The cod liver tasted a bit like foie gras, but without the guilt, which is to say, it was delicious.

• four ounces of Icelandic canned cod liver (Skansen) from the Schaller & Weber store, served with little more than pinches of a few condiments (freshly-ground black pepper, Sicilian wild fennel pollen from Buon Italia, fresh dill buds from Alewife Farm, sliced red scallion from Berried Treasures Farm, and slices of an organic Whole Foods Market lemon)
• slices of a Fruit & Seed Brød from Bread Alone (perhaps a mørkt rug frugt brød?)

The main course featured wild shrimp, which I believe has never shown up on this blog before. When I have cooked this delectable crustacean, it’s always been the excellent farmed shrimp that Jean Claude Frajmund raises up the Hudson, in Newburgh, New York. Eco Shrimp Garden now appears in the Union Square Greenmarket on Saturdays only, and that’s the day I normally do not appear there (mostly because of the weekend crowds of gawkers, and because we are inclined to do other stuff that afternoon.

But I do usually pay a brief visit to the Chelsea Down to Earth Farmers Market on 23rd Street, the little market which is set up less than a block from us every Saturday. This time the market’s regular seafood vender had ‘super jumbo’ shrimp that one of their boats had netted, beheaded, and quickly frozen while fishing in North Carolina waters that week.

They were almost local, or at least more local than the Gulf, and way more local than southeast Asia.

The image of the shrimp sautéing mimics that of the cucumbers I had started a few minutes earlier.

• one teaspoon of chopped, still slightly immature Rocambole garlic from Keith’s Farm heated inside a very heavy 13 1/2″ cast iron pan over a very low flame until the garlic had colored nicely, followed by a pinch of Spanish saffron, one dried chipotle pepper from Northshire Farms in the Union Square Greenmarket, one crushed section of a dried orange-gold habanada pepper, and a teaspoon of freshly-ground dried cumin seed from Eataly, all of it stirred together for a minute or two before 20 ‘extra jumbo’ North Carolina shrimp were placed inside the pan (I had cut through the length of their backs, from head to tail, for ease of shelling after they were cooked and on the plates), the shrimp seasoned with salt and pepper and the heat brought up a bit, the shrimp cooked until firm while being turned twice, served on the plates with a generous squeeze of lemon, garnished with chopped parsley from Keith’s Farm
• five tiny halved green tomatoes from Campo Rosso Farm, sautéed in a little olive oil inside a small vintage Corning Pyrex Flameware blue-glass pan, seasoned with Maldon salt and freshly-ground black pepper, garnished with fresh dill buds from Alewife Farm

• two ‘Sikkim cucumbers’, which, to me, actually look more like Hmong Red, weighing one pound, from Norwich Meadows Farm, unpeeled, sliced into rounds 2 cm thick, sautéed in a little olive oil inside a large enameled cast iron pan over a medium-high flame, turning twice, sprinkling with salt each time, each side allowed to begin carbonizing, adding slices from the stem of a fresh bulbous shallot from Tamarack Hollow Farm more than half way through, seasoned with freshly-ground black pepper, arranged on the plates, garnished with micro red basil from Two Guys from Woodbridge, and drizzled with a little olive oil
• the wine was a California (Lodi) white, F. Stephen Millier Angels Reserve White Blend Lodi 2016, from Naked Wines
• the music was from 2 albums, Dylan Mattingly’s ‘Stream of Stars’, and the International Contemporary Ensemble & George Lewis’ ‘The Will To Adorn’

We weren’t certain when, or absolutely certain where, we would be eating last night. We were invited to a friend’s birthday party, in Boerum Hill, where we celebrated earlier in the evening, and we lingered longer than we had expected to. I must however have assumed all along that I’d end up cooking dinner, since I had purchased a beautiful big section of a bluefish fillet in the Greenmarket that afternoon, and I would never have even thought about waiting untio the next day to cook it.

We always eat late, and this was the weekend, so it wasn’t entirely incredible that we wouldn’t be sitting down to eat until 12:20 in the morning. What would have been less credible was any liklihood that it would be one of my best meals ever.

We began supper at 12:20 in the morning and it was one of my best meals ever.

