RoundAbout San Diego

After a busy day working on the bathroom we had a simple dinner with pre-made sweet and sour tempura chicken from Trader Joe's, rice, and these really delicious green beans. The chicken just needed to be baked in the toaster oven, the rice I had to make on the stove top because my rice cooker gave up after over 20 years of use, and the green beans took all of 30 minutes to make from start to finish. I found the recipe in last week's food section of the San Diego Union Tribune and they got it from "The Roasted Vegetable" by Andrea Chesman.

Soy Roasted Green Beans

2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar or dry sherry
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 lbs green beans, ends trimmed
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 450 deg. Lightly oil a large roasting pan or two large baking sheets. In a small bowl, combine the sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and garlic. Arrange green beans on roasting pan or baking sheets in a single layer. Drizzle the sauce over the beans and and roll until evenly coated.

Roast about 15 minutes until well browned and tender, shaking the pan(s) now and again to ensure even cooking. Serve with pepper to taste.

4 large servings.

While Klaus was here I tried my first Blue Kitchen recipes. Here is the recipe for Leeks with Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette that I served with grilled chicken. Check out the web page for a picture of the leeks.

Leeks with Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette

3 leeks
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup chicken stock [or vegetable stock—see Kitchen Notes]
1/2 cup water
1-1/2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf Italian parsley
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Trim roots if overly long, but leave enough to keep bases intact. Slice off most of the green tops. Slice leeks in half lengthwise. Rinse under running water, gently fanning layers to wash out any trapped grit. Leeks like to grow in sandy soil, so you need to clean them carefully.

Heat a sauté or frying pan large enough to hold leeks in a single layer over a medium flame. Add oil and butter and swirl together. Arrange leeks in pan, cut side down, and sauté, turning occasionally with tongs and spatula, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Handle leeks gently when turning to keep as intact as possible.

Add stock, water and 1 tablespoon parsley to pan. Bring to a simmer, reduce heat and cover pan, cooking leeks until tender, about 10 minutes. Arrange leeks on a serving platter, cut side up. Add lemon juice and mustard to pan, whisking to combine. Season vinaigrette with salt and pepper [use a light hand with the salt and taste before seasoning—your stock will provide some salt]. Pour vinaigrette over leeks and sprinkle with remaining parsley. Serve immediately.

Terry B, author of Blue Kitchen, always finishes a recipe with tips in his 'Kitchen Notes' section. What makes Blue Kitchen so much fun to read is that Terry B always has a story to go with his recipes.

Klaus spent a week with us and he went home nearly a week ago - we really miss him. He and Alex got so much done working together although none of it was really on the original 'job list'. It started out with the discovery of large amounts of dry rot in the studs and floor boards. Even Boo was cautious while checking it all out. You could put your finger through parts of the wood.



We (and in this case I mean Alex and Klaus) started pulling up some of the floor boards and Boo immediately wanted to go underneath the house.



The next problem to arise was the total blockage of our sewer pipes. Alex needed to do some basic plumbing to remove some old pipes and discovered the drain from the kitchen to the main sewer was almost completely blocked. It's amazing how many pipes were beneath the house that needed removing and they are truly disgusting to see.



Here you can see how completely blocked some of the drainage was. I'm amazed that the kitchen sink drained at all.



While digging around under the house Alex came across this mummified rat which he touched with his bare hands - eww! When we first moved into the house we would hear creatures running around through the walls and in the attic and wondered what they were - now we know.



Alex and Klaus made a great team working together to replace all the pipes so I could come home from a hard day at work to wash the dishes. I was so thankful that the water drained quickly and I could get the job done much more quickly than before.



I was especially proud when Alex agreed to share his toys with Klaus, albeit with strict supervision.



After their careful measuring it was great to see things coming together - here is a new vent pipe for the toilet being put into place.



Next it was time to remove the rest of the floor boards so a completely new floor base can be installed. Having no floor at all will also make it easier for Alex to do some more electric work and finish up the plumbing.



Here you can see how neat and tidy the pipes look - I feel as if I should dust them and keep them looking clean for as long as possible.



And here's the man, the guy that can do it all, the one who's going to continue the work until Klaus can come back to help us out again.

A week ago Ann and Diana came over to toast our newly finished bathroom and they were really surprised that we had already started on the masterbath. We had a great happy hour (or more) with some appetizers and plenty of wine.



As usual things quickly got out of hand and after toasting our new bathroom with champagne everything went downhill.



Well, we weren't really that bad... but almost.