Yes, I cringe when my brother has put the milk jug on the shelf where the preserves, pickles, mustards and jams are kept. And should there be an apple on the diary shelf? I jump into Sergeant Major character and an hour later, the fridge has been re-packed and placed in logical order, all food / jars in little lines. The pantry has been re-aligned to have all 'like' products in groups. And the Tupperware cupboard now reflects geometric symmetry (and in descending size order, I may add too).
This past Sunday's lunch was just that. Very different to the opulence that the Sunday Roast has become. But anyway, I do think mine was better than yours!
The most incredible bread was purchased from The Glenwood Bakery (image below) and it was possibly one of the best I have had in a very long time. Although the bakery have 'Daily Specialities' (like 100% rye on Wednesdays), our choice was their 40% rye Sourdough bread. Perhaps "simpler is better" as this was a wonderful combination when paired with proper, peppery olive oil that comes out of a tin.
Continuing my weekend of simplicity, I was put to work on Sunday afternoon as our never-ending bushes of basil had to be sheared like sheep and were left bare with nothing but the leaves we don't want to mush up and make into pesto.
The result was a very Lemon Meringue-looking dish that had a bold and tangy pineapple curd that finally came together in the dish after the pastry finally cooked!
It was quite an interesting baking experience as we used the pastry base from my gran's Milk Tart recipe; the 'how to' curd recipe came off the internet (I was so proud, my mom Google'd it herself!) and the meringue was the topping from the Lemon Meringue recipe (with less sugar).
So perhaps simpler is maybe better? All the simple things above made a weekend of perfect eating!
But then again, with food, entertaining and wine, there is always something else and always something new to discover, perhaps there never is perfection in this industry?