• one 21-ounce bluefish from Pura vida Seafood, rinsed, cut into 2 sections, rubbed with olive oil and a little Columela Rioja 30 Year Reserva sherry vinegar, seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, placed inside a vintage oval tin-lined copper au gratin pan, sprinkled liberally with a very pungent dried Sicilian oregano from Buon Italia and a bit of dried peperoncino Calabresi secchi, also from Buon Italia, then covered/layered with thin slices of one small red onion, thin slices of one ripe medium heirloom red tomato, and more than a tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano buds, all from Norwich Meadows Farm; plus 8 or 9 pitted and halved Gaeta olives from Eataly; and several thin slices of a Whole Foods Market organic lemon, the pan placed inside a 425º and baked for just under 20 minutes (rather than the usual 15 minutes, because the fish was thicker than those I had cooked in the past), arranged on the plates and garnished with micro bronze fennel from Two Guys from Woodbridge
• romano beans from Berried Treasures Farm, parboiled for a few minutes, drained, dried, reheated in olive oil inside a heavy seasoned vintage cast iron pan, seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, tossed with fresh dill buds from Alewife Farm, arranged on the plates, more dill and a drizzle of olive oil added
• the wine was a California (Mendocino and Lake counties) white, Scott Peterson Rumpus California Sauvignon Blanc 2017, from Naked Wines

There was a sweet, and it seemed made to follow this Mediterranean entrée.

• an unadorned scoop or so of incredibly delicious Old Mother Hubbert Dairy lemon basil gelato (ingredients: non fat dry milk, lemon juice, orange juice, fresh basil, lemon zest), produced at the Back to the Future Farm, near Middletown, NY, that I had picked up at Rose Hubbert‘s stand at the Union Square Greenmarket

 

• the music throughout was Jean-Baptiste Lully’s 1685 opera, ‘Roland’, Christophe Rousset conducting Les Talens Lyriques and the Lausanne Opera Chorus

It had been a tough day, with both of us at home again, trying to not stress out while a handful of guys were busy both inside the apartment and on the roof garden just outside, installing a split-system AC system [yes!]. Although they were finished and gone by the end of the afternoon, it was late in the evening before I had returned to its place each item that had been moved to accommodate their labors and the size of the boxes they had brought in the day before. There was also a lot of vacuuming and spraying of roof pavers.

At this point the suggestion that we order pizza was made, but I decided I’d prefer to cook, and would actually be up to doing so, something easy, especially something that would incorporate a green we had prized the day before, since there was still some remaining in the crisper, already washed but not dressed.

I was shocked by my ambition, under the circumstances, and Barry even more so, but it really was easy, and it really was delicious.

• two maturing Rocambole garlic cloves from Keith’s Farm and one small whole dried pepperoncino Calabresi secchi, from Buon Italia, heated together inside an antique, high-sided copper pot until the garlic had softened and become pungent, then several handfuls of thinly-sliced puntarelle leaves from Tamarack Hill Farm that had been washed (and ice-water chilled, the day before) were gradually added, while stirring over a low-to-moderate flame, after which 8 ounces of some of Brooklyn’s own pasta, in this case an emmer reginetti, aka, mafaldine (‘little queens’) from Sfoglini Pasta Shop in the Union Square Greenmarket, that had been cooked al dente, were introduced, along with almost 2 tablespoons of Sicilian salted capers from Buon Italia that had first been rinsed thoroughly and dried on a piece of paper towel, and some organic Whole Foods Market lemon juice, before gradually pouring into the pot at least half of a cup of reserved pasta water while stirring, until the sauce was emulsified, the pasta seasoned with sea salt, freshly-ground black pepper, arranged in 2 shallow bowls, a good olive oil drizzled around the circumference, and shavings of some Parmigiano Reggiano Hombre from Whole Foods Market scattered on top
• the wine was an Italian (Marche) white, Le Salse, Verdicchio di Matelica, 2016, from Flatiron Wines

There was a dessert.

• segments of an Asian/Korean melon from Norwich Meadows Farm, served with segments of lime from Whole Foods Market and a bit of Maldon Salt

 

• the music was at least the second time we had heard Vivaldi’s 1738 opera/pastiche, ‘L’oracolo In Messenia’, Fabio Biondi conducting Europa Galante

The excellent swordfish and the luscious tomatoes were terrific side dishes for the puntarelle, a huge hit with both Barry and myself last night; it was probably the best we’d ever had at home.

