Cooking

My cooking habits tend to ebb and flow, much like everything else in my life. Sometimes I get lazy and avoid the kitchen, other times I get completely sucked in to the idea of coming up with new creations, revisiting old favorites. This week finds me pretty active in the kitchen- I've been compelled to cook almost every night of the week. Tuesday night I made a spicy roasted red pepper soup with a fresh salad chock full of local organic vegetables, courtesy of Be Wise Ranch. My friend Ruth brought over some fresh scallops and seared them in a delicious honey-citrus glaze.

Wednesday night was supposed to follow a simple progression- a small dinner with a few key friends (Nilla was in town, Lisa was a few days away from ACL surgery, etc., etc.) followed by a nice bike ride to Hamilton's, which happens to be my favorite watering hole in San Diego. I got a little carried away with the invites, and a few people invited a few people...Next thing I know I'm cooking for about 13 people. I had a nice bike ride to the grocery stores, and I came home feeling refreshed and ready to cook. The menu was somewhat Italian, though not thoroughly traditional to any particular region. I made some sweet olive oil bread from scratch and prepared an apple-cinnamon compound butter to spread over the warm bread. I used a double boiler to melt the butter into the apple and spice mixture, and let it congeal in the freezer. It never ended up resembling solid butter again, which actually turned out pretty well. Imagine spreading creamy applesauce over warm and subtly sweet bread.

For the "main" course I made a series of calzonés, and I have to interject my opinion about the correct pronunciation. When I was in Italy, everyone pronounced the é in the typical dialectic fashion (mascarponé, buona notté, etc.). Upon returning to the US, the common pronunciation suddenly reminded me of a football defensive set, or a west coast voter's initiative. WTF. I'm willing to admit I'm wrong in the face of some hard evidence, but I maintain my position for the time being. Anyway, I ended up making about 13-14 different calzonés with a wide variety of toppings. Fresh chicken sausage, prosciutto, caramelized onions, garlic, tomatoes, cottage cheese (poor man's ricotta), onions, anchovies, olives. Either they were a big hit or my friends are great at bluffing. Dessert was, in my opinion, the highlight of the meal. I acquired an ice cream maker from my friend Jef, who is a fine chef recently removed from San Diego. I've been putting it to use lately, and last night I experimented a little and made pomegranate gelato. Very subtle, airy, and creamy with a solid body and slight tartness. I think I should make it again just to confirm it's validity in my repertoire.

Today was my good friend Bill Webb's 47th birthday. We share several loves- camping, hiking, ultimate frisbee, biking, adventures, etc.- and great wine and food definitely top the list. Bill and his wife Martha are avid wine drinkers, and he gave me a head's up that we would be drinking a fine Bordeaux this evening. So I planned the meal on the way home from work, and solidified my plans after shopping for some delicious cheeses. Let it be known that I have a new favorite place in San Diego. Venissimo is a artisan cheese shop in Mission Hills and I have already fallen in love. I picked three different cheeses on recommendation from one of the employees based on our wine plans. Stopped at Henry's on the way home and finished my planning/shopping. Our menu this evening consisted of- cheese, prosciutto, and crackers; roasted asparagus and carrots with fresh thyme, garlic, olive oil, salt&pepper; mashed red potatoes with cream, salt, and homemade porcini mushroom stock. The kicker was in my humble opinion the best steak I've ever made. Thin cut New York strip steak, marinaded in soy sauce. Patted dry and rolled in a mixture of crushed dried porcini mushrooms, rosemary, and pepper. Pan-seared at high heat, and removed just in time. Poured some porcini stock over the veggies and potatoes and served with two different wines that Bill opened. One was a "left bank" Bordeaux (heavy on the Cabernet) and the other was a delicious Syrah. I couldn't really appreciate the Bordeaux until I chased the steak down with a hearty sip. Love. Defined. All said it was a great meal (and somewhat healthy) that I was proud of, especially for such last minute planning. But above that I was happy to share it with good friends, and it was a nice way to honor the occasion. We finished the evening with an amazing carrot-pear cake that Martha cooked. I could sit and eat that cake for hours.

Sometimes I laugh when I look at my credit/debit card statements, because the majority of my non-essential expenses are food-related. But I look at it this way- better fine food with good people than cigarettes, cheap beer, country music CDs, etc. with anyone.

Sorry I've been slacking on posting. There are a few posts in the works, I just need to learn a few new words before I send off my thoughts.