yellow cauliflower and Parmesan cheese unflipped frittata
duck breast stuffed Sienese style (garlic, fennel seeds, rosemary, Parmesan), served with oven fries roasted with garlic and thyme and finished with chopped parsley
wines: Garnacha de Fuego (Calatayud, Zaragoza) 2007 with the frittata; Barco Reale di Carmignano (Tuscany) 2005 Casa Contini Bonacossi with the duck
thinly-sliced raw fennel, seasoned, topped with excellent oil, drops of lemon, and slivers of Parmesan on top, served with with crusty Italian bread
loin lamb chops (Ceriello, in Grand Central Market), marinated in oil, chopped rosemary, slightly-crushed garlic, salt and white pepper, then grilled on ribbed enamelled cast-iron pan, followed by a dribbling of oil and lemon; served with vegetables prepared in a separate ribbed pan: grilled seasoned tomato halves finished with Balsamic vinegar, and grilled spring onion halves (Vidalia) finished with lemon and parsley
spaghetti (or substitute linguine or another long pasta, not too thin) with tuna sauce (canned San Marzano tomatoes, chopped onion, red chili flakes, capers, good olive-oil-packed tuna, and parsley) from a recipe of Mark Bittman
grilled swordfish steak, from Whole Foods (as were the vegetables), prepared Sicilian Salmoriglio style (slice one steak into two 1/2 inch thick pieces, grill each on ridged, cast iron pan 2 minutes on the first side, 1 1/2 minutes on the other, then remove from the pan and prick several times with a fork, covering surface of steaks with a mixture of salt, scant one tbs lemon, and pepper, which has been emulsified with scant 2 tbs oil); grilled spring/bulb onions (divide into quarters, brush with oil and season with salt and pepper, grill each side on a ridged, cast iron pan, remove and add balsamic vinegar or lemon and, optionally, chopped parsley); crispy red potato chips prepared in the oven (unpeeled, sliced very thin, mixed with oil, salt and pepper, chopped fresh rosemary, spread in one layer on two unglazed stoneware trays, put into a 450-500 degree oven for fifteen minutes, turning once)
wine: Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2008 from Marlborough (New Zealand)
appetizer of thin-sliced prosciutto di parma (Citarella), with thin grissini; a simple salad of dandelion leaves dressed with lemon and oil on the side
large scallops (Blue Moon Fish in the Union Square Greenmarket, but fisherman Alex Villani docks his boat at Mattituck Inlet on eastern Long Island), lightly floured and browned in butter, the pan deglazed with lemon and a bit of white wine, then seasoned and finely-chopped parsley added; served with quickly-boiled thin asparagus spears, topped with oil and lemon; all accompanied with Italian bread from the Union Square Greenmarket
wine: 2007 Corvo (Sicily) Insolia in from Philippe Wine in Chelsea
Boudin Noir, or blood sausage (Murray’s Cheese, Grand Central Market) pan-grilled, finished with “sweated” shallots and chopped parsley; accompanied by Granny Smith apples cut into eighths, browned, then finished in the oven; and served with potato “chips” (thin slices of Russet Burbank, seasoned with rosemary, salt and pepper, then baked in a very hot oven)
cheese course: Garrotxa (goat) and Petite Basque (sheep), served with lightly-oiled and salted frisée and thin, toasted slices of Balthazar Bakery Multi-grain boule
wine: 2006 Domaine des Causses Lirac Reserve (red Côtes du Rhône), purchased at Landmark in Chelsea