- but no yesterday. It’s been a while: too many people, too much cooking, a bit of thinking, and no time even now. I have to empty and reload the dishwasher before I go out, but after two day's silence, I choose you.
Having done that, what will I say? So much, perhaps beginning with all the food I cooked for people. My friend and mentor, Richard, scolds me for having so many people over and cooking for them, dissipating my time and energy (and money) when I could be writing, or trying to sell - much the more difficult task.. He says this when he comes for dinner (regularly). He usually brings me a bottle of wine or else a lovely potted plant. His dog has his own water dish ready for him when he comes, and I lay a sheet on my sofa to try to preserve it. (I do not want to buy another sofa in my lifetime.)
So he was one of my guests; I served grilled chili-seasoned pork chops, roasted sweet potatoes and asparagus (strawberries and raspberries for dessert, and a chocolate ice cream stick).
It began Sunday evening with dinner for a dear friend, someone I have neglected while I was trapped by my film project. I grilled Tandoori chicken breast, with arborio rice (with butter and P. cheese), and snow peas., and an ice cream stick. She brought me lovely coral-coloured gladioli.
My writing partner, whose non-fiction book I am adapting for that screenplay I keep mentioning, came to go over the latest draft. and stayed for lunch. She brought home-made white wine and a lot of additional dialogue along with legitimate corrections. I served guacamole and whole grain chips, with corn broth with chopped green onions and plain yogurt (instead of sour cream), followed by grilled vegetables (eggplant, red pepper, red onion, portobella mushroom) on a toasted, split focaccio bun, topped with grated Mozarella cheese, broiled before serving. I don’t think I offered dessert, can’t remember, maybe fruit?).
.
PAUSE while I went to my neighbour’s for a post-prandial wine. I took her half my dinner for her lunch tomorrow (instead of mine; I have other things to use up.) I had made a Naan vegetarian pizza, really good, and low-calorie.
Naan Pizza: Spread a Naan bread, size your choice, with salsa. Chop or dice a bunch of vegetables : red onion, mushroom, zucchini, red and/or green pepper, celery. I have also used eggplant, kale or spinach - hey! - whatever you have lurking in the fridge. Put them in a microwave dish, dribble a little garlic olive oil over them and you could season them with a little garlic-salt seasoning or Italian seasoning or whatever appeals to you, then zap in the microwave for about 2 minutes, just to soften them. Sprinkle them over the Naan and sprinkle over that, with a heavy hand, some grated Parmesan cheese. Bake in a 425 degree oven for minutes. Num.
Tomorrow I am taking friends to Stratford (John Gabriel Bjorkman, by Henrik Ibsen, more on that later, like next time) and I made crab wraps for the picnic:
Crab Wraps: I use crab-flavoured pollock because I like it. Cut it up into a bowl with a couple of hard-boiled eggs, also chopped. Drop in some chopped celery, maybe a little green pepper, chopped, oh, and some green onion, tops and bottoms. Now take a lot of mayonnaise (I don’t measure for this, you just have to look at what you have and you want to make it moist and cohesive enough to spread), and stir in a lot of Tandoori seasoning, or some good curry seasoning (make your own?) It depends on your prospective consumers how strong you want to make it. Keep tasting. Now,
deal out six tortilla wraps, large size, and drop spoonsful of your crab mixture across the centre of each disk. Roll up each wrap, trim the ends, if desired; I desire), and wrap in waxed paper (or plastic wrap) and keep in the fridge until ready to go. Be sure to be careful about keeping the food cool with an ice pack, insulated carry bag etc. It’s mayonnaise and fish, after all. Enjoy.
I just don’t know where the time goes! :-}