What a lovely day it was today, with high winds but no snow. One farmers’ market has opened and another will over the weekend. Today I got a toy for the dog, local honey for the pantry, lamb shoulder for dinner and some young garlic.
Oh, and an outfit for a friend’s baby’s six-month anniversary, I couldn’t resist as it was made locally and was too cute to pass up.
I’ve been trying out some new meals lately, trying to be healthier and get out of my cooking rut. The markets will help with that as well. Today I made Greek kofta kebabs, lamb ground with lots of spices and put on skewers like a burger on a stick. My husband didn’t think I could grind meat without my stand mixer/grinder (in storage) so I prepped everything for him and had him pulse it in the food processor I thankfully brought with me over two years ago!
We also grilled some yellow grape tomatoes, and folded everything into warm pitas with a sauce of tzatziki and a tabbouleh salad on the side.
Last night I tried saganaki, Greek fried cheese. Our favorite grocery was out of haloumi cheese so suggested a Mexican cotija. I rinsed the slices for a second, dried them on paper towels, dredged in flour and pepper and placed in a very hot pan coated with olive oil. About 1-2 minutes per side and they were gorgeous. I put them on a plate, drizzled some brandy over them and lit it. When the flames went out I squeezed half a lemon over it and plated it.
The rest of the dinner went very well, another inventive evening. The saganaki was very tasty and well-cooked but the texture of the cheese was like chewing rubber bands. So tonight I was willing to re-do the experiment with the correct cheese, haloumi. Jim was game for it so stopped at the store on the way home for two things: haloumi and flat leaf parsley. He had everyone there helping this man who can barely make himself cereal in the morning when I’m home sick.
In the end there was no flat leaf parsley, it was the cheese lady’s first day and she didn’t know where today’s shipment, which was supposed to include haloumi, was. So Jim’s batting 0 for 2 but comes home after spending nothing, with a $4.50 hunk of raw milk Morbier for his 15 minutes of trouble. I know all the butchers, checkers, the frozen dog food guy and customer service folks there and they’ve never sent me home with free French cheese!
Lesson learned, send husband to grocery store more often. We’ve spent a lot of money there over the past nearly 2.5 years and appreciate their regard for the non-customer member of our family. Thanks, Jim, for helping with dinner tonight. You can tell all the guys at work what you made and I’ll even write it down on a post-it note so you don’t forget.
Also, lamb is a go-to meat that we eat rarely. I can’t see cooking an entire leg for the two of us because we’d have endless leftovers but have a great recipe for it, check out Lamb Robert by Jacques Pepin. I don’t use his cooking method but love the marinade. My brother loves this, perhaps one of his favorite meals, and he calls it “Sheep Bob.” Good night readers, though I must try to stay up to watch Top Chef Masters at eleven…. Cheers, Dee
Cooking with Dee 