Less Muzzy, More Dinner

      Yesterday was not a great day.  I was out of it most of the day, still having chills and overheating.  Never felt entirely awake -- or even entirely present.  I slept most of the afternoon and woke up around 7:30 p.m.

     And suddenly realized I was all there.  Still weak, still didn't have much wind, but I wasn't drifting in a fog. 

     Tam had bought some vegetable kebobs -- four skewers loaded with slices of green and yellow zucchini,* yellow bell peppers, red onion and lovely thick mushroom caps.  She also bought a ribeye steak, having asked the butcher for one "thick enough to make a couple of breakfast steaks."

     You really need a grill to do vegetable skewers properly, so a little creativity was called for.  I got the steak out to warm up and set a nice knob of butter melting in my Always pan† while I salted and peppered the vegetable skewers.  The contents of three of them made a nice layer covering the bottom of the pan.  I added some likely spices (a little garlic powder and parsley flakes), put the lid on and gave it a few pancake-flipping shakes to get everything evenly coated and let it cook over medium heat. 

     Time to split the steak!  You can have the butcher do it, if she's not too busy,‡ but a decent cutting board, a sturdy serrated knife -- you want one with a blade that will not flex -- and a good eye are all it takes.  Find the straightest edge, stand the steak up on it and grasping it with with your off hand, fingers on one side and thumb on the other, judge the center, then start cutting slowly from the top, checking to make sure the cut stays centered and working from end to end.  Don't be in a hurry, your fingertips are about as soft as raw steak!  (Butterflying a steak is much the same process, just pick the most-coherent edge to cut towards and stop short of cutting all the way through.)  The steaks got salt and pepper, and I set Tam's aside to add later.

     The vegetables wanted another big shake; I gave them that and found a small spatula, and after a little while, took the lid off and used it to make room for my steak.  I gave it a minute uncovered over higher heat, then set the heat back down, put the lid on for four minutes, turned the steak over, and gave it four more.  Tam's steak joined then, with the vegetables piled on top of both steaks, and got three minutes a side before I turned the heat to low, put the cover on, and set up TV trays -- we're still watching The Umbrella Academy and I didn't want to miss an episode.

     We had dinner plated and were eating in short order, one rare steak, one medium well and plenty of good vegetables.

     The steak was our local grocer's "Prime Choice" grade, which is actually their pick of the best USDA Choice, and it was as good as any USDA Prime ribeye I have had (Tam agreed).  Maybe it was the butter and vegetable juices, but it was a nice cut of meat.

     This morning, the contents of the remaining skewer, diced and sauteed, made a nice omelette filling along with a Poblano pepper given the same treatment, several strips of bacon, Manchego and Swiss cheese and a couple of Castlevetrano olives.  Possibly a little over the top, but it all fit when folded, sot it must not have been too much.
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* A remarkably versatile vegetable, and good-tasting, too.  Stuffed zucchini flowers turn up in the cuisine of countries that had been part of the Ottoman Empire and they sound delicious -- keep an eye on for them on the menu at your favorite Middle Eastern restaurants, especially in the Spring.

† For those of you who have been keeping track, the Always pan is still living up to its promise.  Easily the best general-purpose pan I have owned.

‡ Maybe it's just Midwestern manners, but if there's a line at the butcher counter, I think it is impolite to ask for special service.  People are under stress enough right now, I'm not going to make it worse.