Dinner – Roasted Pork Tapa, steamed Broccoli, and boiled ear of corn
The usual breakfast, yogurt, milk, granola, and blueberries.
Peter Eller called saying he had a Romanian wine he thought I might like to try, so I invited him for lunch. I asked him if the wine was red or white adnd he said red, so I knew I could serve the PPI Boeuf Bourguignon and Mashed Potatoes with a salad of garden greens for a complete meal.
At 11:15 I started preparing the salad by dicing a Roma tomato, peeling and slicing 1/3 cucumber and. 1 green onion. Then I fetched the PPIs and salad dressing to let them warm to room temperature.
I refreshed the salad dressing with the juice of 2/3 lemon and some olive oil and heated it 12 seconds in the microwave to melt the solidified olive oil and mixed the ingredients by shaking the lidded jar.
When Peter arrived with his bottle of 1999 Romanian Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, we went to the garden and picked lettuce, which I rinsed and spun and added to the salad. I dressed the salad, set the table and heated the beef and potatoes. Peter wanted a piece of bread so I toasted two slices of Pastian’s German Sourdough bread and poured the wine. The wine was quite lovely. Aromatic, smelling of raspberries, Peter said, and a soft smooth taste on the palate, with just a hint of bitterness in the finish, which could have been from being open with a slightly loose cork. I liked it. Another good Romanian wine.
We enjoyed lunch and I described the evolution of the beef dish from its 25 Day aging to salt leaching to beef Bourguinon.
Peter described his recently finished appraisal of a John Constable painting for $1.9 million, which is Peter’s highest appraised value to date. Interesting.
After lunch I served each of us one of the lemon cheesecake squares Debbie made and gave us yesterday to complete the traditional French style lunch.
Peter’s comment was that the lunch was a good trade for his wine.
After lunch I worked until 5:00 on my water case and then crawled into bed and watched the Business news. As soon as I was in bed Suzette arrived just in time to place the comforter over me.
At 3:00 I had thawed two pork chops, so we discussed the dinner menu. I suggested grilled pork chops and corn with steamed broccoli.
Suzette said, “Well, you know the roasted pork tapa with apples and onions is my favorite.”
So I got up and went to the kitchen and fetched a medium apple and an onion and sliced them while Suzette fetched our favorite sauté pan and prepped a stalk of broccoli by de-stemming the flowerets and putting them in the steamer basket over water.
I chilled a bottle of Ferme Julien rose, but when I went to the garage fridge I saw we had an already chilled bottle of 2017 St. Sagnol, rose’ that I recently had purchased at Trader Joe’s for $5.99.
Here are the tasting notes prepared by Trader Joe’s:
“A pale pink blend of Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah, this Rosé is a sure bet for summer sipping; elegant and lean, a balanced blend of berries and stone fruit flavors, it’s crisp finish is refreshing, and, frankly, delightful. An excellent accompaniment to salads, grilled chicken, and spicy seafood, it also pairs well with mild cheese and poolside conversation. We’re selling each 750ml bottle for $5.99, a shimmering value!”
We both liked the classic Coteaux du Provence rose. It was fruity, fresh and went down easily; a good match for the fruitiness of the pork dish. This is the first 2017 rose I have tasted. If this is indicative of the 2017 roses, I am ready to drink lots of them.
Roasted Pork Tapa
Suzette first sautéed the apple and onion slices to soften them in olive oil, then she added the pieces of pork and browned their exterior, while I fetched six or seven stalks of beautiful fresh oregano from the garden.
She then added the oregano stalks to the sauté pan and roasted the pork and vegetables in the oven for about fifteen minutes, while I went to the garage fridge got a cup of chicken stock and the St. sagnol Rose.
The finish of the pork dish was to remove the sauté pan from the oven and to deglaze the sauté pan ingredients with the cup of chicken stock and then to add 2 T. of cognac. We usually flambé the cognac but could not find a match today. After a few minutes of heating the pan the liquid thickened into a light sauce and we were ready to serve.
I have to mention something about Sprouts’ and El Super’s produce. They occasionally find vegetables of extremely high quality, so when shopping you must be watchful for offerings of produce in season at good prices. For example, last Wednesday when I bought the corn, Sprouts also featured fresh organic red beets for $.98/bunch. I bought two bunches and tonight we cooked them and their flavor was fantastic. The best example I can recall is organic asparagus at Sprouts several months ago for $2.49/lb. that were the largest, most flavorful asparagus I have ever tasted. We grilled them and they became tender and succulent. Likewise, last Christmas El Super offered green beans for $.99/lb. Almost every bean was a perfect haricot vert. These specials do not often occur, but this is the season in which they most frequently do.
Bon Appetit
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