October 27, 2011-Dinner and Lunch, Gourmet Mac and Cheese Casserole with sautéed fresh greens

October 27, 2011-Dinner and Lunch

Gourmet Mac and Cheese Casserole with sautéed fresh greens

I had to leave for a book club meeting at 6:30 p.m. and rode my bike until 5:30 p.m. so we did not have enough time to plan and cook a full meal and we both wanted a smaller meal.  Suzette suggested that we use the Gourmet Mac and Cheese Casserole cooked on Tuesday, October 25, 2011 and simply add to it some fresh greens from the garden.

We are painfully aware that we are reaching the last days of fresh ingredients from the garden and should use as many as possible.   

While I showered, Suzette picked fresh spinach and kale in the garden and when I returned from my shower she was de-stemming the leaves.  I then heated up some of the leftover Casserole with a splash of milk to loosen it up and add to its creaminess and to counteract the ill effects of heating it in the microwave.  Suzette said she would have added red wine instead of milk.

We then tossed the fresh greens in the wok with some olive oil and two cloves of minced garlic, sautéed it and then covered it to steam slightly, till wilted.  Suzette sprinkled hers with Balsamic Vinegar as we tossed the greens into a pasta bowl with the side of the heated Casserole. 

We drank a glass of Lagranja 2010 Tempranillo I had bought at Trader Joe’s today for $3.99 and tested it against the red California Cabernet Sauvignon I had bought for $3.33 the other day.  We both liked the Cabernet Sauvignon better, perhaps Suzette suggested because the oxidation or opening up of the Cab had helped soften its tight flavor of yesterday.

Then I had to leave for my book club meeting without getting a chance to eat the lovely apple tart Suzette brought home from the Greenhouse Bistro and Bakery.  When I returned, Suzette was in bed but mumbled that the tart was delicious with the vanilla ice cream that we had in the freezer. 

I have a standing schedule with Mike Verhagen for Thursday lunch and this week we were both available and since we were both near East Ocean, 3601 Carlisle NE, one of our favorite restaurants; it was easy to decide to go there.  We each had our favorite dishes.  Mike’s is Kung Pao Chicken.  Mine is the No. 8 lunch menu item of Shrimp in Lobster Sauce, except I request the substitution of scallops for the shrimp.  I love the dish with its silky smooth sauce made of chicken stock thickened with corn starch, egg clouds, ground pork, bits of chopped green onion and cooked scallops, all adding their flavors to the sauce.  

Lobster Sauce seems to me to exemplify one of the unique characteristics of Chinese cooking, the emphasis on recipes of “things that create a delicious dish when combined with rice”.  What I mean is that most Americans think in terms of rice being a pile of starch to be eaten along with the meal, while the Chinese integrate rice into the recipe, like America’s Southern dish of Red Beans and Rice.  Lobster Sauce is a perfect example of this Chinese Cuisine concept because you can not pick up the slippery sauce with chop sticks.  To eat the sauce you must mix it with the dry rice and then you can pick up the clumps of delicious sauce coated rice and scallops, plus the rice is no longer dry.    

Bon Apetit