Thai Celery Salad and the Importance of Fish Sauce

I've been making this Thai Celery Salad, courtesy of the good folks at Bon Appetit, for a few months now. It, as they say, is Super Good. There are just a handful of ingredients and they some together for a delightfully clean and crunchy side salad.

It's one of several menu items that contain fish sauce, a condiment I now always have on hand. In my early days experimenting with fish sauce I bought the small glass bottles produced by Thai Kitchen. Now that I use it more frequently (fish sauce also goes into my Cauliflower Curry and Pad Thai) I've graduated to larger bottles sourced in the Thai market on Broadway or in the well-stocked isles of Treasure Island. Lately I've been using Tiparos which comes in a plastic bottle, but I prefer big glass bottles, tho lately they're hard to source.

I'm going to lose some of you here with this fact: Fish sauce is anchovy. And yes, I'm a huge fan of the anchovy, but I really don't think that drives my fondness for the sauce. It's an integral flavor in Thai cooking, and one almost singlehandedly makes whatever you're preparing taste like Thai food. What I'm saying is this, if you like Thai food and are interesting in adding some Thai recipes to your repertoire - don't let being an Anchovy Hater hold you back. Here's that recipe:

INGREDIENTS
6-8 stalks celery, trimmed, washed and sliced on a diagonal 3 green onions, thinly sliced on a diagonal
1 cup cilantro, chopped
3 T canola oil
2 T lime juice, freshly squeezed
1 T fish sauce
Fresh ground pepper 1/4 cup roasted peanuts, chopped

METHOD
Chop celery, green onion and cilantro and add to a small mixing bowl. Add fish sauce, lime juice, canola oil and a few turns of pepper and mix to combine. Let sit about 15 minutes to marinate. Transfer to a serving bowl. Top with chopped peanuts and serve.

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Salsa You'll Want to Put on Everything

There's a simple reason why it's taken me so long to photograph my new favorite salsa: it's too delicious. It's gone before I can set up a good photo. It's a quick recipe, so it gets made while prepping dinner. By the time it's done, it hits the table. Any leftovers are often gobbled up first the the next morning atop someone's potatoes, eggs, or in a breakfast burrito. Besides, even if I were to try to get the shot before we sat down to eat, the light is all wrong. Unlike yours truly, food photographs best in the light of day.

Anyway, this recipe comes from Rick Bayless's awesome cookbook, Mexican Everyday. I had been turning out batch after grubbin' batch throughout the summer. Even though tomato season has passed, this salsa remains doable. Just take care to select some good, red, vine-ripened tomatoes, as I did this week. I allowed them to ripen a few more days on my counter, and made salsa when the tomatoes had that glorious garden-fresh tomato scent on their skins.

Last night we had Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos. Fresh salsa is an absolute must with Fish Tacos. I grilled the Mahi (which I just basted with a wee bit of canola oil, fresh lime juice, salt and pepper before grilling, and an extra shot of lime juice as a board dressing while it rested post-grilling) alongside some late season corn on the cob from Whole Foods, turning the latter into a quick Roasted Corn Salsa. Tonight's dinner will be a tough act to follow.

Here's both recipes:

Fresh Tomato Salsa
Print recipe only here

INGREDIENTS
1 jalapeño, seeded and roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
2 medium ripe tomatoes, quartered and cored
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1 lime, halved
2 green onions, finely sliced
Salt and fresh pepper

METHOD
In Cuisinart, process or pulse jalapeño until finely chopped, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add garlic and process or pulse. Add tomatoes and cilantro and pulse until tomatoes are roughly chopped. Transfer to a small bowl.

Add sliced green onions. Squeeze juice from one half of the lime. Taste for seasoning to determine if you need the other half of the lime. Add salt and pepper to taste.


Roasted Corn Salsa
Print recipe only here

INGREDIENTS
2-3 ears fresh corn
1/2 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
1/2 lime
2-3 T chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper



METHOD
Preheat grill or broiler. Shuck the corn and remove all the silk. Brush with canola oil. Grill for about 5-7 minutes, rotating halfway thru, or until the corn is browned. Remove from the grill and allow to cool to room temperature.

Prep the remaining ingredients and combine in a small bowl. When the corn has cooled, cut it from the cob and add to the bowl. Add the lime juice and stir to combine. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as desired.

