Glorious Easter at Suzanne's!

Suzanne and M hosted Amanda and Dave, and Ben and Big Dave for a really happy Easter dinner. Dan got into the act, too, but not productively. I think he was very pleased to observe food on the dry sink and thought that might be his territory.

Amanda's contribution was Devilled Eggs Two Ways. Suzanne and the Munsons enjoying M's kirs and beer.

One of Suzanne's many contributions was the Easter Bunny, perhaps looking a little startled about Dan. My contribution was a Rhubarb and Asparagus salad. For the salad, for 4 eaters (a WP recipe which I've fiddled with): Heat 3/4 c. water and 3/4 c. sugar over medium low heat until sugar dissolves, stirring. Add 3 c. Moscato or other sweet white dessert wine, plus 1/4 c. juiced rhubarb or grenadine for color. Lacking these, I used 2 c. Moscato and 1 c. ruby port. Add 2 1/2 T. whole back peppercorns, lightly crushed. I was cooking for 8, doubled the amounts, and had way too much liquid left over. I froze it for another day. I think you could reduce these amounts also when cooking for 4. Bring this to a simmer and add 4 stalks rhubarb, cut into 4 inch pieces with objectionable strings removed. Simmer until "cooked through but not soft, about 5 minutes." Drain, remove peppercorns (the recipe says "rinse," but I thought it needed to keep the sugary coating), and drain again. Chill immediately; it gets mushy fast. A bag in the frig worked fine. Cook 12 stalks asparagus until bright green and barely tender. Plunge it in ice when done, drain it, and refrigerate it. For vinagrette, mix 3 T lemon juice, 1 T dijon, and 1/2 c oil. I think if I offer this again I might also put some of the cooled, strained poaching liquid on the table for people who want something sweeter. I was tempted to just drink it. Mix 1/2 lb salad greens with 1/2 c fresh herbs (dill, parsley, tarragon, basil, chives). There are all sorts of ways to serve this. The WP article had a nifty square of red (rhubarb) and green (asparagus) stripes at the bass, topped by lettuce. I lined a bowl with the various stalks and put the greens in the middle.

Salmon from l'Entrecote Couronné

This Geneva Bistro was either a very convincing retro or simply untouched for 80 years. The walls had metal channels, as if they housed electric wiring merely tacked on in the modern era. I did not expect to find any seafood here, given the name, but the seafood entreés outnumbered the beef. They even offered plats végétarien.

Maybe not so retro after all. I had a salmon entreé with capers and cherry tomatoes. I found a pretty good facsimile online as follows, for 4 people: Preheat oven to 425 In a bowl or bag, toss 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, pulsed into halfish pieces in the FP, 1 medium shallot, thinly sliced, 1 T. drained capers, 2 T. red wine vinegar (next time I'll try balsamic for more kick), and salt. Put 1 T oil in a medium-sized ovenproof skillet, Season salmon and put it in the skillet, skin side up. Cook over moderately high heat until well-browned on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Flip the salmon and put it into the over to roast for about 7 minutes. Pour off the fat in the pan and plate the fish. Put the skillet over moderate heat and add the tomato mixture, plus 1/2 t cumin and 2 T oil. Cook about 2 minutes, until the tomatoes just soften. Pour the sauce over the fish and sprinkle on 1 T minced basil. Another recipe I found calls for roasting the salmon, brushed with oil, in a 400 degree oven along with the tomatoes, also brushed with oil.