Dinner – Grilled Rib Steak, sautéed green beans with toasted almonds, sautéed mushroom sauce and baked potatoes
I relaxed today, sort of.
I toasted a whole wheat everything bagel and spread cream cheese on it and garnished the two slices with slices of Mexican Swiss cheese I bought at Sprouts yesterday. I drank a cup of chai Luke made with fresh ginger.
I then prepped Gravad Lax with the 6 lb. of salmon. I made a double recipe of curing mix; 1 cup of sugar, 1 1/3 cup of salt and 1 tsp. of freshly ground black pepper. I lined the bottom of a Pyrex baking dish with fresh dill, then Luke coated the skin side of one of the filets with the mixture as I held it. I then put the skin side down onto the dill. I added lots of dill to the insider the filet and Luke sprinkled the inside heavily with the curing mixture. Luke left and Suzette took over, sprinkling the inside of the other filet, which I then turned onto the inside of the first filet. After sprinkling the rest of the curing mixture onto the outside of the second filet and adding the last of the two bunches of dill, I covered the Pyrex dish with Saran and weighted it down with a dish of water. Here is a picture.
You can cure the salmon from 16 to 36 hours I usually cure for 36 hours flipping once after 12 hours. I will flip at 9:00 p.m. and at 9:00 am. Flip again and then 6 hours later do the final flip. Finishing at 9:00 p.m.
I have found that the softness of the salmon is influenced more by the fat content than the weighting or length of cure. The benefit of curing is to extend the period during which the salmon is at its maximum edibility from 3 days to 3 months.
At 11:30 I drove to El Super to shop for produce. I bought oranges, a papaya, red onions, sweet
potatoes, russet potatoes, yellow squash, eggs, a cucumber, mangos, green beans, and chicken thighs.
When I returned home I heated and ate the PPI chile Relleno from Padilla’s and lay down to rest for a while.
At 3:00 I rode about 2 on the bike trail to Marquez St.
Every time I exercise I feel better, so I will continue it as long as I do not suffer a set back from my condition.
Suzette came home a bit after 4:00 and watched football with me in bed. At 5:00 she roasted 8 russet potatoes. Willy called to say he had invited Robin to dinner, so we decided to grill all four rib steaks we had thawed. We told Willy we would serve at 6:30. At 6:00 we went to the kitchen. Luke snapped the green beans. Suzette then blanched them in the steamer and then sautéed slivered almonds and added the green beans to sauté them with the almonds.
I went to the garden and picked 8 to 10 chive stalks and sliced them for the potatoes.
Then I sliced about 8 baby portobello mushrooms and two cloves of garlic and sautéed them in a skillet with olive oil and butter. I went to the garden and picked five or six sprigs of thyme and de-stemmed the leaves and added them to the mushrooms. After sautéing the mushrooms at low heat for about 10 minutes when they began to take on color, added about 2 T. of Amontillado sherry.
Willy arrived at 6:30 and Robin shortly thereafter. I had bought the thinner ¾ inch thick rib steaks, which Suzette estimated would only require 6 minutes to cook, so waited until Willy arrived to put them on the grill.
I went to the basement and fetched my favorite cab, Wellington Mohrhardt Ridge Vineyard Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon. I bought two cases of the 2010 when Wellington was sold for $25.00 per bottle. I also bought a case of the 2008, which I like better. The wine is a lovely purple color and very fruity with a clean taste and finish. Everything I desire in a cab and it complements steak perfectly.
Suzette covered the rather rare steaks with foil and we let them sit for five minutes to cook a bit more. When I sliced two of the steaks they were a lovely pink in the middle medium. We then filled our plates with green beans, steak garnished with mushroom sauce, and a baked potato and Suzette poured glasses of cab that we had decanted and let sit for about twenty minutes.
Robin was impressed with the steak, especially when I told him it cost $5.97/lb. at Albertson’s. He thought it was tender and explained its location in the cow’s body. Luke and Robin discussed living in NY and we talked about houses. Willy and Robin now live a stone’s throw away from each other near Arno and Coal.
After dinner Robin left and Luke packed for his trip to NY. Willy fetched the Key Lime Pie and he and I ate a piece each for dessert. We both agreed that the 1 inch thick layer of whipped cream on top of the filling was excessive.
We watched The Durrells in Corfu. I did research on Lawrence and Gerald Durrell and found that the PBS series is based upon Gerald Durrell’s books, although Lawrence is the more famous writer, well known for his Alexandria Quartet and his long association with and influence by Henry Miller.
We then watched Poldark and at 9:00 Willy and Luke left, Willy graciously agreeing to drive Luke to the airport.
We watched an episode of Woman in White, derived from a Wilkie Collins novel, and at 10:00 went to bed.
I love these leisurely long days of shopping and preparing and cooking food.
I now have the ingredients for chicken curry and tropical fruit salad.
Bon Appetit
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