The swordfish steak was smaller than I would have liked, but the alternatives weighed far more than a pound.  More problematic was the pronounced wedge shape of the piece, but I managed to ‘square’ it with the judicious placement of 2 toothpicks.

I probably should have cut it crosswise rather than lengthwise for serving, but I was thinking about keeping each piece integral, and not thinking about the fact that one of them would end up with the full portion of the skin.

Whatever their size or shape, the little steak portions ended up looking pretty good on the plates, were cooked à point, and quite delicious. Respecting both their modest portion and high quality, we lingered, with a great wine from the Canary Islands.

The vineyards of the Lanzarote DO wine region

 

• one 10-ounce swordfish steak from P.E. & D.D. Seafood, in the Union Square Greenmarket, marinated for about half hour in a mixture of olive oil, a very small amount of crushed dried Itria-Sirissi chili, peperoncino di Sardegna intero from Buon Italia, fresh oregano buds from Stokes Farm, torn spearmint from Ryder Farm, and the white sections of 2 finely-sliced tiny French leeks from Mountain Sweet Berry Farm, drained well and covered with a coating of dried homemade bread crumbs, pan-grilled over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, removed, seasoned with a little sea salt, sprinkled with a little organic lemon juice from Whole Foods, a pinch of wild fennel pollen from Buon Italia, some chopped green leaves from the French leeks, finely sliced and heated in a small sauce pan with a little olive oil until they had softened and become more mild, sprinkled with chopped dill from Keith’s Farm
• Swiss chard from Ryder Farm, sautéed in olive oil in which 5 small bruised garlic cloves from Keith’s Farm had first been heated, finished with a squeeze of juice from an organic lemon, some crushed dried Itria-Sirissi chili, and a drizzle of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil
• one green heirloom tomato from Eckerton Hill Farm, cut into fork-size pieces, dressed with a campania olive oil (Syrenum D.O.P. Peninsula Sorrentina), Maldon salt, freshly-ground pepper, and chopped lovage from Keith’s Farm, served in small side dishes
• slices of a ‘Compagne’ (traditional sourdough) from Bien Cuit Bakery, via Foragers Market
• the wine was a Spanish (Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands) rosé, Los Bermejos Listán Rosado 2015, from Appalachian Wines
• the music was the remainder of the opera from the night before, Vivaldi’s 1714 opera, ‘Orlando Finto Pazzo’, Alessandro De Marchi directing the Academia Montis Regalis and the Turin Teatro Regio Chorus

[image of the volcanic stone-walled vinyards from the Los Bermejos site]