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On the Cutting of Lettuce (and a new Caesar salad)

Opinions abound on the cutting of lettuce, both in the prep kitchen and at the dining table.  It's one of those things that people are completely sure about and often wrong. For prep, it's generally acknowledged that tearing, as apposed to cutting, lettuce is less damaging to the structure of leaf. The nerds investigators at Cooks Illustrated tested the phenomena and more or less proved what I always heard growing up: that sliced lettuce will brown on the edges (but not for several days after slicing).

Even so, my standard operating procedure when making Caesar salad is to use a serrated knife to slice Romaine hearts. I don't use one of those "lettuce" knives either - just my favorite Henkels Utility knife. We go thru lettuce quickly so browning isn't an issue. In fact, when I make Caesar I routinely use all the Romaine hearts in the bag, so there's none leftover to go brown anyway.

Then there's the issue concerning the etiquette of cutting salad with a knife at the dining table. The new Emily Post assures readers that it is, in fact, ok to cut your lettuce at the dining table. Apparently, the no-no originated along with carbon-steel knife blades that would become discolored and corrode from the acid in salad dressing. With the routine use of stainless steel and silver, knives are safe from corrosion and diners are cleared for cutting up lettuce. This clearance is acknowledged in such few circles that I can hardly advocate it. I don't want to be blamed when your bossy aunt pulls you aside for a primer on table etiquette when she catches you cutting your salad.
Cutting salad is usually avoidable, anyway. Except in the case of the new Caesar I've been making since this summer. I've been making Kristine's Caesar dressing since she taught it to me ten years ago. This summer I came across a recipe in The Art of Simple Food and decided to shake things up. This new recipe - nearly identical to the original - is a lot like what Mary used to make at Cafe Nola. I've been drizzling it onto long, thin, delicate Romaine hearts, along with croutons and ribbons of Parmesan. Those long, thin Romaine hearts are beautiful on the plate. And they can basically be cut with the side of your fork since the spines are so crunchy. But I'm spreading the word about the acceptability of taking a knife to lettuce at the dining table.

Here's that recipe:

Cafe Caesar for Romaine Hearts
Print recipe only here

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
2 cloves garlic
2-3 anchovy fillets
1 T red wine vinegar
1 T lemon juice
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, best quality
Fresh ground pepper

METHOD
Peel the garlic and and pound in a mortar and pestle, mashing it up. Add the anchovy fillets and continue to mash into a paste.

Measure the lemon juice and vinegar into a small measuring cup. Add the garlic/anchovy mash and whisk with a fork to combine. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

SERVING
Stack individual Romaine leaves on large plates. Drizzle some dressing on top. Using a vegetable peeler, peel long ribbons of Parmesan or Grana Padano off a large block. Serve with croutons, if desired.

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Summer Food and Nightcrawler

I haven't been cooking much lately  - just enough to pass along a few recipes from the past month. The Barefoot Contessa's Flag Cake (our version is pictured here) was a big hit, as were David Lebovitz's Gougères. I'm looking forward to trying out Mark Bittman's Sigapore Chili Lobster sometime soon. For that adventure - which will involve live lobsters - I've already secured co-council. I've been watching re-runs of The Good Wife and have found legalese as fun to throw around as Italian. Prego!

When TGW first debuted I assumed they'd never find me in their audience. This was for the same reason I planned to never watch Big Love:  there's just not enough lifetime waking hours to spend any of them wrapped up in adulterous dramas. I'm not sure if it's more surprising that I watched a multiple seasons of Big Love or that I found myself rooting for those dear polygamists. With TGW, it's all about Kalinda and Eli. The last time I saw Alan Cumming was as Nightcrawler in X-Men 2. I'm half-expecting him to pounce into Alicia's office, long tail flying, only to dissipate into a cloud of midnight blue smoke.

In between reruns I've been answering a flood of emails concerning picnic food. Here's what I've been suggesting:

Salads
Fresh Corn Salad
Three Bean Salad
Roasted Red Potato Salad
Avocado Salad
Potato, Dill, and Cucumber Salad
Panzanella

Main Courses
Flank Steak Sandwiches
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Summer Chicken Salad
Pan Bagnia
Chilled Soba Noodles


More soon on tweaks to the Flag Cake and gougères to really send them over the top.

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The Asian Steak Salad that will usher you through the Long, Cold Winter

This comes with a warning: it is better than you dare dream. The recipe comes from my trusty Wagamama cookbook and is adapted only slightly. Served warm, and cooked quickly in the fragrant marinade, this makes for a perfect winter salad.

The bean sprouts are totally optional. You could co without or substitute with cabbage or bok choy. The next time I make this salad I'm going to pile the spouts up on the side of the greens, uncooked.

