What's for Dinner #21 - 05/2017 - Garden Banquet edition

[Presunto (--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])]

So, I’m not the only one here, besides @linguafood, who is in Germany at the moment.

Last night… We arrived in the evening on a sunday, everything was closed, save for a couple of restaurants (because tourists have to eat, too). I have packed a few food items knowing everything would be closed in this small village by the Mosel river. Couscous and Bratwurst from home. Couscous was fried in the fat after the sausages. I brought 2 big, frozen chunks of Mangalitsa fat for cooking (and eating on bread).

My first Riesling in Riesling paradise. It’s a sparkling one, picked up from winemaker Toni Treis whose residence and tasting room is a few minutes walk from my lodging.

Just a hint of sweetness.

[Presunto (--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])]

A couple of restaurants are open today for the tourists. I ate asparagus with ham and Riesling (well of course).

Ham of Eifel (a big area around here).

http://i.imgur.com/C90C38V.jpg

Asparagus from Bruchsal in south western Germany. Bruchsal is a big producer of asparagus.

Sow’s stomach in the style of Pfalz. Not a sausage and not haggis either. (Look up “Saumagen”)

3 different Riesling (pronounced REE-sling. Hard stress on the first syllable. Another beautiful German word.)

After dinner we crossed the street and walked along the path. This view is directly across. You can see here the vineyards are still bare at the moment but in the summer it’s very green, and very touristy.

At the same time a barge from Antwerpen, Belgium was passing by. It had just made a turn at the river bend, left of the benches in photo above.

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When the new May thread starts, mod can split and move today’s postings there. Thanks.

[naf]

First dinner in May.

Something simple.

Marinated mushrooms, mozzarella, fried pancetta, balsamic vinegar, coriander… and bucatini with homemade tomato sauce (paprika, whole lemon, tomatoes)

[naf]

@Presunto

I’m not the only one here, besides @linguafood, who is in Germany at the moment.

@linguafood @Presunto
You 2 should do a HO down in Germany! This will be a first!

@Presunto

My first Riesling in Riesling paradise. It’s a sparkling one,

I don’t think I ever had a sparkling Riesling, was it good?

[smtucker]

Tonight I made a Pizza Focaccia, using the Poolish Focaccia formula from the Bread Baker’s Apprentice. Made some garlic confit for the oil and garlic. Dough was treated with that oil mixed with some basil oil made at the end of the summer and then frozen. One half then received the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and goat cheese while the other side was cartelized onions, Italian sausage, mozzarella, and garlic. The whole pizza was dusted with some parmesan cheese. Served with more grated parmesan with some garlic oil for dipping [and he sure did!]

Hope to have more time to participate in the What’s for Dinner threads going forward. I always make a dinner, just don’t always have time for pictures and a write-up.

[LindaWhit]

@smtucker

Tonight I made a Pizza Focaccia, using the Poolish Focaccia formula from the Bread Baker’s Apprentice.

Oh MY that looks wonderful, sm!

[Redheadcook (K. Laurence)]

After 3 days of cooking this is the result, 90% homemade ramen (used shiratake noodles). The verdict-not worth the effort. The broth was bitter. I think I soaked the kombu too long. All the components tasted really good but the broth ruined it all. It also didn’t help that Small Girl Child was throwing a major fit & I overlooked the egg.

[Presunto (--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])]

Redheadcook: Sorry! The broth is so important here. I don’t have enough confidence to even attempt it. Hope you will perfect it next time.

Smtucker: fantastic pizza! Garlic seems to make everything taste better.

Naf: Sparkling Riesling is hard to find. Not made in large quantities and most remains near its source. Yes, it’s nice.

[Presunto (--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])]

I love to go a-wandering
Along the mountain track
And as I go, I love to sing
My knapsack on my back
Val-deri, val-dera…

The drizzle was not so bad. I walked to the next 2 villages, 4km there and back.

This is Bremm, the village where I’m staying, after only a few minutes walk towards the next village. Besides being known for its good Riesling there’s also the river bend (on every postcard) and its steepest vineyards in Europe. The steepest angle is measured at 65 degrees. The south facing slopes and the terroir are what make the wines here so good. And the tourists keep coming which is good for the local economy.

Some wines we had at a tasting today… all Riesling.

My Riesling dream has come true again today.

We got back late because I was lagging behind making photos along the walking path. Dinner was typically German: giant meatballs. Usually eaten alongside fried potatoes but we used what we had. Mixed vegs and pasta.

Washed down with sparkling Riesling.

[mariacarmen (maria ascarrunz)]

i can’t remember the last time i was in the kitchen! working late most nights, then away for the weekend, and out again tonight, tomorrow and Thurs. Pics are of 2 homecooked meals i had this weekend by my cousin’s husband, who is a chef. One was poached corvina, which i felt was a bit overcooked, and the other a veggie quiche, but he used a sweetish pastry dough for the crust. but i’m no ingrate, i ate everything and enjoyed it!

i will cook again, i promise! in the meantime, keeping up with all your deliciousnesses.

[emglow101]

Reheating leftover pizza Margherita that I had for lunch . Nice visit with a old friend . I had a salad also . So no veggies . I picked up some roasted beet sausages with pork from my local butcher . I might grill them or just simply cook in a pan . Wine to drink . Cheers

[Ttrockwood]

I got lucky last night and found a ripe avocado at the market ! I revisted this fantastic avocado sauce recipe i love but i didn’t want a pile of noodles so i went with zucchini noodles that i basically just dipped into hot water so they didn’t get too soft. This makes too much for me for one meal but leftovers are ok cold.

