Easy does it

For the life of me I can't figure out why my days have been so hectic.

I made sirloin for dinner Wednesday; Thursday it was every man for himself and Friday I planned to make spaghetti but...

I spent the entire day working on a presentation (of course I had to read all of the source material).  I had just sauteed the onions and garlic when my friend called at 5 to say she was getting on the train. I was supposed to pick her up at 550, drop my son at soccer, then head to see Angela Davis at 630. It was all in the same area but the problem was I needed to cook and take a shower.

Miraculously I got the meat browned and the sauce simmering by 515 and asked my daughter to boil the noodles while I was in the shower...which she did, past al dente.  Somehow I made it to 30th Street by 6 with 3 containers of spaghetti.  She ignored my "rush job" disclaimer and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Saturday I was out the entire day and part of the night so dinner was a frozen pizza I picked up from WF.
Sunday we had a simple yet flavorful meal that took less than 30 minutes to prepare. Cod, pearl couscous, and broccoli. The only reason I made cod is because my grandmother ordered it the last time we went to Cracker Barrel...apparently cod was quite popular when she was growing up in Baltimore. 

My daughter requested that I pan sear it (clearly too many episodes of Chef Ramsey), I obliged and was quite pleased with the results.  The fish is flaky and almost sweet.  I think it's the same fish that Betty's uses...maybe I'll make a batter and serve fish and chips next time.

Balacing the beans

Abay has returned from Eritrea WITHOUT the Jebena!  I've been looking forward to learning to prepare and serve coffee the traditional way but unfortunately my green coffee beans will have to wait.  In the interim I've been able to clearly define my coffee preferences.  As promised, Zeke got the details about the DiBruno's Family Blend and now I know why I love it - Indonesian beans are my favorite (I don't know much about Honduran beans) and the roast level is precisely where I like it - full city/vienna - resulting in shiny beans and a great body.  I tend to avoid the charred bitter after taste of beans roasted at higher temperatures, unless it's a finjan al qahwah. 

I'm looking forward to experimenting at home but the missing jebena is not my only dilema.  I'm trying to cut caffeine so I've been blending 2/3 decaf beans with 1/3 regular beans.  The results have been pretty good but I think I need to get a slightly better decaf bean.  I think I may try OVC when I replenish my supply. 

Experience matters

I've become complacent with my metropolitan brie - it's fantastic for breakfast or a light dinner if coupled with almonds and a piece of fruit...honey crisp apples or red grapes are nice compliments.  The problem is, buying it has become a non-event.  I walk up to the cheese counter, grab my wedge and go...it just feels wrong.  I made the mistake of trying to engage the clerk at the South Street WF Friday night...needless to say I won't be stopping there for cheese.

I finally made it back to DiBruno's...it's the first time I noticed that the cheese is wrapped in plastic.  I was with my aunt so of course she bought olives, sund drieds, and prima donna...they were out of her French Swiss.  I ended up buying a few pickled assortments - I think peppadews are my new favorite (my daughter stuffed hers with the seasoned mozzarella balls), the house brie (almost spreadable), and the moses sleeper, a Vermont brie with a decent rind.  My daughter's on a cheddar kick so she got Beechers Flagship Reserve in honor of American Cheese month (maybe I should pull out the panini press). Matt's enthusiasm has increased and he even introduced us to a nice aged gouda...but it's just not the same without Zeke. 

I think my daughter's foreign languages (Latin & French) are becoming a bit too experiential.  Yesterday she wanted me to buy the crepe kit from Williams Sonoma.  Today it was Nutella in convenient serving size packs, but of course she needs croissants from WF to go with.  The worst part is she wants me to bring her to DiBruno's every Friday. 

Patty surprise

I think that we are finally eating within out means...eschewing our filet mignon taste to fit with our ground chuck money.

