Branzini

The kids and I spent the morning out, and after getting home and eating lunch, J immediately changed into a formal work outfit: white pants, button-down shirt, tie, wool blazer. All this for quiet time. At present, he's eating pretzels in his room while wearing this outfit and reading. I wonder where this is all heading... At the market today, we got all the ingredients for the fabulous meatballs, and also some gorgeous, whole Branzini. I love that word, and I love that Branzini are a Mediterranean fish. Don't they just sound bronzed and tan as if they've been swimming around Crete all day? Alas no, these are sustainably farmed and are silver, but nonetheless, Branzino is a much more appealing moniker than flounder or mackeral. I thought I might be brave and filet these myself but almost instantly, I lost the will and asked the seafood woman to do it for me. She was watching the children bounce around and seemed to think my choice was a wise one. I asked for the heads and other refuse so that I could make a good fish stock, but I don't think she included them. Maybe next time.

Anyway, they sounded lovely and fresh for tonight so I might poach them in olive oil and lemon and serve them alongside a pearl couscous or something. OH, and I bought some gorgeous Italian plums and think I must make a plum cake with them. Italian plums have such a pleasingly languid shape as opposed to the perkiness of the standard type plums (also delicious) we usually have here. It's like they adopted their Italian heritage and grew accordingly.

Morning "announcements"

Good morning, all. I have several things I want to share so thought I'd ring the bell and share with you the morning announcements. - If you live in the DC area, Whole Foods' special one-day sale today is Grass Fed Ground Beef for just $4.99/pound. Make some burgers, meatballs (I'm going to make a batch of our favorite meatballs; see Em-i-lis Recipes if you're interested) meatloaf, whatever. Great price for a great product! For folks elsewhere, check your local WF to see if they are participating in this special.

-Great wine: the 2005 deTrafford Cabernet Sauvignon from Stellenbosch, S. Africa. It is divine, but note of warning: drinking this on an empty stomach will project you to the Moon of Tipsy at mach12. So, enjoy this but do so with a hearty meal such as steak. For DC peeps, Pearson's Wine Store on Wisconsin is having its annual Labor Day sale: 30% off of everything. They carry deTrafford so if you're down that way, stop by and grab a bottle or two. Delish!

-Let's hear it for Dulcet Morrocan mustard making another dish even better. It's great with the flank steak from last night and will make a mean sandwich for lunch today. The spices in it really accentuate those in the steak marinade. Here's my sandwich plan: flank steak, Dulcet mustard, arugula, oven-roasted tomatoes, and grilled/toasted baguette.

What we didn't eat, Jack (up changing off-duty police gear outfits) did

This steak couldn't have been easier but I wouldn't say the marinade was out-of-this-world. It was good but not memorable. I'd add some red pepper flakes for sure, and maybe a green herb of sorts. But just some post-dinner, post-wine, post-awake-5-yr-old musings... Jack loved the steak and finished off all this tomato salad (as we'd eaten the bread during the bruschetta course).  I do find crunchy, inner romaine leaves to be totally delightful in a water-chestnut kind of way: bright, cold-watery, fresh! The dressing was basic but suited the romaine well and I always love a shaving of parm over the top.

Meanwhile, why was Jack up nearly one hour after bedtime? Well, because he'd felt the need to change out of his khakis and short-sleeve button-down to overalls, police boots, a watch and a long-sleeved button-down. Really? This obsession is wild. Anyway, as I said, he ate a full dinner, we told him what "cut the cheese" actually means, idiomatically, and finally got him back to bed. He's so funny, but when I was tucking him, again, he laughed and head-butted me in the cheek so hard I saw stars. So, I'm icing with a wine bottle cozy and off to bed soon.

PS- Yesterday was the most-trafficked day yet for Em-i-lis. Thanks for visiting. If you like Em-i-lis, do share. Pass on a link, a love, whatever! And many thanks for reading.