This Tuesday I was lucky enough to have three strong, capable men over to erect my new tipi – gratitude and respect going out to Chancy, aka Chester, Steve, aka Mikky and just plain Eric … (I want an alias).

To show my appreciation, I put a lunch together that turned out pretty all right. At 8am, I mixed together a marinade of the following: 2 TBSP jerk seasoning (Trader Joe’s), 1 cup olive oil, 3 cloves chopped garlic, 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice, 1 cup soy sauce and 1TBSP crushed red pepper. Poured it over 2 lbs of boneless, skinless grouper filets in a large casserole dish, covered and let it marinade 4 hours (2 will do it).

Then I peeled 2 lbs eggplant – either the little Asians or the big guys work – cut them into 1 inch cubes and spread on 2 cookie sheets… brush with olive oil and season with salt & pepper. (Both Le Creuset and The Sili Gourmet have fabulous, silicone basting brushes that are dishwasher safe and won’t shed bristles onto your food.) Roast in a 425 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown.

Meanwhile, heat 2 TBSP olive oil in a large skillet. Add a large, red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces and saute about 4 minutes. Add about a cup of coarsely chopped, red onion & saute another 3 or 4 minutes. Add a large garlic clove, minced, and saute until fragrant, about a minute. Turn off the heat, stir in a TBSP red wine vinegar, salt & pepper to taste. Put it together with the eggplant and add 2 or 3 TBSP chopped fresh basil. This is good warm or at room temp, so I covered it and left with my friend Dan for a coffee tasting, as my 3 men began wielding tipi poles…

The coffee thing was cool – local Davis Cookware descendant, Scott Davis, is quite the barista. He’s created several different blends I’m choosing from and tweaking for my own “Wake Up!” coffee blend and a half-decaf called “Less Of The Same” (both of which are song titles). I’ll let you know when they’re available …

So I came home totally buzzed and was excited to see the tipi nearly finished and so beautiful! I heated a 12 inch cast iron skillet to medium high then added the grouper with a slotted spoon. There was enough olive oil on the fish from the marinade to not need any extra for the pan. Turned the fish after 4 or 5 minutes… while that was cooking I made a salad: 5 cups loosely packed baby lettuces, 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, 3/4 cup fresh raspberries and about 1/2 cup shaved, drunken goat cheese. Whisked together 2 TBSP rice wine vinegar, 1TBSP soy sauce, 1 TBSP honey, 2 tsp toasted sesame oil, 1 TBSP canola oil & 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper. Served the dressing on the side at the table, along with cold beer and a crisp sauvignon blanc. You may want to add a starch like rice or bread… delicious!

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Kitchen by Suzi