How I Broke My Fast

After I'd had my second Rochefort, and sung Good Friday services (singing bass in an a capella octet), it was time to have the main meal of the day. I stopped at the fish counter at the Newtown Farmer's Market, and got two nice chunks of tuna and two soft shell crabs, then stopped at the supermarket on the way home and got a pound of large shrimp.

Cathy made a pot of fettucine while I melted a couple tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. That's how I did the crabs, just butter, salt, and pepper. I did the shrimp in another skillet, with olive oil, plenty of garlic, and lemon juice. I would have liked to add some white wine, but we were out (We're fixing that tomorrow), and some capers, but Nora doesn't care for them.

When the shrimps were done, we tossed them with more olive oil and the fettucine. I gave the skillet a quick wipe, added peanut oil and sesame oil, heated it up, and tossed the tuna in with a good shake of coarse sea salt. We put big bowls of salad (Romaine, red leaf, and some nice spring mix) out, and whole wheat bread and chevre.

What to drink, though? After some reflection, I had a bottle of New Belgium Springboard Ale, a spring seasonal that's a kind of wit-like thing, but 6.2% ABV, with an addition of oats, and spiced with Wormwood, Goji berries, and Schisandra...whatever the hell that is. Springboard was a perfect choice for the meal: the edge of the flavors cut the garlic and the richness of the tuna, the carbonation lifted the cheese and the olive oil, and it just tuned beautifully with the chevre. Best of all, it didn't overwhelm the crabs, which were excellent, delicious, juicy. I do love living near the Chesapeake this time of year.