variations on a theme

If I may, I will frame this entry by stating the obvious: I am pale, pasty white. To this I add that I spent my formative years in northern BC where - though it could get hotter than most people here can believe - cool and wet was the norm. My summers are ideally set no higher than 24 degrees (that's Centigrade - no jokes about sled dogs being needed once you cross the border into Canada). I loathe the heat.




And yet I live in Chicago (fast approaching my 11-year anniversary), and heat and humidity are the essence of summer here. My response? I turn on the AC as high as it will go and stay away from the oven and stove. I'd love to say that dinner then becomes a choice between ice cream and Popsicles, but no, I try to keep us eating something halfway decent.




Lately, given the heat, it's been salads, cold fish, nuts, cheeses, fruit. Things I don't need to cook. Wash, cut, plate, yes. But no cooking, not if I can help it. Wine as well with the occasional martini sneaking in. Call it a rut, but so be it if a rut means that I - pale, pasty, cold-weather loving Canuck that I am - can survive the Chicago summer!

no oven, please!

I don't know what the Saturday high temperature was in Chicago. The actual number is immaterial to me. Hot. That's what it was. And yes, I do know it was far from the hottest it's been or even that I've known it to be. I am a polar creature, I think, and I prefer cooler temperatures.

And yet, I never object to the opportunity to dine out on the balcony. Friday night with Heather and Arek, Saturday night a mini-date night with Conrad. Bliss!






In this weather, I avoid turning on the oven (though I will likely get cookies for the conference roomies, TK and Martin, baked before I head to DC midweek). That being the case, Saturday dinner was a near repeat of Friday. Things that require scant cooking on the stove. No oven, please!

Salad-y things were the order of the day, and we're both fine with that. Some mixed nuts, a small dish of olives. A well-chilled Chardonnay. I set out a salad of mixed baby greens and some herbs with tomatoes, dressed with white truffle oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. White truffle oil is my magic go-to ingredient of this year, it seems. Rough life Peter. I also had a dish of asparagus, cooked and chilled, a drizzle of the oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and then a grating of Spanish Mahon Curado cheese atop. Alongside this were a dozen plump shrimp I'd barely and gently poached in rose wine with peppercorns and a pinch of a spot prawn flavoured salt. The shrimp were chilled as well. Dessert? A bowl of cherries.

An ideal dinner - light fare with minimal fuss. Loading the dishwasher probably took longer than the salad, for example. And, happily, it keeps the apartment cool for the much-welcome night of EC.

Simple, easy food for an er-lee summer evening. Conrad and I just munched and sipped and chatted and were grateful for these simple pleasures.

pork and lentils

Yes, Dad (if you're reading this), we had pork tonight. May that make you giggle at least a little.

One of my favourite old restaurant recipes is for a side dish of lentils prepared according to a recipe in a cookbook by John Bishop. [Side note: I've yet to make it to his restaurant. I really should one day.] Cumin stewed lentils.

Tasty as all get out. Fragrant beyond words. Necessary to close the doors to the other rooms because otherwise we'll go to bed smelling it in our room and wake up to find that all our clothes and furniture in the bedroom have a subtle reek of cumin and curry. All good things come at a price, right?

The lentils served as the bed on which I parked slices of pork tenderloin. I seasoned the meat very simply and tossed it in a hot oven. I even rested it afterwards, resulting in decently juicy meat. Well done Peter.

The other accompaniments were some simply cooked Brussels sprouts and dried Rainier and sour Michigan cherries plumped in Venturi-Schulze balsamic vinegar and a bit of petite sirah. We sipped some of the (overly oaky) red wine with the meal, and had a relaxing little meal of it.

And now, friends, I'm listening to the Christmas music I downloaded from iTunes. Hey, it's October - that's not too early.

sausage and salad

It was kind of brisk out last night, but we tossed on an extra layer or two and sat outside for dinner. A simple meal of chicken sausage, a caprese-style salad, and some green salad,all cobbled together after a run for groceries. We flipped through books as we snacked on the cherries and walnuts for dessert,and only came back in when the wind kicked up and sent my wine glass spilling across the table.