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6-30-2011 Thu. warm, sunny.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with sauteed bitter melon
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- red tea
DINNER --- sauteed Chinese gourd squash, spring onion and tomato | new potatoes Rioja-style with chorizo | fennel and cherry tomato salad | rice | wine
new potatoes
harvested immature, small with very thin skin
onion 
chorizo, with a lot of pimentón
Potatas a la Riojana - Riojia-style potato and chorizo stew is from José Andrés' A taste of Spain in America. "It's one of the greatest dishes created by man" (Paul Bocuse). tip #1: find high quality authentic Spanish chorizo and pimentón; tip #2: find new potatoes at farmer's market now.
- "... How old are those new potatoes? Depending on climate and cultivar, about 90 days. During that time, they sprout; become healthy leafy plants; bloom white, pink or purple flowers; pollinate, and produce fruit.Those other small potatoes we see in the store? Same story, but instead of being harvested immature or “new,” they are left in the ground to mature and cure, then carefully air-dried for long storage. Each plant bears an assortment of sizes, so the small ones are sorted and sold in those little net bags." --- City Kitchen by David Tanis, NYT
6-29-2011 Wed. warm, sunny.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pasta with tomatillo sauce
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- peach
DINNER --- sauteed tiny squids with caramelized onion and mushroom relish | stir-fried bitter melon, tomato and wood-ear | fennel, cherry tomato, lettuce and arugula salad | rice
wine
- the squids were too tiny and hard to work with stuffing, instead the stuffing was turned into relish sauce.
6-28-2011 Tue. warm, sunny.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- rice with Kao-Fu stew
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- cherries
DINNER --- sauteed Chinese wild yam ( Huai Shan ) with wood-ear | stir-fried pork, spring onion and maitake mushroom | pasta with tomatillo sauce | wine
- Huai Shan (Yamaimo in Japan) has similar texture and crunchiness like water chestnuts, with slippery juice.
6-27-2011 Mon. mild, cloudy.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- soba noodles | sauteed fresh peas and smoked tofu
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | cherries
DINNER --- sauteed threaded chicken, bitter melon and king mushroom | stew of Kao-Fu with wood-ear and shiitake | cherry tomato and dandelion salad | rice | wine
- planted seeds of shishito peppers a couple of weeks ago, now the new shoots grow pretty fast in the garden. have a high hope for a good harvest in late summer.
6-26-2011 Sun. warm, sunny.
WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | banquette | Scottish blue cheese | lychee
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- pan-toasted bread with black olive pate | kale chips ( by Sharon) | cherry tomato and dandelion salad | Amish corn fritters | buckwheat noodles with pea shoots | stew of new potatoes and chorizo with caramelized onion and Spanish pimenton | "drunken chicken" with king mushroom, smoked tofu, bitter melon and bean sprouts | Chinese BBQ pork with garlic scape | clay pot of Kao-Fu ( wheat gluten) , wood-ear and shiitake || vanilla ice cream with blue berries
- still no zucchini flowers at the market today. got tender pea shoots and tiny tomatoes in five different colors and shapes. new baby potatoes are superb. made a nice dinner to share with friends
6-24-2011 Fri. warm, sunny.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- pasta with tomatillo sauce
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- cherries
DINNER --- (at Oreste and Francesca's ) Penne agli Asparagi (creamy asparagus sauce pasta) | Italian Riesling | Crespelle (Italiane crepes) ai Porcini, Gorgonzola e Prosciutto | Bardolino | Sweet Crepes with apricot preserve and chocolate sauce | Muscat de Saint Geanne de Minervois | Blue Curacao 
- Oreste's Northern Italian dinner with some touch of French: crepes and french cheese.
6-22-2011 Wed. hot, clouds.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- steamed dumplings
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- cherries
DINNER --- pan-roasted stuffed sweet banana peppers | Sichuan-style spicy cabbage | seasoned rice with pork in reed leaf wrap | fennel and lettuce salad | Rose | mango with vanilla ice cream
- thousands of fireflies are out there flickering in the rosy twilight of long summer evening.
6-21-2011 Tue. warm, clouds, sun, and thunder
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- steamed dumplings | cherries
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea
DINNER --- ratatouille: zucchini, eggplant, banana pepper, jalapeno, tomato and onion | pan-fried silky tofu with sauteed shrimp | fennel and lettuce salad | rice | wine
- summer vegetables and tofu dominate the dinner table
6-20-2011 Mon. cool, cloudy.
BREAKFAST --- coffee
LUNCH --- qabili pilau (leftovers)
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- green tea | cherries
DINNER --- steamed dumplings with fillings of minced chicken, shittake mushroom, baby bok choy | fennel and lettuce salad | wine
- the filling ingredients are hand-chopped instead of machine-processed, it really matters to the taste.
6-18-2011 Sat. hot, cloudy.
WEEKEND BREAKFAST --- coffee | coconut cream bread | ciabatta with Norwegian goat cheese | Hami melon | lychee
AFTERNOON-TEATIME --- ( at J.P.'s ) east coast oysters | Taxes beer
DINNER --- sauteed yellow and green zucchini, red pepper, and shallots | Afghan baked rice with braised lamb shank ( qabili pilau) | avocado and fennel salad | rose 
lamb shank braised in wine with spices 
lamb meat and rice baked in oven- qabili pilau, an Afghan rice and lamb dish, so delicious worth of the long and multi-step cooking process.
new potatoes
onion 
chorizo, with a lot of pimentón
Potatas a la Riojana 