For the beef, I highly recommend the super lean sirloin steaks sold at Trader Joe's. This particular sirloin has just 2 grams of saturated fat per 4-ounce serving. Of course the real beauty is the marinade; I suspect you could substitute shrimp, chicken or pork with fantastic results. You could add additional veggies to the salad - carrot, julienned Bell peppers, mushrooms or grape tomatoes. Or, make it into a pasta dish by serving it on a bed of thin rice noodles, much like the Beef Salad at Simply It that I like so much.

Cilantro-Ginger Beef Salad
Print recipe only here

Serves 4-6 as an entrée

INGREDIENTS
12-16 ounces sirloin steak, trimmed and sliced into thin strips
1 small red onion, halved and sliced crosswise
2 handfuls bean sprouts - OPTIONAL
Salad greens
1/2 English cucumber, halved and sliced
2 T cilantro

For the marinade
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1-inch piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped
few shakes red chili flakes plus squirt hot sauce
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
2 T fish sauce
3 T light soy sauce
2-3 T canola oil

Salad dressing
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, pressed
2 T soy sauce
3 T rice vinegar
3 T canola oil
1 t sesame oil
2 t sugar
1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped

METHOD
Prep everything, starting with marinade. Combine sliced beef and cilantro marinade and toss to coat. marinate for at least 1 hour, or up to overnite. I did it for about 45 minutes and was thrilled with the result.

While beef is marinating, or 30 minutes before you plan to eat, make the salad dressing and prep the salad veggies. Then get ready to cook.

Heat a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add 1-2 T canola oil. Add the red onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, tossing every so often, until slightly caramelized. Increase heat a bit and add beef (with marinade), cooking until browned and mostly cooked through. Add bean sprouts and cook another 2-3 minutes, then remove from heat.

Toss salad greens with veggies, cilantro, dressing and portion onto dinner plates. Top with beef and serve.

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Fit to be Tossed: Five what-could-have-beens for wasted salad greens

I threw away a bag of baby romaine today. That never happens. We eat a ton of salad, so I buy a lot each week. This particular bag got lost in the southwest corner of the fridge and the leaves had unified, Terminator-style, into a solid mass. Only they didn't come out fighting. They just slunk into the trash, muttering gloomily like Eeyore. Poor dears. They would have made a fine vehicle for any one of the following five dressings.

No one should have to rely on bottled dressings.  Fresher is way better, and way healthier (less sugar, salt and better quality of ingredients). Making a good dressing is a good way to develop your palate.  Get used to tasting your dressing as you go. You might find you like more or less acid, or more or less sugar. Play with any of these and experiment to find your own House recipe.

Riffs on Dressing for a Family of Four

METHOD
Combine all ingredients in a large salad bowl. Just prior to service, add washed, spun greens and toss.

1. The House Standard
3 T olive oil
2 T red wine or white wine vinegar
Pinch salt, pepper and sugar
1/2 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped
1 t crumbled blue cheese, mashed into everything else
optional: thinly sliced ripe pear (omit the sugar if you use pear)

2. Good with Mexican fare
3 T olive oil or canola oil or a mixture
2 T lime juice
Pinch salt, pepper and sugar
1/2 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped
1 T cilantro, finely chopped
1 T finely chopped onion or shallot

3. Good on a chopped salad
3 T olive oil
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 t dijon mustard
1 t honey
1 T finely grated Parmesan (or, omit parm and add one green onion, finely chopped)
Pinch salt and pepper

4. A light summertime dressing
3 T olive oil
2 T white wine or champagne vinegar
1/2 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped
Pinch salt, pepper and sugar

5. Good with Asian fare
1/4 cup canola oil or a mixture or peanut and canola oils
2 T rice wine vinegar
1 t sesame oil
1 T soy sauce
2 t sugar
Juice of half a lime
1 T fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 T shallot, finely chopped
1/2 garlic clove, pressed or finely chopped
optional: 1 t chili sauce
Pinch salt and pepper

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Libertarian at the Salad Bar

Remember in middle school when every paper you wrote somewhere contained the phrase, "Webster's dictionary defines..."?

And remember in college when every earnest letter to the editor began:  As a... [fill in occupation/major, ethnicity, gender, eye color, in any order]?

My high school reunion and birthday are nigh, so I'm feeling my age. I was thinking that if I started this piece with the Webster's bit or, "As a brown-eyed woman who usually eats three meals daily..." it might make me sound younger. Or daft.