 

• two thick 7.5-ounce swordfish steaks from American Seafood Company in the Union Square Greenmarket, halved, marinated for more than half an hour in a mixture of a couple tablespoons of olive oil, a bit of a pungent dried Sicilian oregano, sold still on the stems at Buon Italia, a small amount of crushed, dried pepperoncino Calabresi secchi, also from Buon Italia, about the same bit of a piece of crushed dried golden/orange habanada pepper, and a thinly-sliced section of a small early, scallion-like red onion from Berried Treasures Farm, after which they were drained, covered on both sides with a coating of homemade dried breadcrumbs, pan-grilled over medium-high heat for 4 minutes on each side, or until barely cooked all of the way through, removed, arranged on the plates, seasoned with a little Maldon salt, drizzled with some tomato water that remained from an earlier meal, a bit of juice from a Whole Foods Market organic lemon squeezed on top, sprinkled with a bit of onion that had been preserved, drizzled with a little olive oil, finished with a garnish of micro bronze fennel from Two Guys from Woodbridge
• four ripe heirloom tomatoes, of different colors, sizes and shapes, and from 2 different local fields, those of Norwich Meadows Farm and Eckerton Hill Farm, halved, sprinkled with a small amount of sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, briefly placed inside the grill pan just as the swordfish was being removed, turned over once, then arranged on the plates, drizzled with a little olive oil and garnished with chopped thyme from Campo Rosso Farm
• only a part of a generous tied bundle of puntarelle from Tamarack Hollow Farm, thoroughly washed, the leaves separated and placed inside a large bowl of ice water, where they were allowed to sit outside the refrigerator for about one hour, while, half an hour later, three quarters of a tablespoon of red wine vinegar was placed inside a small bowl with 2 well-rinsed, finely-chopped large Agostino Recca salted Sicilian anchovies and 2 crushed Rocambole garlic cloves from Keith’s Farm, also allowed to rest, for this time for only about half an hour, and also outside the refrigerator, at which time the garlic was removed from the small bowl and the puntarelle was drained and dried (using a kitchen towel), placed inside a large bowl, the vinegar mixture poured over it, the greens seasoned very lightly with sea salt, and one and a half tablespoons of olive oil added, along with freshly-ground black pepper, and then the salad mixed or tossed at the last minute and served [the puntarelle I have always prepared appears to be a leaf-only version of Cicoria Cataglogna, I’ve never seen the form with the juicy edible shoots, or sweet, hollow inner stalks, in our own local greenmarket; there’s more information here]
• the wine was a  wonderful Spanish (Galicia) white, Valdesil, Godello Sobre Lias, 2015, from Flatiron Wines
• the music was the album, ‘Ramon Llull: Temps de conquestes, de diàleg i desconhort’, Jordi Savall conducting Hespérion XXI and La Capella Reial de Catalunya

They may not be cucumbers, and they look like micro watermelon, but they sure taste like cucumbers, albeit slightly sour cucumbers, with an added, and very distinctive, ‘pop’ when bitten into.

• a simple sauced pasta which began with a couple tablespoons of olive oil inside a high-sided tin-lined copper pot gently heating more than half a pound of halved ‘Mexican gherkins’ (not actually cucumbers, but ‘pepquinos’, or ‘Melothria scabra‘) along with a little crushed dried habanada pepper, after which 8 ounces of an al dente-cooked Setaro Torre Annunziata penne rigatoni were mixed in, and also about half a cup of reserved pasta cooking water, the mix stirred in the pot until the liquid had emulsified, the zest and juice of a Whole Foods organic lemon squeezed added, the pasta seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground pepper, placed in 2 shallow bowls, topped with a pinch of fenugreek and garnished with purple micro basil and drizzled with a little olive oil
• the wine was an Italian (Sicily) white, Valle dell’Acate, Grillo “Zagra”, 2017, from Flatiron Wines
• the music was the album, ‘Night Of The Mayas – Music Of Silvestre Revueltas’