Sunday I made salisbury steak with mashed potatoes and brussel sprouts. The kids love brussel sprouts, my son likes to sword fight with the stalk.   I think brussel sprouts were one of my dads favorite vegetables but I didn't know they grew on a stalk until I got them in my CSA share a few years ago.  As long as they're not over cooked, they're simply delicious.

Tuesday I sauteed chipped steak with onions, topped with montery jack and steamed broccoli on the side.

Wednesday it was patties again.  I wanted to do a red gravy (sauce) but couldn't mentally reconcile that with potatoes so I did pasta with sauteed asparagus. I pan grilled the patties and topped the pasta as if it were a meatball. 

I don't think I cooked again until I made pancit on Saturday using frozen chicken thighs, a kohlrabi, and some bok choi that was lingering in the fridge. 

I'm embracing the reality of the economic downturn. 

Alternative

My daughter wanted to get out of the house so I suggested a walk along Kelly Drive followed by ice cream sundaes.  After a failed attempt at jogging (5K in 3 weeks), my daughter thought sundaes might not be a good idea and suggested smoothies instead.

I had a better idea - cocktail. 

Pureed mango, pureed strawberry, topped with raw agave, light cream, bananas, almonds, and pistachios...absolutely divine.

I followed my "dessert" with scrumptious spinach & asiago ravioli.

Oops

After my walk this morning I stopped in WF to refill the water, get a piece of brie, and grab something for lunch (it's Thursday so I have to plan lunch in the morning).  I ended up getting a bag of brussel sprouts because they were on sale and the ones we had for dinner last night were very good and some other miscellaneous items.  I also decided to diverge from burger night and make my grandmothers version of chicken caccitore in the crockpot before I head out the door. 

I headed to the cheese department and grabbed a piece of seaside for the kids and tasted an australian aged cheddar that I was hoping would be just as good but it was salty.  Then I asked for prima donna and the clerk offered me parrano as an option.  I asked for a sample and it was very nice.  I have gone to WF and frequently asked for prima donna and have been offered a range of aged goudas but this one hit the spot and it's cheaper.  I found a rind of robusto (parrano's cousin) in the fridge from June...I must had gotten distracted by the cherries. 

That's when I saw Brandon and started hassling him about the plastic wrap...he gave me some waxed paper to shut me up.  Then I told him how ridiculous it was that they never have prima donna...he enlightened me - there are some unnatural ingredients in prima donna hence WF doesn't carry it.  We talked a bit more and I learned that he's the head cheese guy and also makes  the mozzarella for the store.  He admitted that there any store associate can work in the cheese department but said that there are 3 people who know quite a bit about cheese.  Brandon reads the Cheese Primer and knows more about cheese than I initially gave him credit for.

Faux pas

I made two colossal mistakes yesterday.  First I drove by 9th Street and forgot to stop at DiBrunos and then I bought a piece of le petit 60% brie from Whole Foods.

The kids were happy to go to WF because they wanted more seaside cheddar.  My daughter inquired about other similar cheddars but since she wasn't talking to a cheese monger she wasn't able to broaden her repertoire.  I did ask why they suffocate the cheese by wrapping it in plastic, he said it was so that customers could easily see and buy what they wanted but offered to rewrap my purchase in wax paper.  He did agree that plastic wasn't a good choice for the bries and blues.  The crazy thing is that they sell cheese paper.

The second mistake was the brie.  The other day I struck up conversation with two Parisienne women and I noticed they had le petit in their shopping basket so of course I decided to be authentic and eschew the metropolitan brie that I've come to love.  I was foolishly impressed that it was so soft and squishy.

As soon as I arrived home, I unwrapped the cheese and was almost overcome by a pungency that bordered disgusting.  I convinced myself to forge ahead into authenticity so I cut a decent hunk to eat with some grapes.  It tasted as bad as it smelled.  I told myself that there would be a few bumps on this cheese path but when I returned to the kitchen and the smell was still lingering, I had no choice but to return the remaining brie to WF and get the metropolitan.