June 12, 2018. Lunch – open face sandwiches. Dinner – Sautéed Pork Tenderloin, Bratwurst, string beans, red bell peppers, onion and garlic

June 12, 2018. Lunch – open face sandwiches. Dinner – Sautéed Pork Tenderloin, Bratwurst, string beans, red bell peppers, onion and garlic

Breakfast – Yogurt, banana, blueberries, granola, and milk

Lunch – I wanted to try my new Vita herring in wine sauce. I toasted three slices of Kommisarbrot.  I buttered two.  On one I also spread German deli mustard and then slices of Persian cucumber and then a slice of liverwurst.  On the other buttered slice I laid thin slices of red onion and then slices of Gravad Lax and a smear of Lax sauce and a sprig of fresh dill. I spread crema on the third, then slices of red onion and pieces of pickled herring. I garnished the plate with slices of radish and green cracked olives.  Here is a picture:

I ate the sandwiches and Cole slaw with lunch until I was full.  Then I went to my doctor’s  appointment.  My blood pressure was low and I seemed to be in pretty good health.

I went home and worked until 5:30, when Suzette arrived. We each made gin and tonic with back river gin made by Sweetgrass Distillery in Union. Maine and the Elderberry tonic Penny and Armin gave us.

Fully refreshed, we attacked dinner.

I had thawed a piece of mystery meat, which I discovered was the five inch end of a pork tenderloin.  We also had two brats left from last week and about ½ lb. of string beans and ½ of a red bell pepper.  My first instinct was to do a traditional Chinese Pepper Steak, but when we discussed it, we agreed
upon making voodles from a Mexican squash and sautéing the meat and vegetables together with garlic and oregano.  I went to the garden and picked five stalks of oregano and stripped the leaves.  I butchered and diced the sausage and pork.  We snapped the green beans and I diced a head of garlic.

Then Suzette called for two skillets: a large one for the vegetables and the other for the meat.
She sautéed the ingredients and added the cooked meat to the larger vegetable skillet.  Here is a photo.

Suzette suggested a rose, which is our favorite with sautéed pork dishes, so I opened a 2017 St. Sagnol from Coteaux Varios de Provence AOC.  There are three AOCs in Provence denominated in 1993: Cotes de Provence, Coteaux Valois en Provence, and Coteaux de Aix-en-Provence.  The following information and more was found at
https://www.vinsdeprovence.com

The vineyards of Coteaux Varois en Provence are located in the heart of "calcareous Provence". In its basins and narrow valleys, production is strictly limited to 28 communes grouped around Brignoles, the former summer home of the Counts of Provence. Its terroir is distinguished by pronounced mountainous reliefs that peak at 600 to more than 1,000 metres in the Sainte-Baume Mountain Range.

There are four main grape types grown in Provence:
“ CINSAULT
Distinguishing features
Flavourful and attractive, this Provençal varietal has long been used as a table grape. It is widely used to make rosé in Provence.

Character
It adds a fresh, delicate, fruity touch to wines, nuancing the power of other varietals.


GRENACHE
Distinguishing features
This varietal comes from Spain originally. It is very high-yield and resistant to violent winds and drought.

Character

Grenache brings fatness, a full body and power to wines. It gives young wines elegant hints of

berries, and spicier, meaty notes to more evolved wines.


MOURVÈDRE
Distinguishing features
Its small berries prefer warm, calcareous terroirs. This varietal ripens slowly: it is happiest when facing the sea, where it can ripen properly. It has been planted in Provence for a very long time.

Character
Mourvèdre produces robust wines with delicate, assertive tannins. While young, wines made with this varietal offer touches of violet and blackberry. Its smooth suppleness, accompanied by characteristic notes of spices, pepper and cinnamon, are only revealed after several years of cellar ageing. Mourvèdre is often used in blends with Grenache and Syrah.

SYRAH

Distinguishing features
Syrah is a grape that produces small black berries with a bluish sheen and delicate but fairly hardy skin.

Character
Syrah creates solid, deep-coloured wines whose tannins make them coarse in the first years, but benefit particularly from prolonged ageing. Over the years, it evolves into its characteristic notes of vanilla, tobacco and candied berries.”

Rose is one Provence’s most famous and desired wines.

“EXPORTS OF PROVENCE WINES HAVE SKYROCKETED BY NEARLY 500% IN THE SPACE OF 15 YEARS !

The enthusiasm for rosé extended beyond the borders of France. As a result, Vins de Provence exported 40 million bottles in 2016. They love it in the US, buying up 43% of the total quantity sold
abroad.”

We poured glasses of rose and Suzette laid a pile of voodles she had made by steaming strips of squash shaved from the squash with a vegetable peeler in a covered Pyrex bread pan with a bit of water and covered with Saran in the microwave for a couple of minutes.  She then placed a pile of voodles in a pasta dish and then spooned the mixture of meat and vegetables over the voodles.
We have substituted voodles for pasta for the last year.

Suzette grated Pecorino Romano cheese and sprinkled some over each dish for that final Italian touch. We enjoyed our simple one dish meal in the garden. The temperature was still over 90 degrees,  so it was a quick dinner.

After dinner we each ate a piece of the excellent biscochito cake for dessert.

Willy came over after 8:00 and ate the rest of the dish and told us about his exciting hiking and camping trip to Colorado, close to the wildfires near Pagosa Springs this last weekend.

Wilły left and we went to bed a bit after 9:00.

Bon Appetit