Week 3: Five-Star Meals, Windansea Beach, and Charcuterie Boards
Monday, January 18-Sunday, January 24
Before we head into our usual recap of the week, we would like to take a few moments and highlight some of the delicious meals we have been concocting this winter work. Our humble abode is home to three chefs with very distinct skillsets. They are as follows:
Daniel "Jack-of-all-Trades" Desio
Executive chef. Maestro of all things Italian. Connoisseur of caprese. Overlord of the pasta sauce. Ladies, did we mention that he is single?
Ioana "I-wine-a" Mirica
The health inspector. So hyper-vigilant about food-borne illnesses that she will cook all meats into oblivion. You prefer your steaks bloody enough to say "moo?" Then this is not the place for you. Also infamous for cooking with wine.
Dillon "Hasn't-Graduated-to-Onions-Yet" Esposito-Kelley
The short order cook. Sandwiches? Salads? He's your man. Just don't ask him to cut a bell pepper for you, else he will serve you the seeds as well.
This week's kitchen conundrum:
As some of you may know--Dillon's all-time favorite meal is chicken parmesan. Since we have arrived and he first tasted Daniel's amazing pasta sauce, he has been talking about it. This Friday, he finally got around to making it.
Dillon was in charge of prepping the chicken and Daniel cooking it--since Dillon's chicken parm recipe requires that all moisture is eradicated from the chicken, and Ioana and Daniel prefer not to chew for 5 minutes every bite. As Daniel added the finishing touches, he noticed something strange about the cheese Dillon had picked out from the store; it was labeled "mozzarella-style." Even worse, it was dairy-free, gluten-free, and soy-free. If none of you have tasted this eclectic type of cheese before--let us spare you the trip to the grocery store--it's a chalky, brittle, unknown substance that certainly does not resemble the holy goodness of mozzarella.
Luckily, we had some leftover fresh mozzarella which we were able to use in order to salvage the chicken parm, but needless to say, Dillon will no longer help pick out groceries unsupervised.
At work, things have finally begun to fall into a steady routine. Daniel has been visiting the yard and developing creative solutions to design problems assigned to him. Dillon has completed Femap training and has begun compiling information about the weight of various ship components for future structural analysis. Ioana has been researching naval and commercial ships for a new ship concept NASSCO is pursuing.
Outside of work, we have been using every opportunity we are given to explore San Diego. On Thursday, Daniel and Ioana ventured to explore Point Loma. Dillon decided that his time was better spent playing World of Warcraft. Daniel and Ioana's first stop was Mitch's Seafood which is well-known for its California-style, local caught seafood. Daniel ordered a mixed seafood platter and Ioana swordfish tacos. After picking up their to-go orders, they took a brisk walk to Shoreline Park--a mile long stretch promenade with breathtaking views of the San Diego skyline. While enjoying their meal, they also received a visit from one of the old Kaiser-class oil replenishment vessels.
Stuffed from the yummy seafood--but eager to fil their dessert stomach--Daniel and Ioana took a quick detour to Little Italy before heading home. There, they stopped by Salt & Straw for some ice cream.
Like we mentioned, most of San Diego's tourist attractions and restaurants are temporarily closed due to COVID. As Daniel and Ioana ate their ice cream in the Piazza della Famiglia it was impossible not to ponder about how lively the night would have been had they visited during another time. Surely all the stacked chairs and tables would have been filled with city-goers and live performers.
Intermediate showers were announced for the remainder of the week, but that did not stop us from exploring. On Saturday morning we headed to Windansea Beach in La Jolla. This gorgeous beach made Ioana's soul so happy she could not stop taking photos.
Ioana also took some videos of the beach which only begin to capture its beauty. Enjoy!
But the day was not over yet! As noon approached we returned to the Airbnb and headed our separate ways. Ioana visited Isa for a ladies' night with with some coworkers. They watched Bring It On, chatted, and created a mouthwatering charcuterie board. Dillon and Daniel had their own guys' night equivalent with Chris.
On Sunday, the trio cleaned and rested--exhausted from the week's busy schedule.
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