Temperature-wise, that is. Living in a warm, humid atmosphere means six months of summer watching what you cook for kitchen aromas to fade. Living in a cold, dry winter climate means the opposite. And yes, I know I don’t have the right fan. Venting on itself is not the answer.
Hot and humid means air conditioning and me waiting for an opportune night to open the windows because it might be down in the high 70’s. Here 40 degrees is a picnic and I can open up a bit to air out Indian spices, fajitas, garlic, onions and other spicy foods. Going out to dinner all the time is not an option. That’s too expensive, too fattening and my loving husband enjoys my home-cooked meals more.
Last night I made a lovely flap steak marinated in olive oil and pepper for an hour, then seasoned with salt and tossed on the grill. I made Tyler Florence’s Gaucho Steak with Chimichurri recipe for the sauce but was low on lime so upped the red wine vinegar (www.foodnetwork.com). It was cooked perfectly! Jim had a retro lettuce wedge and a few fries (with ketchup, which is why I don’t normally roast garlic/rosemary potatoes anymore because he drowns them in the stuff) and I had a healthy amount of sauteed garlic and arugula.
The fajita aroma lasted a good 36 hours, last night’s chimichurri and arugula/garlic dissipated rather quickly, but I did open the upstairs window a bit this morning and that helped. According to TV ads people like to cover natural aromas with fake ones that one plugs in. I like to keep our house clean, laundry and all dishes done, so my only issue is cooking aromas. Any suggestions? Cheers. Dee
Cooking with Dee 