozzarella, chopped into ½ cubes
1½ c finely grated parmigiano reggiano cheese; more as needed
Tomato sauce, either homemade (see recipe above), or any good quality unseasoned commercial tomato sauce, about 2 cups
Breadcrumbs (optional)

8-10 1 c ramekins; aluminum cups work fine here too! 

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F/180˚C.

2.  Line two large cookie sheets with paper towels.  Peel the eggplant, cut into ½ inch slices, and lay out the slices, slightly overlapping to make them fit.  Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and let sit for 30 minutes.  

3.  Rinse the eggplant to remove the salt and dry the slices well by laying them out on fresh paper or tea towels.  Using a griddle pan, stovetop grill or barbecue, lightly grill the eggplant slices until golden.  Set aside.

4.  To assemble: grease the ramekins lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.  In each ramekin, place one slice eggplant, followed by a tablespoon or two of tomato sauce, a few cubes of mozzarella, and a tablespoon or two of parmigiana.  Repeat until each ramekin is nearly full. Finish with a slice of eggplant, tomato sauce and final sprinkle of parmigiana.

5.  Place ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted, golden brown and bubbling.

6.  Cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature.  If freezing, cool completely before freezing.