FrogPrincesse

I seasoned the steaks with olive oil, salt, pepper and herbes de Provence, and let them reach room temperature. I used a modified version of Alton Brown's method to cook them. I warmed a cast iron skillet in the oven for at least 30 minutes (longer is better) at high temperature, and cooked the steaks for 1 to 2 minutes per side for rare (me) to medium rare (him). It works because I had the steaks cut fairly thin (at least by American standards).

Before coming home, we also stopped by Specialty Produce to pick up our farmers' market bag. I have to explain that I realized this morning with horror and complete embarrassement that, with the excitement of the blog, I had completely forgotten to order my bag last Sunday. But they were nice enough to let me get one of their spare bags when I explained my situation. This is what we received this week. Our daugther started devouring the plums almost immediately. For tonight's dinner, I made a piperade inspired by the tomatoes, bell peppers, and garlic in the basket. After frying some onions at low temperature, I added the sliced garlic, some salt, and a good amount of Espelette pepper. After a few minutes, I added the chopped bell peppers and tomatoes, and let them cook at low heat until they became soft (about an hour).

For our dinner tonight, we picked up a couple of dry-aged prime rib eye steaks from Siesel's, our favorite butcher shop. They're always really friendly there and take care of all my "strange" requests for unusual cuts of meats without giving me a hard time. The shop is not huge but it carries a good selection, including the local breads from Bread & Cie, Stone beer, and El Indio chips, which is really convenient for us. They also have a deli and a small produce section. Beef Pork Bacon & sausage section

Here are some pictures of the original kitchen, per FauxPas' request. The wall you see behind the oven no longer exists. The remodel. This photo, like the other recent photos, was taken standing where the wall used to be. The framed area is now a bathroom.

While tonight's dinner is still cooking, here are some pictures of the making of the ricotta last night. (My husband calls this another white blob story, after the fromage blanc, raita, and orgeat! ) Heating whole milk with citric acid and kosher salt to 185F - 195F It has reached its temperature. Notice the tiny little curds. It's time for a 10-minute rest. After the resting period, it needs to be drained for about 20 minutes. It looks dry enough for me (I like it still very creamy) It's done!

Thanks Pam! The countertops are Ikea laminate in dark grey.

With our cocktails, we had French-style pupus. Barely Buzzed cheese from Beehive, rubbed with coffee and lavender buds Toma from Point Reyes Sungold cherry heirloom tomatoes (from last week's CSA, but still delicious!) Then, a tartine of homemade ricotta, with fleur de sel, mint, and saba.

It feels SO good to be back at home after a tough day at work, and to enjoy this wonderful cocktail. This is a Trader Vic's Mai Tai, with the orgeat I made the other day. I used my favorite rum combination (La Favorite Coeur de Rhum + Appleton 12 year). The homemade orgeat takes it to another level. Life is good again.

kayb, Shelby, and johhnyd, Thanks for the nice comments. They mean a lot, especially coming from veteran foodbloggers!

Thanks FauxPas. I am sure that I can find a picture or two showing the old kitchen, to give you a better idea of the extent of the renovation. Frimousse, our cat, seems to like the fragrance of the freshly-made orgeat! Corrected typo

Last night we had a little dessert before going to bed. Chocolate chocolate-chip cookies from David Lebovitz's Ready for Dessert, and raspberries from Chino Farm.

Matthew, Thank you for your comments. I don't have an ice crusher. My fridge has a crushed ice option, so that's what I use. It may not be perfect , but it's really convenient! I will keep your tips in mind when I make sausage next time. I realize my sausage was overstuffed. I am glad that I got you interested in cheese-making. There will be more on that topic soon!

Thank you, Anna and Kerry. I'm enjoying reading about your cooking adventures in Manitoulin.

Thanks YSL. My husband took that photo, along with all the others, except for a few that I took.

As promised, I would like to give you a tour of the kitchen. We bought our house 7 years ago. It was built in the 1950s and, after living in it for a few months and realizing that it did not meet our needs, we decided to remodel it, including the kitchen. We expanded the kitchen area by including part of the space that used to be a family room. The idea for the kitchen design was to have most of it out of sight. Since the kitchen can be seen from our living room, dining room, and patio, we did not want it to be too intrusive. So we needed cabinets where we could hide everything when we were not using the kitchen area, hence the wall of roll-top cabinets. Also, I hate top cabinets so I did not want any in my kitchen To stay within a reasonable budget, I decided to get good appliances and Ikea cabinets. Ikea cabinets have the advantage of being cost-effective but with good-quality hardware (with blum hinges if you are into that kind of thing, including soft-close dampers on some of them). My husband and I assembled all of the cabinets ourselves, and the contractor installed them. We decided to have a large island so we could use that area for informal meals and parties. The island includes the sink, the dishwasher and the electric stove top. Because of the view, it did not make sense to have an updraft hood. The downdraft hood is a compromise because it's not as efficient as an updraft one. It was also a pain to install as a trench had to be dug under the kitchen floor. But I am happy to have a hood, especially during my heavy duty cooking projects (e.g., incinerating maple-cured bacon!!! ). Against the wall, we have a Miele oven that I am very happy with (I do a lot of baking and it's great), and a warming drawer which is very handy to warm plates or to keep things warm. Tomorrow I will show you what is behind the cabinet doors.