Anyway, Webster's Dictionary defines salad as, "A preparation of vegetables, as lettuce, celery, water cress, onions, etc., usually dressed with salt, vinegar, oil, and spice." In my house, a salad should only be made from one of three things: red leaf, green leaf or Romaine. Additions (red onion, grape tomatoes, English cucumber) are viewed with skepticism, at best, but more commonly as a Libertarian views federal spending: "disappointing and troubling," in case you don't have time for the link.

Avocado salad is such an offense (it contains black beans!) that I really only make it for myself or like-palated friends. If you're not averse to the combining and tossing of vegetables you will just love it.

Avocado Salad
Print recipe only here

Serves 6-8 as a side dish

YOU WILL NEED:
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained (dump them into a mesh strainer or colander and run water over them)
1/2 cup red onion, diced
1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
zest of one lime
juice of 2 limes
1-2 T good olive oil
1 t kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, pressed
2 ripe avocados cut into 1/2-inch dice (at point of service - do not prep any earlier)

METHOD
Place the tomatoes, yellow pepper, black beans, red onion, jalapeño peppers, and lime zest in a large bowl. Whisk together the lime juice, olive oil, salt, black pepper, garlic, and cayenne pepper and pour over the vegetables. Toss well.

Just before you're ready to serve the salad, cut the avocados and gently stir nto the salad. Check the seasoning and serve at room temperature.

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5 Entree Salads for the New Year

This caught my eye today: After Holiday Gluttony, a Perfect Time for Entree Salads from the New York Times Recipes for Health column. I don't get a ton of recipes from this source - Martha's food never gets me excited - but I do like the idea she presents here. Naturally, the recipe that follows her great idea of a title is something I don't want to eat as a main course or otherwise, Curried Rice and Quinoa Salad.

It's very possible to eat light but still be totally satisfied with a entree salad just top a salad with grilled fish, chicken or steak, even a good canned tuna in a pinch. If you've grilled your protein, you want to let it rest for a minimum of five minutes after grilling/cooking, to lock in the juices - so it's not like you're going to wilt your greens. In my world, an entree salad is only really an entree is you've got some form of protein. Without protein, a big salad too closely resembles a refreshing glass of water.

1. Asian Grilled Salmon Salad (substitute steak, chicken or pork for the salmon)
2. Salad Nicoise
3. Skirt or Flank Steak Salad
4. Mixed Greens with Warm Goat Cheese and Roasted Beets
5. Chicken Salad on Greens. When I make this, I toss my greens with apple cider vinegar, olive oil, and pinches of salt, sugar and pepper. Mound the greens on a plate and top with chicken salad.

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Candied Pecans for Fall Salads and, Let's Be Honest, Snacking

I'm spending a cool, quiet fall afternoon with a cup of tea (Irish Breakfast, plus a splash of milk and honey), a candle (Autumn Promanade), and a oven filled with pecans. If the calendar or weather report doesn't herald autumn's advent then the scents in my kitchen surely do.

I had to pay attention as I mixed the magic elixer for my pecans - I usually just pour in a little of this and a splash of that. If you've never made them before, I recommend that technique - just use my recipe as a guideline. These are really nice with a little kick - hence the cayenne. If you don't believe me, then just add the tiniest pinch. It'll still be a nice seasoning and you won't get any heat.

You can store them in an airtight container for up to a month, I would think. They are so tasty that they never last that long. They are truly delightful scattered on fall salads, especially the Pinch House Salad with pear and Gorgonzola, and the Warm Goat Cheese on Mixed Greens.

Candied Pecans
Print recipe only here

INGREDIENTS
2 cups pecan halves
3-4 T maple syrup
2 t canola oil
1/4 t cinnamon
pinch kosher salt
pinch cayenne (I like a generous pinch!)

METHOD
Preheat oven to 275.

Combine syrup, oil and spices in a small mixing bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking.

Add pecans and, using a flexible spatula, toss well to coat. Use the spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so that the syrup coats the nuts and not the bowl.

Transfer to a baking sheet and bake in the oven for about 30-45 minutes, stirring a few times during roasting time.

Let cool completely, then transfer to an airtight glass storage container.

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Salad Dressing vs. Cruet

Let's get something straight, right from the start. By SALAD DRESSING I mean something you make yourself by combining oil, acid and desired flavors, not something you buy at the store.

