Eating Like a Single Girl

With Brian out of town at the Lebowski fest I got to indulge myself and eat like a single girl again. In my case that means a cold supper of assembled small delicacies, the kind of dinner that Brian would view as a good appetizer (meanwhile, he is eating as many meals as possible at our favorite L'ville restaurant, Lynn's Paradise Cafe).

I made it across town to Big 10 and bought some of their fresh-that-day mozzarella purchased from the man who pulled it himself, some sopressata peppata and some of their bottle-your-own 18-Year Aged Balsamic Vinegar from Modena, Italy (to go with the Spanish olive oil I already bought there). I also bought some applewood smoked bacon to make a fine BLT with in the next few days .

When I got home I combined my purchases with my homegrown tomato and basil, and some Zingerman's Paesano bread that I had.

The mozzarella was even creamier than I remembered it with none of the rubbery texture that older "fresh" mozzarella sometimes has. The balsamic puddle proved to be the best accompaniment to the sopressata--the sweetness of the vinegar brought out the flavors in the salami. And the tomato and basil provided the pure flavor of summer.

I didn't drink quite the right wine with it--I had a bottle of Ravenswood Zinfandel Vintners Blend 2003 open (a good basic Zin to have on hand; it usually retails locally for about $12/bottle but Meijer's--I know weird place to buy wine but sometimes they have terrific deals--had it recently for $7.50) so I drank that, but the food really demanded something punchier with a little more tannic kick to it--if I had any of the Woop Woop Shiraz I bought last autumn it would have been perfect. (And yes, at first I bought it because the goofy name appealed to me, but then I went back and got some more after I tasted it--a good Shiraz for the price).

For dessert, I chipped some Ghiradelli dark chocolate off a big bar and nibbled it with some walnuts. A glass of port would have been perfect with it, but since I had to put Fiona to bed by myself (a challenge even when totally sober) I didn't pour myself a glass. By the time she eventually passed out (note: not, once again, in her bed but on the couch) I was too tired to dig around in the cabinet and find the port.