A lazy day and a touch of Scotland.

A lazy, sleepy day. And a food day, the highlight of which was a Zoom cooking class featuring the Scottish National Chef Gary McLean cooking from his own kitchen. The program was sponsored by Central Market, which, not coincidentally, has all the Scottish products available—including salmon from the Hebrides and Scottish ice cream. On the menu today: a salad of smoked salmon (either hot smoked or cold—I much prefer the cold smoked), green peas, green beans, snap peas, and snipped dill, all on a base of pea puree; a fennel salad accompanied by broiled langoustine with Scottish Tain cheddar; Hebridean (I cannot figure out how to pronounce that) salmon filets with a warm potato and asparagus salad; and for dessert, cranachan—a concoction of browned oatmeal with honey, whiskey, heavy cream barely whipped, and  raspberries served over ice cream (Scottish, of course) and topped with shaved chocolate. I have always threatened to move to Scotland. Now I am sure.

The segment was filmed in McLean’s own Scottish kitchen, which was, he told us, designed for demonstrations. It was not a large space, though I’ve always known that the best chefs do not need a large kitchen. Still, he had an impressive four ovens—some with different functions—with refrigeration below them, drawers designed to respond to the touch of a knee, so that he could open without touching while cooking. As he cooked, he kept loading empty dishes and used ingredients off to his right, and I fervently hoped there was an assistant over there making order out of chaos. At the end the camera panned the kitchen, and there was no assistant but a heck of a mess to be cleaned up.

McLean himself, a man in his mid-forties, was charming and unassuming, gesturing a lot with his hands, smiling, and, best of all, explaining techniques as he went. Who knew you could poach eggs twenty-four hours in advance and heat them up? To my surprise, he did not cook on a gas cooktop—I thought all chefs prepared gas. No, he had an electric cooktop which he explained, partway through, was induction technology. That reassured me immensely since I cook on an induction hot plate. He had two burners and another which had a special name—“expander?” (If he can do all that with two burners, surely I can do pretty well with one.) I love a good Scottish brogue, but I admit I had a bit of trouble following him occasionally. I have since heard that Central Market is investigating closed captioning for future lessons.

I learned lots from watching him. The lesson was supposed to be a cook-along, but I had early decided I just wanted to watch and absorb and not distract myself by trying to cook along—although he did occasionally pause and chatter a bit to give home cooks a chance to catch up. My neighbor, Prudence, started to cook along and gave it up but said they would be eating well at her house. McLean has a cookbook which is more, he says, a lesson in techniques rather than a cookbook. I looked it up on Amazon but could not find it. I’ll keep trying. Since Central Market never misses a marketing opportunity, I expect them to carry it soon.

My takeaway: a thoroughly enjoyable Saturday experience and recipes I’ll cook. Jordan was enthusiastic tonight about the entrée salmon (minus the soft-poached egg) and the dessert. I would add the smoked salmon salad, but I could pass on the fennel salad—there was some on-screen discussion of substituting something and I wonder about a Napa cabbage or something. I am not a fan of fennel. Also, as I’m allergic to shrimp but can eat lobster, I’ve always wondered which camp langoustine falls into.The internet says lobster, so I’m gathering my courage to try because they looked delicious. 

Must add that the day was rounded out with a delightful visit with Carol Roark and Lon Burnam—conversation with them is always fun. We ordered supper from Macaluso’s which deserves a shout-out for hot and delicious food delivered in a timely manner. I had eggplant Parmagiana because I don’t often get a chance to eat eggplant, and I loved it. Carol is one of the people who keeps my writing world in order—feeding me information, correcting me when I’m wrong, and cheering me on. And I always appreciate Lon’s sense of humor and his take on politics. Jordan and I both agreed it was a jolly evening.

And Sophie enjoyed it. For some reason, she took to Lon and lay at his feet much of the evening. There was some debate about whether she was protecting Lon or protecting me from him.

Happy Labor Day weekend, everyone. Please stay safe and wear your masks. I am appalled at pictures of crowds of unmasked people—as at the Trump rally on Lake Travis where at least four boats sank. No further comment needed, except none of the massed spectators had masks.