Malinda Lo

First up this week are some photos of the dinner Amy and I made for Valentine’s Day. We decided to stay in on the 14th instead of paying for an overpriced limited menu out at a restaurant. Here’s what we made:

Click photos to enlarge

That’s filet mignon, baby! Because it was pouring rain outside, we seared it in a pan on the stove until it was medium-rare, and then made a balsamic vinegar-shallot reduction to pour on top. Those creamy globs on top are parmesan butter, and we put it all on top of a bed of arugula lightly drizzled with lemon juice. We roasted some Yukon golds and baby sweet potatoes with some rosemary as well.

Get ready for the close-up:

We had planned to go out to dinner on the 15th instead of the 14th, but the Bay area got dumped with buckets of rain all weekend, and we ended up canceling our reservations, because they would have meant driving an hour north in a the downpour (and back), which combined with traffic, just didn’t sound like much fun. In case you didn’t know, California’s in a drought, so the rainfall was much-needed. When there was a break in the rain on Monday, I took this photo of the creek next to our driveway (that’s the neighbor’s house in the background):

The water was roaring it was so loud.

The last pic is of one of the bridges in the neighborhood that cross over a bigger branch of the creek. I love this bridge, although in the winter after a storm the trees look a little bedraggled. Those steps, though, kill me every time (they go up quite a bit farther than you can see).

Just about now, I’m feeling that way about Book 2, which I’d like to tentatively title The Mystery of the Inscrutable Plot: A Melodrama. I know, I know! It will pass! But right now, it feels like climbing those steps, endlessly.

Here’s hoping the weekend brings a breakthrough.