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Right after breakfast I dropped by IKEA to see if they had the bookcase in stock that I wanted for the cookbooks (since they were out last weekend) and discovered that they had an old display model of only a minor variant of it in the discount section. At more than half off. Now, furniture in the discount section generally has two defects: it has dings or scratches; and it's already been assembled. There were a few minor scratches in areas where the books were going to sit, but the awkward thing was going to be loading it in (on?) the car. Not impossible, just awkward. And just as I'm wheeling it into the parking garage, this couple who had just finished parking asked if I could use a hand. So "awkward" turned into "a breeze". This is about the third time that I've had random strangers offer to help me load stuff in the IKEA parking garage.

Somewhat later, after dropping off the bookcase at home, I found myself at the Other Change of Hobbit bookstore, checking out with a couple of random new items. So I turn to Tom Whitmore at the counter and say, "There's the book -- or maybe a series of books -- that various people have said I might enjoy. And I'm totally blanking on the author or title at the moment, but ..." And Tom breaks in with, "Naomi Novik's Temeraire series," before I managed to finish, "...but the concept was something like Napoleonic wars with dragons." After that, I pretty much have to like the books.

madbaker and

bonacorsi came over for dinner (and for first dibs on the discarded cookery books). I ended up with a classical Roman inspired menu, on the line of reasoning that it's asparagus season and there's this great asparagus recipe in Anthimus, and the laurel tree needs pruning, and I haven't done the laurel-boiled pork in ages. So here's the menu (served three with leftovers):

Appetizer course

Olives

Slices of hard-cooked egg wrapped in ribbons of prosciutto

Isicia de Cammaris: in a food processor, chop 1/8 c. pine nuts, add approx. 1/3 c. raw deveined shrimp and process, add 1 T. minced lovage (or celery leaves), pinch pepper, and ca. ¼ tsp. oregano; beat 2 egg whites until frothy and stir into the shrimp mixture. Poach until cooked. Serve drizzled with a little defrutum (in this case, I used pomegranate syrup).

Main course

A pork loin, boiled in brine with laurel leaves. (Add several handfuls of washed, picked-over leaves to the pot before adding the meat.)

As a sauce for the meat: combine ½ c. red wine, 1/8 c. vinegar, 1/8 c. olive oil, 1/8 c. broth or fruit juice (I used hard cider), 1/8 tsp. each powdered pepper, cumin seed, coriander seed, mint, thyme, savory, and 1/8 c. toasted pine nuts, ground. Simmer until reduced and syrupy.

Asparagus a la Anthimus: Place a bunch of fennel and a bunch of cilantro in a pot with water and bring to a boil. Add your asparagus and cook until tender. Arrange your asparagus on a plate and sprinkle with olive oil and salt.

Lentils Cooked with Chestnuts: Simmer ¾ c. lentils in several changes of water until tender. Crumble ¾ c. cooked chestnuts and mix with ¼ tsp. each pepper, cumin, coriander seed, and mint. Mix with the lentils and add 1 Tblsp. each vinegar, honey, and olive oil. Cook stirring constantly until the liquid is absorbed.

A Patina of Quinces: Chop approx. 1-1/2 c. cored peeled quinces and ¾ c. white of leeks. Put in a pan with ¾ c. broth (I used cider), ¼ c. defrutum (this time I used date molassas), and 1/8 c. olive oil. Simmer until soft and mushy. Sweeten to taste with honey or more defrutum.

Second (Dessert) Course

Patina Dulcis: Toast and coarsely grind ½ c. each pine nuts, almonds, and hazel nuts. Beat 3 egg yolks and mix with ¼ tsp. nutmeg and approx. 1/8 c. honey. Heat approx. 1 c. milk or light cream to near boiling and beat it slowly in to your egg yolks. Beat in the nuts then portion out in to individual custard cups. I finish these off in the microwave, heating a minute at a time then checking whether it has set. This time it took 2 minutes, but on other occasions it's taken only one. You could also finish them off by steaming them.