The Epitaph

The Epitaph

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Interview: Janelle Monáe’s Afro-Futuristic Fiction Breaks Open the Literary Space
Monáe spoke to me about her Afro-Futuristic book of short stories, The Memory Librarian, fascism in the U.S., and how Black imagination has always been…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
As A Black Woman, Crossing The Atlantic On A Luxury Cruise Wasn’t Relaxing—It Was Hauntingly Reflective
To some, a trans-Atlantic luxury cruise might be exactly how it sounds—a high-quality travel experience on the water. For me, it was a reminder of what…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
My 2020 Interview with Nikki Giovanni + her grandmother's oxtail recipe
As the entire country locked down in isolation, I connected with one of my literary elders — who has since become an ancestor — and our conversation…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
Parable of the Talents Book Club: Discussion Guide, World-Building Exercise, and Acorn Flour Cookie Recipe
A resource for y'all!
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
We Need To Talk About the 2025 James Beard Awards
This awards season, a war waged against humanity. Amidst that, many of the speeches of the people who claim to stand against it rang hollow, trite, or…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
Ramona Button is Sowing the Seeds of an Indigenous Culinary Revival (Recipe and Story): Nylah's Version
For the co-owner of Ramona Farms, a discovery of heirloom seeds sparked a movement to reclaim food sovereignty and revitalize Indigenous agriculture in…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
To Find Myself, All I Needed Was A Hunting License — Nylah's Version
I’m estranged from my mother’s side of the family, but I was always drawn to their legacy as subsistence hunters in Alabama. So I acted upon this urgent…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
oyster mushroom farming in Gaza, resistance + a recipe from Laila El Haddad's Gaza Kitchen
I harvested my first batch of homegrown oyster mushrooms and cooked a Gazan recipe with them, learning about the resistance of Palestinian mushroom…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
my first gardening WIN + a recipe for shakshouka
I finally had a gardening win — the tiniest mini bell pepper. I'll take it, but I still wish I didn't constantly have failure hanging over me.
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
the genocide has come to the West Bank + recipe for plum olive oil cake with olive oil from 'Arura, Palestine
The genocide has come to the West Bank, the genocide was always in the West Bank, the genocide has spread its rot to us all, the genocide is…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
Paw Paw and Mango Bread with Strawberry Glaze – farmer's market Sundays
I almost let $15 of fruit go to waste... when that happens... make bread. And this was INCREDIBLE.
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
Charity Blanchett talks Akutaq and Black Alaskan Native Foodways
Making "Eskimo" ice cream, or Akutaq, and an interview with Charity Qalutaq Blanchett, a Yup’ik and Black woman, and founder of The Dipping Spoon.
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
farmer's market sundays + ground cherry chutney recipe
A new fruit at the farmer's market combined with a samosa craving had me dying to make chutney. But the reality of making samosas hit me hard, forcing a…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
all my secrets are in this essay + recipe for a classic train steak dinner
The best meal on Amtrak is steak. This too-personal essay isn't about Amtrak or steak. It's about memory, loss, genocide, rage, holiness, and the…
 • Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
The Epitaph
The Epitaph
James Beard award nominated writer. I write about everything, but mostly about food, and the end of the world.
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