I make salad dressing - a few different kinds: caesar, a spicy garlic one I serve on baby spinach, and my house standard. When I was a kid, we only used oil and vinegar, self-service. I always knew our cruet tradition was a result of the years my dad spent in Rome. But it wasn't a tradition I continued in my own kitchen. And while I enjoyed the break from dressing this summer (and noted the profusion of cruet caddies across Italy) I'm sticking to my dressing- making custom. But I have a new favorite, inspired by our balsamic-laced late evening Italian dinners. And this is it:

Balsamico
5 T extra virgin olive oil
2-3 T balsamic vinegar (I like Colavita for a supermarket standard)
2-3 super-thin slices red onion, chopped a bit
pinch kosher salt
pinch sugar
Few turns ground pepper

Mix together and toss with a few big handfuls of your favorite lettuces and wedges of a nice ripe tomato. Serve immediately.

I mentioned the Colavita, which I really do find to be a good, flavorful value vinegar. I dropped some dough on a fine balsamic this summer, but have yet to crack the seal. Any of you ever scope the balsamic under lock and key at Zingerman's in Ann Arbor? If you have a favorite balsamic I'd love to hear about it.

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Summer Sicilian Salad

I don't get to as many cooking classes as I would like. A recent one at Chicago's Chopping Block provided a great opportunity to mingle with friends from our awesome neighborhood school, cook, eat and later, in the school's lobby/storefront, wine-goggle costly kitchenware (many of which were more useful than the wine-goggling would imply).

Anyhoo, this salad was the thing I enjoyed most. I'm not sure what makes it Sicilian, per se. Surely the olives, tomatoes and capers are classic south-Mediterranean ingredients. Naturally I can hardly mention anything Sicilian without quoting Vizzini: "Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line!"

Sicilian Salad
Print recipe only here

INGREDIENTS
2-3 bunches arugula, rinsed
2 small heads bibb lettuce, rinsed and torn
2-3 celery stalks, sliced diagonally
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup kalamata olives
1 T capers
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 T red wine vinegar (I like Colavita)
Kosher salt and ground pepper to taste

METHOD
Make sure to spin lettuces well to remove as much water as possible. Add salad ingredients (arugula through capers, above) to a salad bowl. Drizzle with oil and vinegar and add salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Toss and serve.

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Baby Spinach Salad with a Side of Deception

There are several times where I've pushed the envelope on truthiness in reporting the food on my children's plates. Unless I'm serving up homemade pizza or pasta or another favorite meal of theirs they come to the table with polite apprehension, at best, or, more commonly, like arrant skeptics. Their policy on food is Disgusting until Proven Edible.

I haven't been able to stomach lying to them about what they're eating like one pediatrician advised. My oldest is a virtual vegetarian which the good doctor considered unacceptable. More acceptable was that I find ways to sneak meat into her diet, which was not something I was willing, ethically or physically, to do. For all the hoopla over the Jessica Seinfeld book, the one thing I couldn't escape was that to keep foods from being detected by picky eaters there would have to be so little of that food present in the meal that the child couldn't possibly get the food's essential nutrients. For the amount of time spent steaming and pureeing, there's little nutritional benefit.

I'd prefer my kids get to know their veggies, and to develop an understanding of what they're putting in their mouths, whether it's a chopped salad, low fat brownies or baked cheese curls. Similarly, adults are well-advised to read labels and be more aware of the contents of our food choices.

This salad is the only item I've tricked them into eating by not telling them it was spinach. I just called it Baby Greens, as in "I made that baby greens salad you both like," while smirking to myself. They'd been eating it happily for several years before two things happened. First, I slipped and said, "Pass the spina- ...err, baby greens." Then, they started reading the produce packages in the fridge. It was only a matter of time. Luckily, they really do love the salad, so there was no backlash.

What foods do you trick your children in enjoying?

Baby Spinach Salad
Print recipe only here

Serves 4-6

This dressing takes its inspiration from the Garlic-Parmesan dressing in Pizza, Pasta, Panini. It's a spicy one, due to the garlic.

In a salad bowl mix together:

* 2 cloves garlic, pressed
* 1 t kosher salt

Add:

* ¼ cup grated Parmesan
* 1/3 cup olive oil
* 3-4 T red wine vinegar
* Fresh ground pepper

Balance flavors with more oil or vinegar to taste. Toss with 4-6 ounces baby spinach and serve.

Oh, and read this from The New York Times for more:
Spinach: Nutrition in a Bag
Those ubiquitous bags of baby spinach make for convenience food that’s hard to beat.

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Warm Goat Cheese on Mixed Greens

Remember the late 80s when every restaurant had a warm goat cheese salad on the menu? Neither do I. The late 80s held more SAT prep and college visits than California cuisine for me.