15 Minute Creamy Avocado Pasta – Oh She Glows

This afternoon i got a message my friend would be in town tonight- i hadn’t seen her in entirely too long and was able to get away from work at a half decent time. I thought of @Presunto since we went to my favorite wine bar (Terroir in tribeca) and they have an excellent reisling selection! My friend and i both ordered a flight of three, the fantastic server helped us select these I will have to ask on my next visit if they ever have a sparkling reisling!!
We shared a fabulous pile of crispy spiced cauliflower and their brussel sprouts dish without the bacon. it wasn’t quite enough for me for dinner so i had some yogurt with chopped apple and dribbled with nut butter as dessert

[Presunto (--> Back in Athens - Goat's/Sheep's Yoghurt every day ... [Fleeced Taxpayer :@)) :@)) ])]

Nice one, Ttrockwood. You must come to the Mosel river area someday and drink your weight in (sparkling) Riesling. Btw, I think you mis-wrote Riesling. It happens all the time. I do it, too.

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Well, I went hiking today from noon til 6pm and I was so tired that I devoured dinner and then I put up my feet to finish all the sparking red wine (for real, yes, sparkling red wine). Dinner was really simple: fried rice with mixed vegs and leftover giant meatballs. Would be even better with some Maggi sauce but I forgot to pick it up.

Lighting in the kitchen sucks I had to use to camera’s flash. One meatball was cut up into cubes. I also fried a whole bulb of fresh garlic and a big knob of ginger for the fried rice.

The Treis family is the only one who makes sparkling red wine in this town, according to Mr. Treis, who told me that himself.

We had only 20 minutes left to drink some Riesling at the Treis’ residence but his mother didn’t mind. Mr. Treis was in the shower, said his mother so she poured us the first standard Riesling and chatted whilst we waited. Mr. Treis came out and poured us a couple more Riesling and we chatted for too long about food, wine, beer, travels in Germany. We chose a bottle to take back to our lodging for dinner and wanted to pay for the tasting. Mr. Treis told us the price of the bottle (eur.9.50), we reminded him “plus the tasting” but he staunchly refused to let us pay for the tasting. I think he liked it when we mentioned we liked his Riesling Brut the other day. (This is Mr. Treis and his vineyards.)

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Some photos from my hike today. We were lucky with the weather! Some parts of the trail are treacherous and if it was wet/muddy it would be dangerous.

THIS is the true meaning of the word Wanderlust. It is overused and romanticised in the English language. FYI, the word used in German language is “Ferhnweh” (literally “distance pain”, think of it as “a strong desire to be in a distant place”. Or to travel ).

Steep slope. The road is no longer visible. It’s supposed to be between the grass and the end of the vineyard.

Wine producing competence! Bremm can be seen in the distance.

Bremm with the famous river bend now clearly visible. Also, if you look closely there’s a ruin amidst the vineyards on left.

Zoom in on the Augustinian convent ruin (built in 12 century). We are going there tomorrow, rain or shine.

[LindaWhit]

It was one of THOSE DAYS.

–Trying to finish up month-end billing (hell) that I started yesterday. Total of 370 of them over 2 days.
–Arranging for a car service in the morning to/from Logan for someone visiting the CEO and CFO.
–Changing the return car service in the afternoon because the meeting ended earlier than expected.
–Five minutes later, cancelling the return trip pickup because the guy didn’t want to wait 15 minutes for the car service to show up early and he called Uber.
–Telling the CFO that we’re going to be charged for the unused return service because the CEO had told me to make sure the charges go on our corporate Amex, and we didn’t cancel 24 hours ahead of time. He shrugs.
–Having a frantic receptionist while I was on the phone cancelling the pickup come to my office saying “We have to call someone - a goose just hit our window, fell to the ground and is flopping on the street!”
–Going outside to look at a very large Canadian goose lying almost motionless on the street in an empty parking space.
–Thinking “Good thing there wasn’t a car there!”
–Going back inside and saying “OK, I’ll call the police.” (Since no one else did - they just stood in the kitchen and reception area looking at the poor bird.)
–Police telling me animal control officer had already left, but he’d send an officer.
–Officer comes and prods the bird - yup, it didn’t survive the hit.
–Property Mgmt. getting the OK from police to put bird in a trash bag and dispose of it in the dumpster.
–Go back inside and finish the invoicing.
–Leave at 6:15.

I decided to go easy-peasy with dinner - Sketti & Sauce, Roll with butter. And you can be DAMN sure there’s wine tonight.

[emglow101]

Wow . You could have bagged that goose . Road kill .

[LindaWhit]

@emglow101

Wow . You could have bagged that goose . Road kill .

Ummmmm…NO. LOL

[Ttrockwood]

You are living my fantasy life right now.

[Ttrockwood]

Yikes!!
That’s a whole lotta drama for a Wednesday! The poor bird, that’s quite sad.

[emglow101]

Old school grilled chicken leg and thighs with Sweet Baby Rays . Romaine and radish salad . Fabulous beans I made on Monday . Wine to drink . Cheers

[Ttrockwood]

So far my new boss is OK, probably still rather overwhelmed by trying to learn all of everything with looming Big Deadlines.
Worked a bit late, made a snacky style plate for dinner. Sliced smoked tofu, some of my new vegan kimchi, sliced daikon, edamame in the pod with some flakey salt, and a big pile of this addictive celery snack (seriously!) which makes it easy to actually finish an entire bunch of celery

Kombu Celery