As is so often the case, the next day everything is better. The lamb went back in a pot with water, herbs, and more to make a stock; this got strained and further enhanced with miso and wakame, then had rice noodles, pea shoots, and remaining lamb meat added back into it. Finished with gomasio and scallions, it had all the depth one could want. Leftovers rule. We had it with a 2004 Siduri Sonatera…
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Kris and Ken came over and I tried to do justice to the time I had at their place last month. It was raining, so we ate inside, and I tried to make things that straddled rainy-day comfort food and spring freshness. We started with seared scallops, shiitake, endive, leeks, and fiddleheads in a simple pan sauce. We had a Sine Qua Non Albino which was delightful with the caramelized winter vegetables and the sweetness…
Today for lunch, something I call the Thai peanut butter sandwich: on good bread, a layer of good peanut butter, then a few drips of sesame oil, smoothed around, then hot sauce (here Sambal Oelek) and lime juice, then scallions pressed in, then basil leaves. Awesome, and with a salad of Vermont mesclun with herbs from the rock garden and a glass of Il Mimo Nebbiolo rosé, a perfect lunch on a perfect day in…
Upon arrival in Vermont the last thing we wanted to do was go shopping, so instead we played with Milo all over the place and made do with what we brought and what the house had to offer from the cupboards (and cellar) for dinner. A can of tomatoes plus dried porcini, dried tomatoes, a few dried herbs, onion, wine, and chives from the garden became the sauce, and I went out and picked a…
But made with ground turkey, and red quinoa, and onion, shallot, scallion, and garlic (for a full-spectrum allium attack) herbs fom the deck (thyme, rosemary, shiso, chive, Thai basil, and mint) and an egg. Served with “ketchup” made from tomato paste, miso, wine, lemon, honey, and truffle salt and a side of steamed lamb’s quarters along with an Il Mimo Nebbiolo rosé. Comfort food, but light and subtle for spring.
The last of the mung/ramp paste went in a bowl with eggs, flour, milk, and a bit of oil and I mixed it up good, adjusting things until the consistency seemed right. Made into lovely green crêpes, they sat while I caramelized leeks and crimini mushrooms in the same pan and deglazed with wine. Some more of the great yellow carrots blanched until just tender and I rubbed the skin off and tossed them in…
This is from a week or so ago, as is the next entry; I’ve been behind on my work. Both meals feature the mung bean/ramp pesto mixture in very different ways. The first was another fridge soup with chick peas (soaked all day) leeks and sweet potato plus tomato paste and the ramp/bean thing simmered until all was tender and thick, along with a simple green salad with broiled Livarot-raisin bread croutons (I know what…
Having stewed a rabbit the other night, I made a roux and took the meat and broth and added to them coconut milk, peas, carrots, truffle salt and lemon thyme, and simmered same while I made a batch of my beloved Grandmother Trude’s pie crust. Half of this went over the rabbit mixture and into the oven while the other half awaits the next occasion. Bubbly, crunchy, savory, and just right, with a side of…
Mary had something very special she wanted to share, so we called John and Scotty away from the studio to join us. As expected, it was pretty ridiculous. First, a puréed soup of celery root, leek, and jicama with a phenomenal 1993 Kalin Semillon, then John made unbelievable sashimi from more of that beautiful Kampachi plus a tartare from the trimmings and a ramp and micro-shiso and chives from the deck. (I grilled/smoked the collar…
I made it to the fish market in Chelsea, and as is so often the case I couldn’t make up my mind. Thus we had a seared Toro appetizer with pepper and ponzu, then Black Cod in the skillet with the leftover kale/watercress/basil mixture cooked in the juices after the fish came out, then the mung bean/ramp mixture plus wine, lemon, and miso cleaned the pan up and became a sauce for all. Many layers…