Dating myself here makes me feel so young! This is way better than last week when the report Footloose is 25 years old made me feel like a prune of a lady.

Baked goat cheese on greens has been on the menu at Berkeley's Chez Panisse since the restaurant opened it's doors in 1971. It's a salad I enjoy this time of year, paired with autumnal accompaniments like roasted beets, walnuts and pear.

Warm Goat Cheese on Mixed Greens
Print recipe only here

Serves 4

YOU WILL NEED:

6 cups mixed greens
8 ounces goat cheese
¼ cup bread crumbs mixed with fresh herbs, salt and pepper

For the dressing:

5-6 T olive oil
2 T red wine vinegar
½ small clove garlic, pressed
Pinch salt
Pinch sugar
Freshly ground black pepper

Also Wik (Optional):

2 beets, roasted, peeled and sliced
1-2 ripe pears, quartered, cored and sliced
Roasted walnuts or pecans

METHOD

Preheat toaster oven to 350°

In a small bowl combine breadcrumbs, salt and pepper and some chopped fresh herbs if you have them.

Portion goat cheese and flatten into a disc.

Coat the goat cheese rounds in breadcrumbs and place on a baking tray (or refrigerate for later use).

Bake for 10-12 minutes. If using nuts, roast them now for 3-5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, combine dressing ingredients.

Peel and slice beets or pear.

Remove goat cheese rounds from oven and reserve.

Toss greens in dressing and portion evenly among four plates.

Add beet or pear slices to each plate and scatter roasted nuts.

Add the goat cheese to each plate and serve immediately.


Click here to see Alice Waters' recipe.

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Americana Summer Salads

When I lived in Telluride my neighbor, Antonietta, would bring me stack of pizzelle and a big bowl of her three-bean salad at the start of every summer. This provided a needed watering of my southern Italian roots. Really my Italian-American roots, in the case of the canned bean salad.

I loved Antonietta's old-fashioned three-bean salad (her pizzelle were good too, but my allegiance will always be with the anise-spiked ones of my youth). I always said I would come over one time so she should teach me to make the salad myself but that never happened.

So imagine my squeal of delight when this caught my eye: Classic Three-Bean Salad in an email from America's Test Kitchen. These are the same serious people who preside over Cook's Illustrated. I'm forever grateful to them for teaching me to make pulled pork but often I feel sorry for them. They seem to take NO pleasure in cooking. The pity may cease if they continue to provide me with great recipes.

I'm excited that the Classic Three-Bean Salad dressing incorporates fresh beans while keeping with the similar flavors as Antonietta's, mainly parsley and red onion. The recipe is a lot like my favorite coleslaw where the dressing is boiled to dissolve sugar. I'm going to make this on Wednesday after picking up the green and yellow beans at the farmer's market.

Classic Three-Bean Salad
Print recipe only here


INGREDIENTS
* 2/3 cup red wine vinegar
* 1/3 cup granulated sugar
* 1/3 cup canola oil
* 2 medium cloves garlic, pressed
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt
* Fresh ground black pepper
* 8 ounces green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 8 ounces yellow wax beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 1 16-ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
* ½ medium red onion, chopped
* ¼ cup minced fresh parsley leaves

METHOD
Heat vinegar, sugar, oil, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste in small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Fill a large saucepan with water and 1 tablespoon kosher salt and bring to a boil. Add green and yellow beans; cook until crisp-tender, about 3-5 minutes. Meanwhile, fill a medium bowl with ice water. When beans are done, drain and immediately plunge into ice water to stop cooking process. Let sit until chilled, about 2 minutes. Drain well.

Add green and yellow beans, kidney beans, onion, and parsley to vinegar mixture; toss well to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight to let flavors meld. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving. Salad can be covered and refrigerated up to 4 days.

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The First Salad of Summer

Arugula from two farmers: Roquette, left, is more potent than arugula on the right

Yesterday was a perfect summer day. No clouds. Low humidity. Hot.

Ah, summer. There are so many things that are awesome about summer: hot coffee at the beginning of a hot day; tank tops; the smell of Coppertone; the promise of a day spent near the water; corn on the cob; watermelon; BLUEBERRIES!; and arugula. (Disclosure: yesterday’s designation as Perfect was likely influenced by the separate blueberry and arugula feasts I enjoyed.)

Arugula, aka Rocket, makes the list because eating it does to the mouth what jumping into a pool on a hot day does to your body. It’s a great sensation, provided you’ve got access to freshly-picked product.

