This Month’s Film: Indochine
Cuisine: Vietnamese

After three straight days spent celebrating my birthday, it’s time to get back to the business of my ‘Indochine’ Vietnamese dinner. I’ve already prepared, photographed and sampled the appetizers, and now it’s time for the Soup and Salad phase of my menu. The dishes I’ve chosen are Lemongrass Chicken Soup, and Golden Fish Nuggets with Watercress and Papaya Salad.

The watercress I planted in aquatic containers in my garden is so abundant it’s spilling over the rims of the pots and onto the patio, so I think it’s time to harvest a few sprigs of it for my salad. It will be the very first item from my garden to appear on my dinner table. Can’t wait, as watercress is so hard to find, and when I do, it does not resemble the variety that I know and love, the very kind that’s growing in my garden.

Shopping for ingredients tomorrow should be easy. White fish filets from Trader Joe’s, a papaya and some lemongrass from my favorite gourmet grocery, a couple of chicken breasts from my favorite Mexican carniceria, and I’m good to go. I may even shop for my main course ingredients as I will be making those dishes mid-week. And since my son Will is with me for several more days while his father is traveling, he will be here to share the experience. Alas, Rene is still booked up with grad nites and will have to settle for leftovers.

A Call for Chopsticks Click here for details.