I skipped breakfast, but called Peter Eller at 10:00 and we decided to go to lunch today. Peter picked me up at 11:45 and drove us to The Farmacy located at 3718 Central NE. Here are some pictures.
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The restaurant is owned by Jacob, who is one of Peter’s favorite chefs. Peter took me to Jacob’s prior restaurant at the corner of 9th and Mountain, so I remember vaguely his food. Today exceeded expectations. I ordered a porcelains sandwich with ham, provolone, capocolla, tapenade, greens, and pickled red onions. It was a delightful warm sandwich served on a pressed Ciabatta roll with a side of Cuban style coleslaw made with citrus juice like the Goya bitter orange juice instead of vinegar. I liked it very much, but next time I am definitely ordering the Rueben made with homemade cornedc beef and served on thick marbled rye bread. Peter ordered a Standard breakfast with two eggs over easy, three strips of bacon, cubed and deep fried potatoes, toast, butter and jam. He loved his breakfast, even though some were eating lunch.
A cappucino
Farmacy is highly rated: 4.6 overall with lots of 5s, surely making it one of Albuquerque’s most highly rated restaurants.
Peter drove me home after lunch. Luke was working at his desk while his laundry was washing. He agreed to take a walk. We walked about ten blocks through the neighborhood, just enough to stretch my legs out.
Luke left and I worked until 5:00. Suzette called to say she was at Costco. I said I would make dinner, although I had no idea what. I grabbed the three yellow squash that were half frozen in the laundry room and sliced and diced them into 1½ inch by ½ inch by ½ inch pieces. Then I diced a small red onion, ½ head of garlic, three mushrooms, five small tomatoes, about 1 oz. of poblano pepper, and de-stemmed and chopped about 1 ½ T. of fresh parsley. I then diced a 3/4lb. PPI grilled ribeye steak. For the green vegetable component, I de-stemmed about three cups of fresh spinach leaves. As I prepped I divided the vegetables and meat into three containers determined by cooking time: the garlic, poblano chili, red onion, and squash in one; the mushrooms, soft ripe tomatoes, and meat in another; and finally the pile of spinach in a colander.
I heated some of the PPI peanut oil reserved from Suzette’s Garlic Eggplant dish a few nights ago in a large skillet and threw in the contents of the squash, onion, chili, and garlic container and sautéed them for a few minutes, until Suzette’s cooking instincts were aroused that drew her to the kitchen and she took over cooking, first stirring and turning the initial ingredients to evenly cook them and after a total of fifteen minutes, she added the second bowl of tomatoes, sliced mushrooms, and diced grilled steak. At this point we added ¼ tsp. of white pepper and 1 tsp. of Romanian rock salt we bought at the salt mine we visited in Romania in September. We both agree that the rock salt has a subtle neutral flavor that blends well with stews. Sea salt has all those trace minerals that give it a harsher more aquatic taste.
As the soft ripe tomatoes cooked and steamed covered by the wok cover they released their juice, which quickly turned the mixture into a meat and vegetable stew.
After another ten or fifteen minutes of cooking on medium heat, Suzette added the spinach leaves and covered the skillet to steam and wilt the spinach.
While Suzette cooked I went to our wine rack in the kitchen were I keep our new arrivals to fetch a bottle of wine. I soon found a new bottle to me of a Cabernet Sauvignon produced in Paso Robles, California by Austin Hope Winery. I think Mike brought it for Thanksgiving Dinner. The cab was a delight both dark and rich, yet fruity without any bitter aftertaste. I checked the internet and discovered a Harvester is highly rated at 4 ½ stars and is $20.00 at Total Wine. It complemented the meal perfectly and during the meal Suzette said, “We should drink some of this with cheese and crackers.”
So I fetched the Humboldt Fog, which is our current favorite cheese, and the 1 kilo wheel of Brie from Isigny Ste. Mere in Normandy, France (Costco) and two packets of Breton crackers (Costco) and cut, trimmed, and placed slices of cheese on crackers.
I lay slices of de-skinned Brie on a long rectangular buttery cracker and the Humboldt Fog on a whole wheat seeded round cracker. Soon Suzette, who was sitting near the fireplace to keep warm decided to put ½ of the Brie spread long cracker on her knife and into the fireplace next to the flames to melt in the style of French fondue. It was a huge success. We loved the soft, smooth, warm melted Brie with sips of dark smooth Cabernet Sauvignon. As the cheeses lost their chill from the fridge they expressed lovely flavor. We bought the Humboldt Fog about three weeks ago and the Brie about four weeks ago and they both seem to have ripened beautifully.
As we finished our cheese course and the bottle of Harvester Cab, we watched TV news. The big news of the day, besides the death of a President Bush 41, was Mueller’s sentencing report for Mike Flynn. What Flynn told Mueller was so highly redacted that it gave no indication of what Flynn told Mueller, but did report that there are ongoing investigations regarding which Flynn provided Mueller lots of helpful information. Also, Mueller recommended no jail time, so Mueller went easy on the guy, just like President Trump requested of James Comey. When compared to Mueller’s treatment of Manafort, who was tried and convicted on 7 counts and faces several more trials, a pattern emerges; if you cooperate and tell all, you will go free, but if you lie or refuse to cooperate, you will be tried. Perhaps the real difference is that Flynn is an essentially honest person, while Manafort is essentially a hardened criminal.
Later I ate a piece of chocolate cake with a sniffer of Calvados and a cup of chai.
We went to bed a bit before 10:00. Our bedroom is unheated and the outdoor temperature is below freezing, so getting into bed requires, turning on our small electric heater, waiting five to ten minutes for it to take the chill off the area around it, removing my clothes and putting on your pajamas as quickly as possible while standing near the heater, then turning off the heater and jumping into bed and under the feather comforter.
Three other big things happened today, 1 terrible and the other two wonderful. The Market tumbled and I had my worst single day in the Market this year, was the terrible. The wonderful two things were that Chubb had approved my claim for a new boiler and was sending a check for the full $27,400 replacement value and the other was coming up with the perfect Christmas gift for Suzette. I will give her Luke’s Highlander hybrid SUV, that I financed the purchase of, since he is returning to NYC and does not want or need a vehicle there, but will have it here when he returns if he needs a vehicle. Also we will be back to four vehicles, which I consider optimal, given the fact that there are occasionally repairs and four drivers in the family, although Willy has his own vehicle and Luke’s little Mazda truck was given to Jodie who promised to fix it and make it available to Suzette whenever she needs it.
Yesterday was also wonderful, because I received an original watercolor from one of my favorite two cousins, Audrey. It is the original art for a Chanukah card she designed several years ago. I love it and will frame it and treasure it. Here is a picture of it.
I am feeling better and moving better with less pain in my hips and legs, which is also wonderful.
Bon Appetit
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