July 15, 2021 Lunch - East Ocean Seafood Restaurant; Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables and Rice . Dinner - 1/2 Roast Duck, Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables, and Rice

July 15, 2021 Lunch - East Ocean Seafood Restaurant; Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables and Rice . Dinner - 1/2 Roast Duck, Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables, and Rice 

Today I watched Stage 18 of the Tour de France. It was amazing because the young 22 year old riders dominated the very difficult mountain climbs including Tourmelet and Luz Ardidens.  Tadjec Pogacar, the yellow Jersey and white Jersey holder, won the stage and earned the polka dot Jersey also.  He also won the stage yesterday and is more than 5 minutes ahead of his closest rival, a 22 year old Dane named Jonas Vingegaard, who came in second today to solidify his position on the podium in Paris. 

The young American rider, Kuss, also rode well and was the third young rider in the new crop of young riders.

This trio could dominate the Tour for years.

I was hungry, so after the finish at 9:00 I sautéed a sausage patty and two eggs over easy and toasted two slices of bread that I buttered and spread with English marmalade.

I then took a shower and dressed and prepared a few deeds and at 11:15 drove to East Ocean to meet Robert Pidcock for lunch.  We ordered our usual, Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables and Rice.

Robert is a vegetarian, so we always share Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables, and Rice for lunch.

East Ocean’s 1/2 Roast Duck is my favorite duck dish in Albuquerque.  I ordered a 1/2 Roast Duck to go for dinner and Robert and I ate 1/2 of the Deep Fried Tofu and Mixed Vegetables, and Rice for lunch.

Robert asked me to help on a difficult case a year ago that has turned into a lengthy and crazy case.  We discussed it and vehicles until 1:30.

I then went to Trader Joe’s and bought fresh and canned artichokes, a 500 gram bar of milk chocolate with almonds, and 11 bottles of wine and 1 bottle of Chevalier VS Cognac.  The bottles were all under $8.00 each and are the wine we drink with our every day food. Among them were 2012 Origon, a Spanish red Gran Reserva, La Granja, a white Spanish blend of Viura and Verdejo grapes, a bottle of Verdejo, a Kirkland red Meritage blend from Paso Robles, several Sauvignon Blancs, a Finca Malbec, and several others

When I returned home my worst fears were confirmed,  the fear of inflation spurred a small sell off in the market. Thanks to a surge in the price of Moderna, my portfolio only lost .73% today.

I napped from 3:15 to 4:00 and then pitted about four cups of cherries for claufotis and lightly tossed them with 1 T. of cognac and 2 tsp. of Grande Marnier and refrigerated them.

Suzette came home around 4:45 just as I was getting ready to meditate at 5:00.  After meditation we discussed dinner and decided to eat the duck and leftover Deep fried tofu and mixed vegetables and rice for dinner.

Suzette mixed the duck, the duck sauce, the rice and the vegetables and  tofu in a Pyrex baking dish and covered the dish with Saran and re-heated it in the microwave.

I opened and poured two glasses of the Trader Joe’s Meritage and we ate a lovely dinner of duck, vegetables, and rice flavored with the tea sauce made for the duck.

After dinner we drove to the grand opening of the Old Town Tap Room located in the Building the family owns at the corner of Rio Grande and Mountain Rd..  We were thrilled to see a good crowd ordering drinks and Asian Fusion food.

When we returned home at 8:00 we watched Midsomer Mystery and I made clafoutis.  I buttered a ceramic baking dish  and coated the butter with granulated sugar.  I then scalded 2 cups of milk and 1 cup of heavy cream.  While the cream and milk scalded I mixed 7 T. of flour, 10 T. of powdered sugar, and 1/4 tsp. of salt in a mixing bowl.

Then I mixed Three eggs into the dry mixture and then the scalded milk.

I then added the marinated cherries to the mixture and then poured it into the buttered and sugared baking dish and baked it into a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 50 minutes.

It was delicious. We ate warm bowls of clafoutis and loved them. At 10:30 I took pills and went to bed.

I love making clafoutis when the first crop of cherries comes in.

I use a mixture of cream and milk to imitate the rich milk of Limoussin, France, where this dish was created.

Bon Appetit