Slow down, I tell myself. Between my obligations and my passions, sometimes I feel like I’m hurling through life without ever stopping to take it all in. So last night, I made it a point to stop rushing, demanding, seeking, and pushing.
I turned dinner into a deliberately slow, late-night 3 course meal. No schedule, no timing. I just decided that in between courses I would prepare the next one. We’d pull up our stools to the counter and eat right in the kitchen. Slow and easy.
So, I turned a bunch of water glasses over and put tealights on them. And then opened a really good bottle of wine from Hyde Park Gourmet. (Thanks, Evelyn!) And our night began.
Around 9:00 pm we started in on an assortment of cheese and condiments, like aged balsamic and raw honey. I bought the cheese from Whole foods in the cheap bin where they put their little odds and ends. It’s a great way to taste different varieties without paying a ton of money. (The best was the 3 year old Gouda.)
Then, because I had no white wine, I steamed a bunch of mussels in tomato sauce and roasted garlic. Roasted garlic, by the way, is a lot more palatable than raw garlic. It’s sweet and creamy. To make it, drizzle a whole head of it with oil, wrap it in foil and roast it at 300 degrees for 40 minutes. When it comes out you can press out the garlic paste from the shell with a knife.
It was easy, and a nice second round. I think we ate too many mussels, though. They were so yummy.
Last, I seared some sea bass in some olive oil and put it with a little bean salad with a mustard-balsamic dressing (just a mix of mustard, balsamic, olive oil, salt and pepper). It was pretty, topped with chopped chives and a sprinkle of course sea salt.
Everything turned out really nice. Around midnight, we were completely stuffed. But it was really refreshing to turn what sometimes feels so hurried into a leisurely past-time activity. We don’t do that enough around here, but will definitely try to do it more often.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
That looks amazing — and I love the approach of course-cook-course. I sometimes feel like I rush, rush to get things so timed that I lose some of the enjoyment of making the food. So counterproductive in the end.
And I agree – the odds and ends cheese bin at Whole Foods is one of my favorite options for trying new cheeses!
Wow, nice! Can I have your kitchen? It looks lovely. Aged Gouda is wonderful, I love how it changes as it ages. the oldest Gouda to be found in the city is at Krause’s deli in Findlay market–they have the beemster XXO from time to time.
Beemster vlaskaas is also one of our favorites. It’s unlike any gouda that we’ve had. We’ve only found that at the party source.
Laura, you’re right. I did a cheese tasting at the fresh fare Kroger in Kenwood (ooh, fancy), where they pointed out how different aged Gouda is from its younger variety. I’ve got to try beemster XXO, I’ll keep my eyes opened for it. Thanks for the comment!