Last week those of us who live in New York started to emerge slowly from lockdown, a bit like sleepy bears after hibernation or, not to mix my animal metaphors, maybe more like timorous deer, startling at every unexpected sound since we are still missing partial health information on which to base our new behavior outside. I began to plot how L. and I would reinstate human contact and expand our Covid bubble to others beyond our four walls.
The importance of computers in everyone’s life should not be overlooked: my mother broke strict lockdown last week so that I would come and fix an issue she was having with hers. Once we did that, we decided that – for us – phase 1 of reentry to the (real) world would consist of gatherings of close family members who have been diligent about self-isolation only, and got together to celebrate my sister’s birthday with a lunch.
Personal phase 2 dovetailed nicely into the end of phase 1 with the arrival of L.’s dad yesterday for a visit, so I decided that this phase (for our household anyway) will very slowly expand to include friends who self-isolated as directed by the CDC. On a separate note, I do have to share with you that I sing happy birthday twice in my head as per CDC guidelines every time L.’s dad washes his hands around me. A cordial working relationship with the ex – and a desire to maintain it -- means that I have not yet burst into loud song in his presence.
I have gone from my usual position of live-in housekeeper to being the non-fun parent who L. wishes would just stay in her bedroom for the duration of the visit (especially since there is someone else now available to cater to his culinary needs who doesn’t care if he takes out the trash in a timely manner immediately after dinner.) Since L.’s dad is a professional Chef, this week’s menu has a few empty slots at the beginning of the week when he will presumably be cooking or indulging his hollow-legged son with massive amounts of takeout.
The menu may also be edited throughout the week if L.’s dad’s spur of the moment cooking uses something from my CSA box that I had allocated elsewhere. Even compulsive me thinks that this is just fine. While I am not looking forward to the state of my pristine kitchen once a professional chef has been through it like a dose of salts, I am really (really) looking forward to being cooked for. All this to say that you should check in to the blog more often than usual this week as more bonus recipes than usual will probably be posted.
For those few of you who happen to wonder, our family phase 3 will expand to include outside visits only with close acquaintances and friends who thought self-isolation extended to nightly aperitifs with their neighbors, as well as a visit to my hairdresser – this is long overdue as I could easily moonlight as Rapunzel in Times Square.
By the time the abnormal starts to feel normal, we should be well into wave 2 of Covid-19 and go right back to square 1 of the whole pandemic mess we are in. Stay tuned, happy official summer, and wear a damn mask.
Since we have a Cheffie visitor I upgraded to the deluxe large family-sized CSA box this week which contained:
Herbs: a bunch each of mint, basil and dill, a few sprigs each of rosemary, thyme, sage, and lemon verbena
Greens: a head of frisée, a manageable bunch of kale, an artisan lettuce, and a bunch of collard greens
Alliums: 4 small red onions
Vegetables: a small bag of smooth-skinned Blushing Belle Creamer potatoes the size of golf balls as well as a couple of Russet potatoes and 3 red skinned ones, a purple cabbage, a punnet of snow peas, a bunch of long radishes, a bunch of thin orange carrots with their leafy greens, 4 small seedless cucumbers, and one huge tomato
Fruit: 6 apricots (already poached in a lemon verbena simple syrup and very badly photographed above) and a handful of tiny and delicious wild strawberries
Remainders: NONE!! Though I have to admit (mea culpa) that I happily attempted a hook shot with the remainder of last week’s kale using the trash can as hoop.
So, with the addition of avocadoes yet again, the contents of this week's box (minus whatever we use in lunch and snacks) will be transformed into:
Sunday “Pantry Roulette”; fridge, freezer, and pantry item dinner]
L.’s dad on duty
Monday [Wildcard; a more complex or fiddly dish than usual to test my culinary skills]
L.’s dad on duty
Tuesday [Pasta]
Green Salad
Pacherri
Wednesday [L.'s choice]
Miso Chicken Wings
Salade Composee
Thursday [Fish]
Mixed Salad
Matzo Meal Crusted Tilapia with Preserved Lemon
Crushed Blushing Belle Potatoes with Rosemary
Friday [Veggie-centric]
Luganiga Sausage
“Kitchen Sink” Vegetable Stir Fry
Saturday ["Picnic"; something that is easy to assemble and easy to eat in front of a movie]
Buffalo Chicken Wraps
Jay Rayner’s Oven Fries
Comments