Photo journal update

I have probably mentioned it too many times to count in these pages, but I love shrimp. I made them recently with cajun spices, and ate them with a chilled cucumber and basil salad. Simple and delicious.



I made hake with chanterelles one night and rued the fact that I did not have any parsley on hand. It's tough having fresh produce around given that I travel so much, and I wind up having to throw a lot of stuff away. Sometimes the waste galls me personally, and makes me a little guilty. I try to reason away the guilt by a sort of selfish assertion that I deserve fresh food made from fresh ingredients, and will tolerate whatever waste is generated to ensure that happens - but Mother Nature keeps a running tab, and karma is a bitch. It is not the most selfless of thoughts, and I am not proud of myself sometimes.

On a happier note, I think I am a fan of hake. It has the sweetness of cod, with slightly more sophistication, less flake, and can stand up to stronger flavourings and pairings. A very versatile white fish that doesn't require chef-like finesse to manipulate - perfect for the home cook to experiment on.


Morgan and Meg came to visit recently, and Meg brought fresh picked corn from her backyard in Concord, MA that we absolutely had to use. And after debating the finer points of aioli in the car ride home from sailing, we had to make some for dinner. This was an avocado and corn salad, topped with sauted shrimp and a parsley aioli. I think we were all quite happy with how this dish turned out, for the corn was incredibly sweet, and the avocado was, well, avocado - which is to say awesome.


That same meal, we made loin of lamb with chanterelles and broccoli rabe, with mashed potatoes and a fresh fig and sherry reduction. This was a lot of meat, almost sleep-inducing. I made the mashed potatoes, and they turned out fabulous, if I may say so myself.