I don’t bother with supermarket arugula and I would argue that no one should. It never delivers the true intensity of flavor or punch. Get your arugula from the farmer who grew it. Take it home and dress it simply with olive oil and fresh lemon juice, a sprinkle of kosher salt and a few turns of fresh ground pepper.

We ate it this way last night, with delicious skirt steak on top. It was the perfect meal for the day.

Skirt Steak on Arugula
Print recipe only here

Serves 4

YOU WILL NEED:
• 1 ½ # skirt steak
• 3 bunches arugula
• 2 lemons
• Olive oil

METHOD:
Preheat grill

Lay steak on a baking sheet. Remove as much visible fat as possible. Season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper.

Rinse and spin arugula.

Grill steak over medium high heat for about 7 minutes on one side and about 5-6 minutes on the other. It should be cooked medium-well for best results.*

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, add:
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 5-6 T olive oil
• Pinch kosher salt
• Few turns fresh ground pepper

Take the steak off the grill and let sit for 15 minutes on a baking rack set over a sheet pan.

Slice across the grain.

Toss arugula in dressing and divide among four dinner plates. (Don’t toss the salad too early, the lemon makes the arugula wilt and while this doesn’t affect taste, it won’t look as pretty.)

Top with steak and serve immediately.


*Skirt steak has a lot of texture and tons of flavor - the polar opposite of a filet mignon which is buttery soft but has less beefy taste.

When not properly cooked or sliced it's rubbery and hard to chew. It has to be cooked toward the WELL DONE end of the spectrum or it'll be too tough.

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Creating Your House Salad

In the home kitchen it seems people who really enjoy cooking turn out a fine salad.

Your house salad depends entirely on your tastes. It's fashioned with some balance to the sweet and salty elements in every dressing. I tend to pour about 3 T vinegar to 5 T olive oil. Since your dressing has to season a whole bowl of greens, always add salt and a few turns of the pepper mill. Sugar, too - it balances out the acidity of the vinegar. Other additions (Gorgonzola, Parmesan, fresh pear or pomegranate, garlic, dijon) or substitutions (fresh lemon or lime juice instead of the vinegar; using different oils) depend on the mood I'm in as much as what else is on the menu that night.

I'm often asked what brands to chose for oils and vinegars. I just love Colavita - they're so dependable for all their products (they produce oils and vinegars). I exclusively use their aged red wine, Champagne, and balsamic vinegars. As for olive oil, I've been really happy with a relatively inexpensive Spanish olive oil from Trader Joe's. It comes in a clear glass bottle, squarish in shape. Always use the best quality oil for your salads. Since they're not cooked you'll get great flavor and all the health benefits.

As much as my family could live on romaine and red leaf alone, I like a variety of greens: spring mix, baby spinach, arugula, frisee, and butter or Bibb. Usually the market dictates the salad. I buy what looks good and cook accordingly. Of course standbys like romaine are always available which is one reason the Chicken Caesar Salad is such a family friendly meal.

Eight Favorite Pinch Salads
1. House Salad
2. Caesar
3. Seatown Salad
4. Greek Salad
5. Spicy Baby Spinach
6. Asian Salad
7. Balsamic Vinaigrette
8. Spring Salad Nicoise

Care to share your favorite dressings?

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Tabouli Time

It’s full on warm today in Chicago; the AC came on automatically in my car this afternoon. I love these warm days of spring. The new leaves are turning a deeper green, promising warmer days ahead. I’ve started planning my container gardens. All I can think about are the summer fruits and vegetables I’ve missed so much. In the middle of Whole Foods I thought Tabouli! There will be tabouli tonight! I sped over to the bulk foods aisle and filled a bag with bulgar wheat, tabouli’s principal ingredient.

Bulgar is durum wheat that has been parboiled and had the bran removed. Despite the de-branning, buglar is considered a nutrient rich cereal, with a low glycemic index (low GI foods release glucose more slowly and steadily).

The Arabic salad also known as tabbouleh is a heavily dependent on access to good ripe tomatoes. I make mine with garlic, lemon juice, parsley and tomato. Because cut tomatoes need to be consumed quickly, leftover or day-old tabouli is never delicious. When my kitchen was in disrepair a few weeks ago I sampled the tabouli from a new restaurant nearby whose friendly proprietors made me optimistic about the quality of their food. Turned out they’re more charming than talented. The tabouli was not fresh and thus inedible. Shortchanged, I’ve had a hankering for the good stuff ever since.

