Nourishing Africa

Words by Ruba

July 2025

Cin Cin brought guests together for an intimate, immersive exploration of African food, music, customs, and ritual – an experience rooted as much in learning as in celebration.

At the helm in the kitchen was Somalian-born Bashir Munye – chef, food advocate, food consultant, and agri-culinary educator. Bashir teaches through an Afrocentric lens, a perspective he believes is essential in reclaiming the rich heritage and contributions of African cultures in the agricultural and culinary realms. Colonization and capitalism have stripped African nations of their food systems and replaced the continent’s diverse indigenous crops with cash crops grown for export, rather than for nourishment. This shift has degraded land that was once carefully tended for sustenance, and compromised food sovereignty, resulting on the reliance by African nations on foreign aid.

Guests enjoyed a nine-course menu that spanned the African continent and illuminated the history, relevance and contribution of African cuisines to the world. A standout dish was the “Edible Soil” – a blend of seeds, nuts, and spices shaped into the map of Africa, served with large injera crackers formed in the same way. Guests were invited to “break bread” by taking a scoop from the continent and then replenishing it. This symbolic gesture encouraged reflection on themes central to African food traditions: sustainability, food sovereignty, and on our responsibility to act as agents of change.

Throughout the evening, guests immersed in the warm, meditative sounds of the mbira, a ceremonial thumb piano played by Zimbabwean-born Dr. Moyo Rainos Mutamba – musician, lecturer and advocate for Black and Indigenous liberation. Dating back thousands of years, the mbira has deep spiritual roots in Zimbabwean culture and was traditionally used to call upon the ancestors.

The evening concluded with a traditional coffee ceremony led by Eritrean-born Naza Hasebenebi. Guests stepped into the heart of Eritrea and Ethiopia, experiencing a timeless ritual centered on friendship, respect and the nurturing of social bonds. Story-telling carried the narrative of the evening, complemented by other African customs, from breaking bread and eating with the hands to the burning of frankincense and the profound sense of interconnection and community that defined the gathering.