Beef Carne Adovado on July 12

I made beef carne adovado with a chuck roast from our 1/2 grass-fed beef.  I threw the roast and the following ingredients into the slow cooker: onion, New Mexican red chile powder, garlic, oregano, cumin, ground coriander, apple cider vinegar, salt, sugar, and a couple ladlefuls of veggie stock ( Bruce made on Saturday), and cooked it at 300 F for about 4 hours.   Bruce shredded the meat, I blended the sauce, we threw the meat back in the cooker with the sauce, and reheated it.  We served the adovado as tacos with homemade frijoles borrachos, corn tortillas,avocado, jack and cheddar cheese, green onion, shredded arugula and radish tops, radish, black olives, and tomato (for me).  We drank a bottle of Chateau St. Michelle 2007 Rose and had ricotta cheesecake for dessert.

Lavender Macaroni & Cheese on July 10

I had bought some lavender infused cheddar cheese at the local Safeway and decided to try it in mac & cheese.  I didn’t realize that Bruce had finished most of the milk earlier in the day, so I had to make my besciamella with the scant cup of milk, homemade buttermilk, and cream to get to the 2 cups I needed for the sauce.  The dish was topped with toasted semolina herb bread crumbs from the loaf on July 1 and baked in the oven at 350 F for the usual 30 minutes.   Needless to say the finished dish was very rich and the lavender quite subtle.

I roasted beet greens and Swiss chard and served them with roasted baby beets that had been tossed in olive sauce; we drank  a bottle of Domaine de Mirail 2007 Colombard and what was left of the bottle of Mouton Cadet Bordeaux 2006.

Pati Overcomes the Gnocchi Curse on July 9

I have never been good at making homemade potato gnocchi.  It either comes out tough (like those nasty prepackaged gnocchi you can find in the grocery store) or disintegrates in the cooking water; I’ve never been able to get that elusive consistency of tenderness one finds in really good homemade gnocchi.  I recently found a recipe in one of my cooking magazines that was titled something like ‘how to make perfectly soft and fluffy gnocchi every time’ that I decided to try.  I followed the recipe EXACTLY as it was written which is VERY difficult for me to do (it’s why I am not a good baker).  Anyway, to my surprise and delight, the gnocchi came out pretty close to perfect; they were very tender and tasted like potato.  I served them with a veal and mushroom sauce I made earlier in the day; the dish was topped with Parmesan cheese and red chile flakes and was delicious.

Bruce made an interesting salad of arugula and romaine with apple, fennel, smoked almonds, and blue cheese.  The dressing was a maple and white balsamic vinaigrette and the wine was Kendall Jackson meritage 2004.

First Albacore Tuna of the Season on July 8

Around this time of the year, you start to see colored, handwritten signs advertising fresh albacore tuna from the fisherman who catch them.  Buying fresh fish directly from the fisherman who caught it is definitely one of the benefits to living on the coast.  I rushed down to the docks and bought our first tuna for the season from Mike, owner/operator of F/V White Swan III; it was a beautiful 13 lb. fish.  The fisherman will fillet it for you for an extra $4.00 which is totally worth it.  Both Bruce & I are terrible at filleting; Bruce almost sliced his hand off one year trying…..

Anyway, I froze most of the fish, but kept one loin out for grilling.  I marinated it in a caper, lemon juice, preserved lemon, olive oil, rosemary, and shallot mixture.  I grilled the tuna medium rare and served it topped with the warmed marinade, a marinated artichoke, and grilled purple & white cauliflower and kohlrabi that had been tossed in (previously made, frozen, and defrosted) olive sauce.

Bruce made a complimentary salad with mixed greens from the garden, arugula, radicchio, fennel, green onion, radish, carrot, sunflower seeds, and goat cheese.  The dressing was the last of the leftover olive from the sirloin steak salad on the 1st.  We enjoyed a nice bottle of Parallel 45 cotes du rhone 2006.

Leftover Pizza and Obedience on July 7

At the moment, Tuesday nights are obedience class nights with our pug: Tojo.

We usually go out to to eat prior to class, but we had leftover pizza to eat.  I made a caprese salad for myself  and an arugula/homemade mozzarella salad (with arugula, arugula pesto, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar) for Bruce who does not eat raw tomatoes.  We had a glass of Camp Viejo Tempranillo 2004 prior to leaving to put us in the right mood.