We settled in at a table outside on the patio (it looks like we may have scored the best seats in the house!), and ordered a couple of drinks from the menu. The view from our table The drink menu He ordered the Mr Bali Hai, and I got the Goof Punch (warning: STRONG !!!). Actually the Goof Punch is a very well-balanced drink, which makes it all the more dangerous. Our appetizers arrived. His was a deconstructed dynamite steak roll with grilled steak, onions, sesame rice, and a dynamite crust. Mine was the blackened local albacore with papaya, lemon, ponzu, pickled mustard seed, and tobiko. We were both very happy with our appetizers and our drinks, and the gorgeous view. For the main course, he had the char siu glazed duck with cauliflower, lup cheong sausage, snap peas and plum wine syrup. We instantly fell in love with that dish as we are both duck lovers, love char siu and Chinese sausage. What a great combination! I had the pan roasted striped bass with shrimp, mussels, bacon, peas, bok choy, and a lobster white corn coconut broth. My favorite part of the dish was the broth and the combination of the freshly shelled peas with the bacon and bok choy. This was lovely evening. We always have a good time there.

Tonight we went to Bali Hai for dinner. Bali Hai is a tiki restaurant that opened in the 50s. It's located on Shelter Island. On our way to Bali Hai, we drove past Trader Mort's, a small liquor store with a great tiki decor. We used to come to Bali Hai for the classic tiki cocktails, however the food was less than memorable in the past. Over a year ago, the restaurant underwent a major renovation. The owners also brought in a new chef that completely revamped the menu and transformed it into his version of modern Hawaiian fusion cuisine. The chef, Chris Powell, worked in the past at Roy's and Rancho Valencia, a local restaurant. The menu is based on local and seasonal produce. Dishes are based on classical French techniques with an Asian or Polynesian inspiration. We were greeted at the door by Mr Bali Hai himself. Immediately, the wonderful Polynesian decor surrounds you. The tiki artifacts were preserved in the renovation. The onyx bar at the middle of the main room is a beautiful feature, especially at night. And the view is incredible.

After work tonight, I did the last few steps of the orgeat recipe. Since yesterday it settled in the jar. I added sugar and dissolved it at low temperature. I did not have to wait very long; it dissolved almost instantly. The orgeat's color changed at that point from milky white to pale yellow. Then I added the vodka and the orange flower water. Here it is. Time to upgrade from the Torani. Our cat approves!

Here is the arugula, grilled peach, raspberry and almond salad I made for lunch today.

Thanks heidh, it means a lot coming from you. I really enjoyed your blog a few months ago. That raw kale salad looks delicious. I will try it and maybe make a few baked kale chips as well. These are really addictive and great with cocktails too!

I just received an email detailing the contents of my farmers' basket tomorrow: Yellow Wax Beans – Gloria Tamai Purple & Black Bell Peppers & White Bell Pepper – Jaime Farms Black Kale & Romaine Lettuce – Coleman Family Farms Black Emerald Grapes – Murray Family Farms Valencia Oranges – Suntreat Peewee Mix Fingerling Potatoes – Weiser Family Farms Mini Mixed Plums – Fitzgerald Farm First wax beans of the season for me! I am thinking the bell peppers will do a wonderful piperade.

I began one more project last night. Inspired by mkayahara, I started making orgeat, so I would have something better to use in tiki drinks than a bottle of Torani (I know, the shame…). I bought some sliced blanched almonds at Bristol Farms. While we were having our Test Pilots last night, I soaked the almonds in water for about 30 minutes. Then I drained them, and ground them in the food processor. After that, I soaked them in water again for a few hours, drained them in cheesecloth, and repeated this step once. In the recipe that I am following from Beachbum Berry Remixed, it says that you can repeat this process one more time. I will finish this project tonight

I just had lunch at home. I had the last sweet Italian sausage link (sorry Darren!). Then, a salad with the arugula from my CSA, Chino Farm raspberries and grilled peaches, almonds, and an olive oil & sherry vinegar dressing. Very tart and refreshing. Lastly, an espresso (also had one for breakfast as usual).

Thanks for commenting on the glasses. I was wondering if anyone would notice them. They were a great gift from our friends, Dave and Gail, for a tiki party we did at our place for our 10-year anniversary. Like my husband, our friend Gail is originally from Hawaii and these belonged to her family.

Hi Faux Pas, Thanks for your nice comments on the kitchen. I have a lot of drawers and, generally, a ton of storage space. We completely reconfigured that space when we bought the house, with the help of an architect, and I designed the kitchen. The cooktop is Miele (as are the oven and the warming drawer). It's quite powerful. It’s electric (not induction). I will give a complete tour of the kitchen tonight or tomorrow, with more details. Yes, it's interesting to combine the blog with the normal work week. I do have a new appreciation for all the past eG Foodbloggers now. I often undertake large cooking projects, but having to document them at the same time is new to me, and can be a challenge sometimes!