5/9

I was named the April employee of the month, so Marcos treated me to sandwiches on our lunch break. We went to Cappone’s in the West Village — it’s turned into our late-week special occasion spot at work. People in the office scoff at the idea of treating yourself to lunch — which always confuses me. They act like I’m a cosmopolitan aristocrat for getting a sandwich. What gives? Why not enjoy myself? I chose The Cappone — classic Italian soppressata, salami, capicola, arugula, sun-dried tomatoes, mozzarella, and hot peppers on a hoagie. I ate it quickly. I was hungry. Cappone’s is a great spot. You can catch some old italians watching the Yankees on Thursday at 1pm, and they aren’t on their lunch break. They spend all day there — which is a dream of mine.

I made a London Fog latte as a late afternoon treat. We have very solid Earl Grey tea at work. I steamed the milk with honey and a bit of vanilla. I’ve been trying to limit myself to one espresso a day, and the London Fog helps me stay true to this goal. I’ve heard they’re good with lavender, so next time, I’ll pick some off the rooftop garden as a garnish.

In the evening, I made a quick dinner consisting of rice, canned tuna, soft-boiled egg, Japanese bbq sauce, and furikake before biking to Ridgewood to meet Chris for some birthday beers. Turns out I showed up on the wrong night…Distraught over my own foolishness, I needed something sweet to right the ship and prevent a disastrous night. I picked up a spicy pineapple paleta from Maya’s Snack Bar. It was perfectly refreshing on a warm night and quite similar to my favorite summer treat — a mangonada. Then Chris texted me he happened to be at a different bar nearby. Things work out in the end.

5/10

• Serranos
• Whole chicken
• 2 lbs red bell pepper
• 2 lbs tomato
• Proscuitto
• Pancetta
• Couscous
• Shallots

I wanted to make something nostalgic but completely new, so I set out to the grocery store with this list before work. These are the ingredients to make Chicken Basquaise from a cookbook Nana lent me a long time ago and never retrieved. When using a cookbook, I like to use the ingredients list as a grocery list, but not much beyond that. I don’t follow recipes closely. I treat them like reading material for an exam in school. I read the recipe once then start cooking from memory — filling in the blanks with my own intuition.

Today marks the one year anniversary of my dad passing. He always valued a good meal. My mom doing most of the cooking growing up, but he manned the grill — something I’m lacking the space for at my current apartment…A typical dad dinner was phenomenal meat off the grill with bland broccoli and rice. I miss the grill.

Isabel came over just as I started preparing the meal. She brought M&M brownies which she admitted were not her finest…A tad too dry, but still so sweet.

For the Chicken Basquaise, I browned the chicken in olive oil, then added the varieties of ham and peppers. I reduced that in some red wine, added the chicken back, and cooked it covered in the dutch oven for nearly an hour. To accompany it, a simple couscous and shallots, onions, and tomatoes cooked down in butter. Really happy with this one. The spicy acidity to this dish is quite unique for French cooking. I will make it again certainly. Note to future self: peel the skin from the peppers before adding them. Nana stopped by late after work and we chatted about his new Fassbinder blurays.

5/11

Pancakes for breakfast. I hadn’t made them in a while, but Isabel and I were in a rare sweet breakfast mood. She and I both exploded things in the microwave — butter and maple syrup respectively. The maple syrup was delicious. She had brought it back from Montreal for me because she knows I like to cook with it.

Ben hosted a picnic in the park for he and Carlos’ birthdays where I saw the swan in the photo above. Corn on the cob, lite pasta salad, and burgers on the ground-level grill. Corn on the cob is the perfect summer dish, and Mexican cuisine really hit the nail on the head with elote.

Evan, Jack, Nico, and I ate leftover Chicken Basquaise for dinner. Some say this is a dish better served the next day…I could get on board with that. This type of meal does not bode well for those who want to go out after eating. We still managed to get energized for a few drinks and impassioned conversation, but I was nearly falling asleep on the walk home.