Weather, PSW, Reminiscing, Masks, Strawberries,

Having had dangerously hot weather for days we finally had a pretty violent storm on Friday with lots of rain. Only trouble when the ground is so dry, rain that comes down that fast doesn't usually do any good because it runs off rather than sink in. We got more rain Saturday and Sunday was pretty cloudy, but so far, no rain. I am delighted to get rid of that really, really hot weather it is horrid if you have to go outside in it and as, these days, you have to queue everywhere before you can go into a store, unless you are lucky, which is unsafe, for oldies like me in particular, and for anyone who has to stand around or even work in it. I hope it doesn't come back. I had our balcony windows open today and at one point it got quite chilly.

Our PSW at the weekend was the same guy twice and he tells us he will be here most of next week too. He seems particularly good although I miss George and my Spanish practice. Reminds me, he went to get Matt to shave and the damned shaver seems to have quit. I only bought it last November. It should last longer than 9 months surely? Only trouble was, I couldn't seem to find a place on Amazon to report it. I have a number to call Philips which I will do tomorrow (today for you). However, I bought another one, a not very expensive Remington, which will arrive tomorrow.  Amazon is so good that way. Not that you can really see Matt's beard it is so white. ladydog's husband has grown a beard whilst in lockdown apparently. She likes it. Not into beards myself.

For some reason today I got into musing about what I remember of the war years and later. I always tell me they gave me WWII for my first birthday present, so I really don't recall a lot. Isn't that what all old people do, start remembering the "old" days, Matt, of course, no longer remembers those years which is odd because dementia usually removes your recent memories and not your old ones, but he seems to have forgotten a lot of it. A friend with a husband who has dementia, came up with a clever comment, "dementia is a thief".

 A third woman told me her partner wouldn't wear a mask either,  but in his case, not dementia. So, some of it is male stubbornness. When I went into VSM on Friday they were all wearing masks and seemed quite happy to do so. Someone else told me her husband had to wear a mask at work so it wasn't a problem.

I bought some strawberries at VSM and didn't realise they were imported. They really were not very good, bit like bullets and lacking in sweetness. However, when I had hulled and washed them, I showered them with sugar and then served them with cream and a meringue and they were pretty good. Pity to not buy local when they are available though. My regular grocery store has local fruit at the moment - even if they don't have artichokes, grrrr.

Another recipe I meant to try and didn't.

Salmon Carpaccio with Lemon Aioli and Pork Rind Crumble

After Paul Qui won the Top Chef Season 9 title, F&W decided to throw him one more challenge: Create a dish based on four ingredients, including salmon and pork rinds. Turns out, Qui loves pork rinds. “My grandmother cooked everything in pork fat,” he says. “If I was lucky, I got to snack on the

rinds she made.” The Top Chef winner used them to make a brilliant crumble for salmon carpaccio (raw fish is a specialty at Uchiko, the Japanese-accented Austin restaurant where he is executive chef). To finish the dish, Qui made a lemon aioli and served it with broccoli rabe.

3 Tbs finely crushed pork rinds
3 Tbs finely crushed toasted rye-bread crumbs
Kosher salt
2 large egg yolks
1 small garlic clove
3/4 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1 1/2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 Tbs finely chopped dill
4 oz broccoli rabe, trimmed
1 tsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
1/2 lb sushi-grade, skinless salmon fillet, preferably wild, thinly sliced at a slight angle

1. In a small bowl, toss the crushed pork rinds with the toasted bread crumbs and season with salt.

2. In a blender, combine the egg yolks with the garlic, 1/4 teaspoon of the lemon zest and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice and puree until smooth. With the blender on, drizzle in the canola oil and puree until thickened. Scrape the aioli into a bowl and stir in the chopped dill; season with salt.

3. In a medium pot of boiling salted water, cook the broccoli rabe until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the broccoli rabe to a bowl of ice water to chill. Drain well, pat dry and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Transfer the broccoli rabe to a bowl and toss with the 1 teaspoon of olive oil and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of lemon zest and 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice. Season with salt.

4. Spread a little lemon aioli on each of 4 plates and top with the broccoli rabe. Arrange the sliced salmon over the broccoli rabe and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle each serving with some of the pork rind crumble. Serve right away, passing the remaining lemon aioli and pork rind crumble alongside.

Servings: 4
Yield: 4 first-course servings

Have a great day, stay well, stay safe.