Outside the dugout: What's cooking?

Making a chicken tagine to be served over a bed of couscous. It is one of my favorites and my wife loves it.

 

I make my own and vary it depending on what I am rubbing.

 

Tonight I am making spicy sesame noodles with chopped peanuts and Thai basil. I had to go to the local Asian market to get the right kind of noodles (I am fond of a particular one that they carry from Vietnam) and as long as I was there I bought some Thai basil. My Thai basil plant is still kind of small and not bushy even though I have been pinching off a lot of flowers this spring.

 

I have had a few South African S blancs and the ones that I had were very good.

I couln't watch Barca vs Liverpool. One of my best friends that died about a year ago was a Barca fan. My SIL that is battling ailments is a die hard Liverpool fan.

 

Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo. I am making carnitas from scratch, tomatillo/avocado guac, and pico de gallo. Also dicing up radishes and onion for additional toppings. I have some leftover escarole that I could chop that I think would be great but it is not traditional. My wife is making a charred corn side that we really like from the Rick Bayles cookbook/bible.

And margaritas, of course. I use Espolon blanco tequila (100% agave and really good at its price point. Don Julio blanco is better but a lot more $'s. Don Julio is almost too good to use in a margarita), fresh lime juice, simple syrup or better yet agave syrup to taste depending on the tartness of the limes, and Cointreau. The recipe is so simple you can make it after drinking two or more if you dare. Juice the limes and add syrup to taste. Double the amount of liquid with Cointreau. Double the resulting amount of liquid with tequila. Shake over rocks and pour. My wife prefers hers over rocks and I prefer mine without rocks.

 

You can't go wrong with using smoked paprika, but if you are smoking the meat anyway why not use regular paprika? I buy regular paprika in the huge Badia containers because I use a lot of it and it is cheaper. I use my smoked paprika for dishes where I want a hint of smoke without actually smoking anything. And if you want both smoke and some heat use the liquid from a can of chipotles if you can tolerate something wet with what you are doing. With a rub that will sit overnight the liquid helps a little bit.

 

Already ran three loads through the dishwasher (I left things overnight for one load and a bit more) and still have dinner dishes to deal with later.

The tomatillo guac is made as well as the pico de gallo. Both are in the fridge doing their flavor melding thing. The carnitas are taking longer than expected to simmer down before the final braise in a 450 F oven.

But it is all good. We thought that we might need to have an early dinner, but plans changed. Now the timing is much more relaxed.

 

I have lots of leftovers and a sink full of dirty dishes. My wife is in bed and I am nursing the last beer of the day.

I have yet to take a shower today, but I will before going to bed.

The Gators stunk it up. Twice. Sigh.

But all in all it is not a bad day when you have family.

 

Making macadamia nut encrusted grouper with panko tonight. The grouper has been marinading in lime juice for about two hours as a head start. Also making a baked yellow rice pilaf and my wife is making seared asparagus. I wanted to make an arugula salad instead, but I was overruled.

 

Okra with the Rotel was a great option.

 

Tonight it is braised lamb shanks with North African spices (ras al hanout) on a bed of quinoa with Kalamata olives, dill, and parsley. I didn't have any mace on hand to make my ras al hanout recipe, but it is a minor ingredient and I faked it with a little extra nutmeg. I don't think that anybody is going to complain.

The braising liquid is mostly a cheap shiraz with carrots, onions, celery, garlic, and tomato paste added. Since a lamb shank braise is pretty quick you can use the veggies as cooked and not pureed into a sauce made from the remaining liquid. But because it is quick you also have to trim as much fat as possible off the shanks otherwise it won't have enough time to completely render by the time the meat is fork tender.