BonVivant

Waiting for the buns to rise Buns were easy to make, just needed time to rise (twice). Meat was braised the day before, when buns were ready I stuffed them and used the same bamboo basket as a "plate" for the photos. Here is an overhead shot of the basket:

Temperatures plummetted this Pentecost long weekend. I made a cheat cassoulet with tinned duck confit. The legs are big Lurking in there are beet greens and leeks.

Had a BBQ today but you have already seen it all so I just made a photo of the aubegines. The sauce is quark, has dried thyme. And pomegranate seeds.

Salmon from Faroe Islands. What gave the salmon its new taste: grated beetroots, lots of dill, juniper berries, whiskey, curing salt, sugar.

Lunch this weekend. Gorgeous weather again today but I couldn't sit in the garden to avoid angering blackbird fledglings and their parents. Steamed razor clams. Green sauce has parsley, garlic, capers, olive oil. More clams I like steaming a lot of things. These potatoes were also steamed. 2 kinds of ham. Darker kind is beef and smoked.

Yes, you are correct I usually do tell something about the meal. The razors are small and sweet. The asparagus come in several sizes but I prefer big ones due to ease of peeling. Prawns are red and come from either Argentina or Chile. I pounded some fresh turmeric, capers and garlic then mixed it all with olive oil. Brushed this oil on everything on the grill, save for the clams (due to laziness yesterday). The green stuff was minced parsley. Not sure if I was going to use it but put it there just in case. I used it today at lunch as a sauce for steamed razors. Hope your dishwasher get fixed soon!

My third BBQ on this gorgeous sunny day in this normally sun deprived part of the world.

Finally it's warm enough to have my first BBQ. Octopus tentacles were first boiled then later threaded on skewers. Brushed with some oil, sprinkled on some thyme and that's about it. Simpler than last year's first BBQ but it's still nice and I have waited long enough for this perfect temperature (20C).

Sometimes only a few ingredients are needed.

I let the fishmonger do the deep-frying and I put the rest together at home myself. Quark with garlic, dill, parsley, cucumber, capers. Sauce and more cod

Hardly any real cooking today. I think the steamed asparagus brought out the minerally dry and softly floral flavours of this otherwise standard Riesling.

Third weekend into the season, 3,5kg so far. With sweet/spring onions Onions used in the Flammkuchen above

Exactly 1kg (eur. 17, sale price today.) It's in the oven as we speak.

Today was national day off, it felt like a Sunday... miserable weather, empty streets, we took our time eating and drinking. - Munich "white sausages" with sweet mustard. - "Potato cheese", literally. Basically it's mashed potatoes with cream, minced onions and chives. The whole lunch

Not much cooking today. I simmered the sauce (5-spice, tamari, "Peking duck" sauce etc) then warmed the meat in it. Made a salad and sliced the ciabatta. Didn't even bother to toast the bread this time.

Some lunches (after cheeses). A kind of meat paste. Leftover roasted meats to go with a simple soup made with leftover roasted duck bones.

No imported asparagus for me. This is a small asparagus farm near my house (2.7km) . This machine is called "asparagus spider" . The wheels go on both sides of a aspargus row. Inside the sorting shed. It's a small shed. Look at the last photo inset on left and you see the entire width of the room. Machine with glowing blue light is a peeler. You can get your asparagus peeled and packaged for an extra euro more.

My ugly steamed buns made me happy on this wintry day. Ran out of white flour so I threw in some light rye flour at the last moment. Added more cooked Peking duck marinade/sauce to the pork for a more intense taste. We ate the steamed buns with a salad.

OC, what a fantastic feast! -------- Mine is really really simple: first asparagus of the season (officially started last saturday). Asparagus is from a farm 2.7km from my house (15mins on my bicycle). Exquisite, sweet asparagus... I was emotional eating it! Yesterday...

Three meals to be had from these. First one is the duck, today.

TFTC, the layer closest to the surface looks a bit dry, yes. I quickly pulled out mostly the top layer for the photos. Below this layer it was fine. I kept adding beer to the tray the whole time. Of course, I need more practice to archive perfection one day. Not an awkward question at all and thanks for asking.

Hi, I don't have precise measurements but these are the ingredients in the marinade: 5-spice powder, dry sherry, tamari, sesame oil, and grated ginger root (just squeeze the fiberous pulp and use the liquid). I did make extra marinade and simmer it gently to make a dipping sauce for the pancakes seen in the photos. Pounded garlic and scotch bonnet chillis on the side for me.

Pork but tastes like Peking duck. Five-spice is one of the things in the marinade. 1.5kg raw. The result after almost 6 hours What the whole thing looks like --------------------- Ann_T, everything is small here, including fish Thanks. Host's note: this topic is one of many segments in the Dinner topic; the previous segment may be found at Dinner 2016 (Part 3).

One of my favourite fish, halibut. Made a batch of Vietnamese fish sauce to go with the fish today and tomorrow (brill).

I love your country and want to see all of it. It's taking rather longer than I expect (Spain is my love supreme). But next time it will be Alentejo. The foods there speak to me. The wine and the pigs alone are worth the trip. I do have a fantastic cookery book by Maria de Lourdes Modesto, and a few others. Btw, I have been to your city. (Did eat a few things there and drank a lot of port! Some photos here.) What's your favourite Portuguese meal? Mine is Cozido à Portuguesa. PS: I did try African chicken in Macau. Give me cozido any day.