A Quite Good Day, Indeed.

I discovered today that the main song from my favorite movie, Stranger Than Fiction, is called 'The Way We Get By', and is by Spoon. I immediately created a Pandora station dubbed thus, and I have spent the last five hours in bliss, listening to  Cake, the Arctic Monkeys, the Cold War Kids, Spoon, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the White Stripes, Vampire Weekend, and Guster play in the background. Lovely. And when I say 'lovely', I mean that in the absolute strongest sense of the word. This is the music that I have been craving my entire life. Do you know what a relief it is to find it all in one day? Do you?

Addtionally, for dinner tonight, I made and ate, with good friends, macadamia nut crusted swordfish steaks, Asparagus with a brown butter mustard bechamel, and kale with lemon and olive oil. Oh gosh. I love food. So much. My stomach is very happy right now. Not to mention healthy. Look at that veritable gold mine of nutrition! It is generally uncharted territory for my junk food appreciating self, but nay....I fear that omega 3's, leafy greens, and protein are a new, surprisingly enjoyable part of my diet!

I hope that there is somewhere an alternate universe where my life has constant background music like the aforementioned, where my theme song is 'The Way We Get By' by Spoon, and such a song no longer belongs to Harold Crick, where I eat ridiculous amounts of delicious food all the time but never gain a pound, and where I am married to a guy who is an endearing mixture of Marshall from How I Met Your Mother, and Jim from The Office. My afternoon has largely been spent with dreaming of such a universe.

And here are two recipes for you:

Kale with Olive Oil and Lemon

1 bunch of Kale (10 leaves or so)
2 T Olive Oil
1 T Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp minced fresh Garlic

Heat the oil over medium-high heat until it lightly begins to smoke. Toss in the freshly washed leaves of kale, which will pop dramatically, sounding really enthusiastic. After about 10 seconds, when the kale is bright, bright green, and just beginning to wilt, add the lemon juice. Await more popping. After about  30 seconds and a few tosses, add the garlic, cook for 30 seconds. Done! Not only was that incredibly simple, but here is an easy leafy green vegetable with a delightfully smooth mouthfeel and a taste that is not reminiscent of broccoli or wasabi, which is to say, it will go well with a plethora of other foods.



Macadamia-crusted Swordfish Steaks

2 Eggs
1 C Macadamia nuts
2 1/2-3/4 pound Swordfish steaks
1/2 C flour
2 T Olive oil
1 T butter

Beat the eggs until blended. Crush the macadamia nuts, however you deem acceptable, until they are in smallish chunks, and not pasty at all. I used one of those meat tenderizer things and a ziploc bag. It worked quite well. Pour the flour on a small plate. Coat each of the steaks in flour. Dip them in the egg. On a cutting board, spread the macadamia nuts into a thin layer. One at a time, coat the steaks with macadamia nuts, until a thick crust is formed. Heat the oil over high heat until it smokes. Add the swordfish, sear for 30-40 seconds on each side. Place in a baking dish, bake for 8-12 minutes at 400º.  Let rest for three minutes before eating.

That is all.