These images, and especially the plates, are still looking a little pink, since I haven’t yet fixed the wiring on the 100-year-old overhead fixture in the breakfast room (I turn up the light at dinner only for the photographs), so I’m using a 100-year-old gooseneck lamp in the interim, which apparently has a rosy reflector.

• twelve good-sized sea scallops (16 ounces total) from American Seafood Company, rinsed, dried very thoroughly with paper towels, seasoned with local Long Island sea salt from P.E. & D.D. Seafood and freshly-ground black pepper, grilled briefly (90 seconds on each side) in a very hot medium size square enameled cast iron pan [I think not hot enough this time, since the grill marks are a little subdued], finished with a squeeze of juice from a small Mexican organic lemon from Chelsea Whole Foods Market, then a scattering of garlic flowers from Alewife Farm and a drizzle of Whole Foods Market house Portuguese olive oil, arranged on the plates with a sprinkling of micro red amaranth from Two Guys from Woodbridge placed at the side

• three medium Japanese eggplant (10 ounces total), also from Alewife Farm, each halved lengthwise and scored with a very sharp knife, brushed all over with a mixture of a little olive oil, 2 finely-chopped garlic cloves from Stokes Farm, a pinch of super-pungent dried Sicilian oregano from Buon Italia, local sea salt and black pepper, pan-grilled on an enameled cast iron ribbed pan above a brisk flame, turning twice, adding more of the material from the marinade the second time, then arranged on the plates and sprinkled with a combination of torn mint [peppermint?] leaves from Alex’s Tomato Farm and chopped lovage from S. & S. O. Produce Farms, drizzled with a bit of more olive oil
• the wine was a Portuguese (Minho) white, Soalheiro Allo Loureiro Alvarinho 2016, from Garnet Wines
• the music was Handel’s 1713 opera, ‘Lucio Cornelio Silla’, Fabio Biondi conducting the ensemble Europa Galante