rare achievement

Friends will know this: I am very critical of my own cooking. Badly and even unnecessarily so, but I think that's not unusual for people who enjoy cooking. I'm hard on myself, I know. Sorry.

Conrad is out of town for a handful of days, and rather than do my usual thing of putting together a selection of things I can nibble on idly while I sip wine and watch old episodes of Top Chef on my iTunes, I actually cooked and plated a real dinner for myself.

And you know what? It wasn't exactly refined, but by gosh did it taste good.

A nice piece of sockeye salmon, seasoned with kosher salt and ground cumin, sauteed in a pan. Asparagus cooked crispy-tender. A fresh salsa made with corn cut from the cob, tomato, cilantro, jalapeno, red onion, lime juice, salt, and pepper.



And there I sat, a bit of Pinot Noir, Top Chef on iTunes, a dish of fresh cherries (rushing the season - oh! I can't wait until the cherries are in the thick of their season) awaiting me for dessert. And a nod to myself, a silent mental pat on the back for a job well done.