Vegetable Red Thai Curry

Joe Rollino and Miep Gies both passed away this week. Don’t recognize the names? I didn’t either at first. But they have a lot in common. Both were centenarians. Both were ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Both are inspirational examples of a life well-lived.

Joe Rollino was an olde time strongman – picture a real-life Popeye lifting barbells at Coney Island. At only 5’5” and a lifelong vegetarian, he was a showman that pulled boats with his bare hands, bent quarters with his teeth, and voluntarily dove into the icy ocean in the middle of winter. At age 103, he was out for a five mile walk when he was hit by a car - a strongman to the very end.

In a culture that sees old age as a time of feebleness and illness, in a society that thinks of sickness as something that happens “to” us rather than something that we inflect on ourselves, I’m heartened to hear of someone who bucked the trend and decided to take responsibility for his own health and was committed to that right up to his last step.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Miep Gies was a quiet, humble, elderly woman, the polar opposite to Joe at first glance. However, she too was extraordinary as the woman who helped hide Anne Frank and her family during the Nazi occupation. After the raid, Miep recovered Anne’s diary and papers, holding them for safe keeping while awaiting Anne’s return, never reading the diary until Anne’s father, Otto, published it for all to read. After Anne’s diary was published, she devoted the rest of her life to educating people on the Holocaust, in hopes of preventing such massacres of humanity from ever occurring again.

(Have you seen this yet? The only known video footage of Anne Frank, peeking out the window of the Annex to watch a wedding couple pass by.)


Both Joe and Miep lived long, full, healthy lives. Both saw good times and tough times, but were resilient and active up to their very end. Both life stories pull me to do better, to be better, and to live in a full, simple way.


I can’t define what living a full life entails, but I’m guessing that sharing good, nourishing food is one of those things. In times of plenty and times of little, as long as we appreciate what we have and share generously, I see that as a great first step to living a good, full life.

Vegetable Red Thai Curry
For you Bismarckians, if you are addicted to the curry wraps at Mr. Delicious like me, then you are going to L.O.V.E. this. The sauce is exactly the same. Adapted from the stellar flexitarian article from Fine Cooking mag this month, I made this with tofu, but you could add/substitute shrimp, chicken, beef, whatever.

1 Tbls. vegetable oil
3 Tbls. red Thai curry paste
2 cups frozen peas
1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 14-oz can coconut milk
1 Tbls. brown sugar
1 12-oz package extra firm tofu, cubed
1 cup fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
Juice from half a lime (1 Tbls plus)
2 Tbls. fish sauce (can substitute soy sauce for vegetarians)

Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat until shimmering hot. Add curry paste and cook until fragrant, 20 seconds. Remove from heat and stir in peas, onion, pepper, coconut milk, sugar, and 1 cup water. Stir to combine. Add tofu. Bring to simmer over medium heat, cover, and cook until the vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes. Stir in fish sauce, basil, and lime juice. Let rest off heat for 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt if needed.