Tonight, a mix of old and new; more thinning and picking in the garden gave us a couple of fantastic fresh additions to the lamb and puréed greens from the last couple of days. The lamb, pulled apart and seasoned with some ras-el-hanout, became a sort of Moroccan pulled lamb, with the preserved lemon flavor really coming through the complex spices. There is no substitute for letting stews sit in the fridge for a day or two. Baby kale made a brilliant, tender salad, while chopped cabbage and collards got the Italian treatment with smashed garlic and lemon. These four dishes, served with reheated brown rice, offered a decidedly new meal on a used chassis. Not much to look at, but the flavors really zinged and the ratio of meat to grain to greens was perfect.
The sharp focus and deep comfort of this combination had worthy companionship in a bottle of 2004 Savigny-les-Beaune 1er cru “Les Narbantons” by Mongeard-Mugneret which is the first really good modestly priced Burgundy I’ve had in a while. Still tight, it has the classic nose and good potential to become something special in a few years if the hole in the middle fills in.
