I eat, I read, I watch — dining solo #22
Asparagus is the star (and the butter, of course)
I eat, I read, I watch — dining solo #22
Today’s post is the 22nd of “I eat, I read, I watch,” my column highlighting a solo dinner and my reading and watching accompaniments. Don’t just eat alone - dine solo! You’re worth it. And it’s not hard to do.
Missed earlier instalments? Check out the list at the bottom of the post.
I eat: Pork tenderloin and black-truffle infused egg noodles with - you guessed it - fresh asparagus!
Sunday was my annual trip to Niagara Region to get asparagus from Redbud Farm. I returned with 20 pounds - enough for me and to fill orders from other grateful urbanites. After a wonderful day with my Redbud friends not to mention the great spread they put on for lunch, I wasn’t really up to cooking. However, I had to get some more asparagus into me.
So, I scoured the fridge for leftovers. Back a few weeks, and recorded in “I eat, I read, I watch #17,” I tenderized and then marinated some pork tenderloin. A ziplock of marinated pieces ended up in the freezer and I’d fried them up on Friday. That was a good meal, but asparagus-less.
Sunday, I chopped up the leftover pork in a cold version of Friday’s side - egg noodles with Black Truffle & Porcini Sauce (OMG to die for).
And then I just simmered a pound of asparagus for four minutes in salted water. I plated half asked my pork/truffle/noodle salad and buttered the asparagus. Nothing fancy. But absolutely divine.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cost: $10 (at a guess)
Origin: as Canadian as possible
Tell me your favourite way to eat asparagus. In the Comments below please!
I read: This Way Up: Old friends, new love, and a map for the road ahead
Cathrin Bradbury’s first book, The Bright Side, came out during the pandemic while I was just getting into my groove with memoir. Her writing style is a bit lighter than some who write about their lives and therefore appeals more to me. When I saw she’d released a new book, reflecting her life now she’s in her late 60s, I was keen to give it a whirl. I’m proud of myself though - no longer buying all my books - and so put myself on the waiting list at the library to read it. And after a short wait, it was my turn!
One of Bradbury’s chapters is entitled “I have a hut in Toronto at the foot of the garden path” which rather spoke to me - well, I’m not living in a hut and she doesn’t live in hers either, but like me, she’s living her “grand adventure … thirty-three steps along the stone path from the house to the hut.” In that hut she’s discovered the her hut is “less a place to hide out than a place to find out what was hidden in [her].” That kinda resonated with me. She also talks about deepening her relationship with solitude. I concur!!
I really enjoyed her book, and despite the decade she’s got on me, time-wise, some of her recent experiences are not far off mine.
Got a good 2025 release to recommend? Tell us about it in the Comments below.
I watch: Motherland
In contrast, the BBC’s Motherland has nothing to do with my life whatsoever but damn, is it funny. If you were a fan of Workin’ Moms, the CBC comedy from a few years ago, this will make you laugh too. It’s an ensemble cast of young mostly-mothers (one stay-at-home dad) who show parenting the way I imagine it really is - nothing Instagrammable about any of it. At various points, they clearly would prefer not to have the bother of children. The kids themselves are mostly unnamed and not at all part of the plot lines. They are the television version of my entire generation - mostly merrily raising ourselves. As a non-parent, I’m probably not allowed to say this, but honestly what a better way to go! You can’t produce an overly-entitled child if you give them nothing beyond food and shelter:-)
Do you like BBC shows? Let us know in the Comments below please!
Missed the earlier instalments of this column? Click:
#1 (pork chop & green beans)
#2 (trout & veg)
#3 (shrimp pepper bisque)
#4 (rice & peas with coleslaw)
#5 (ramen)
#6 (burger & fries)
#7 (duck sausage & salad),
#8 (shrimp & veg with pasta)
#9 (Wigilia)
#10 (mushroom shepherds pie)
#11 (roasted veg and sausage)
#12 (leftovers)
#13 (garlic shrimp with rapini on egg noodles)
#14 (beef stew)
#15 (salmon mac and cheese)
#16 (salmon cakes and ragout)
#17 (pork tenderloin, red cabbage, potatoes)
#18 (pulled turkey and salad)
#19 (almond butter chicken korma)
#20 (lobster tacos with asparagus)
#21 (rainbow Trout, garlic mashed potatoes, and roasted asparagus)
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