They tuck with aplomb into a street-food supper of kushari (a local snack-food staple of pasta, lentils, tomatosauce and fried onions), bought in steaming ladlefuls from a little stall in the capital's old city.
As I watched the chef stirring tomatosauce and heard her saying "dried pasta, " "extra-virgin olive oil, " "Parmigiano cheese" and "salt-dried capers, " I began to envision a brighter future for my kitchen.