It’s funny how I’ll pick out a few things that I want to make, and when I actually read the recipes it turns out that the dishes share some ingredients and will tie together nicely. In tonight’s case, there was lots of garlic, and both the salad and the potatoes had lemon, too. Overall a good meal. Jay came over even though it isn’t Sunday – he and Larry did the 60k Tierra Bella ride today (Coco and I went to obedience school so I didn’t ride).
– We all liked the pork roast, although it could have spent a little less time in the oven. I was worried about having dinner done by 7 and ended up putting the roast in a bit early. Also, the roast was very thick. It would have been better to have a thinner roast to make butterflying and rolling easier. Larry thought the milk solids that were left in the gravy were weird, but it tasted good. Next time, I’ll strain the gravy in addition to de-fatting it. This recipe is also in Fine Cooking’s Weekend Cooking special issue (along with the recipe for the potatoes).
– This salad was sooo good. I loved the zucchini like this, and I’m not a fan of summer squash. It was different and a nice change from the usual salads I make. I had been wanting to make something like this ever since I had a raw zucchini salad at a cooking demonstration at the Ferry Plaza Farmer’s Market. Instead of slicing the squash into ovals, I peeled it and sliced it into long, thin strips. This recipe is also in Fine Cooking’s Fresh special issue (the latest one).
– The potatoes were good but nothing special.
– Dessert was dark chocolate and a late harvest Zin.

• Roast Pork Loin with Garlic & Rosemary (Fine Cooking #53, November 2002, p. 53)
• Summer Squash Salad with Lemon, Capers & Parmesan (Fine Cooking #53, November 2002, p. 53)
• Mashed Potatoes with Lemon & Garlic (Fine Cooking #72, July 2005, p. 46)
• Dark Chocolate

Wine:
– David Bruce 2002 Truchard Vineyard Pinot Noir (Carneros, California). Typically delicious David Bruce Pinot. We drank the whole bottle. Mmm.
– Napa Cellars 2001 Late Harvest Zinfandel (Napa Valley, California). Really nice – not too sweet (8% residual sugar). Perfect with dark chocolate.