I'm often asked how to serve it. I think of it as an Arabic micro-panzanella, a bread salad. I'd never eat bread salad with bread, so I eat tabouli as a side salad. Others can't resist having good pita bread on hand. Certainly a pita stuffed with sliced lemon chicken and several spoonfuls of tabouli would make a delightful sandwich.

Tabouli
Print recipe only here

Serves 6-8
Combine, cover and let stand 20 minutes:
• 1 cup dry bulgar wheat
• 1 ½ cup boiling water

Add and combine:
• 1 ½ t salt
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 T garlic, pressed or minced
• 2 T olive oil

Cover and refrigerate 2-3 hours. Then add:
• 2 cups chopped tomato, seeded
• 1 cup parsley, finely chopped
• Fresh ground pepper

Taste, adjust seasoning as necessary and serve.

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Spring Salad Nicoise

When my children were smaller I always got a chuckle out of watching them play in a sprinkler. They would scamper around the yard shrieking with ecstatic anticipation. How do you describe the absurdity of a child’s thrill with something as predictable as a sprinkler? Will it come around again? Aaaaahhhhh! Here it comes!!!

Though I have discovered the timed rotations of the sprinkler I am equally enthralled by the predictable. Case in point: I am consistently captivated by the change of seasons as if their change were not guaranteed.

I think (I hope) I’m not alone here.

It seemed that the winter of 2008 would never end. It has. It seemed like I’d be eating stew and brussels sprouts and slurpy hot things in bowls forever. But hearty fare has given way to a small bounty of spring vegetables. I’ve been gazing with childlike wonderment at the small bounty of produce suddenly available. Spring greens! Rhubarb! Asparagus!

Salad Niçoise is a favorite spring dinner. Topped with fresh tuna and plated with a variety of color, you’ll hardly recall the long winter from which we’ve emerged.

Salad Niçoise
Print recipe only here

Serves 4

YOU WILL NEED:
• 1# fresh or 2-3 cans tuna
• Salad greens
• 3-4 tomatoes, quartered
• 1 cup olives - Niçoise olives are traditional. I'm not a fan so I substitute kalamatas.
• Asparagus - roasted or steamed. Green beans can substitute.
• 4 hard boiled eggs, quartered
• 8-10 small Yukon gold potatoes, steamed and sliced. Other smaller variety potatoes can substitute.

Dressing:
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup walnut oil*
• 3-4 T red wine vinegar
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 t dijon mustard
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 t honey
• Kosher salt and fresh ground white pepper* to taste

* The walnut oil and white pepper lend a decidedly Provençal flavor to the dressing. You can substitute olive oil and black pepper and still enjoy the dressing.

METHOD:
Roast asparagus. Trim tails (and peel the thicker ones), line them on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper and roast in a 425° oven for about 10 minutes until bright and tender. Cool to room temperature and reserve.

Brush tuna with olive oil, salt and pepper and cook to your liking (grilling or searing both work well here).

Assemble salad ingredients on individual plates. I like to center the greens and then scatter the other ingredients in small piles around the plate. Have fun with the design.

Top each plate with tuna and drizzle with dressing. Serve immediately.

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6 Other Ways to Enjoy Pesto

The title introduces other ways since I've already covered my most common pesto preparation, Chicken Pesto Pasta with Haricots Verts.

On Monday I was planning to make salmon salad with pesto dressing. This fell apart when I ran out of prep time. But the dinner morphed into something we hadn’t enjoyed in awhile: roast salmon with pesto. I served it with a baby spinach salad and artichokes. It took me about 25 minutes to prepare and it was really good. Here are the components:

Roast Salmon with Pesto Sauce
Salmon – Rub with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at about 375° for 10-12 minutes. When plating, top with a spoonful of pesto and spread evenly, allowing some of the salmon to still be visible around the edges.
Pesto
Steamed Artichokes
Baby Spinach Salad

Another dinner we haven't enjoyed in awhile is pesto pizza made on Alvarado Street sprouted pizza crusts. For a quick, healthy meal make a half batch of pesto (per one pizza crust), top with mozzarella and bake at 450° for about 5-6 minutes or until mozzarella is melted. If only I could persuade Whole Foods to carry the crusts.

I make pesto fresh every time because it doesn't retain its awesomeness once it has sat in the fridge. If you want to test that opinion and refrigerate your leftovers transfer the same to a small bowl, spread to make an even surface, and cover with a generous pour of olive oil. The oil will act as an air barrier and will help retain color and flavor. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap or a fitting lid. The items listed below make excellent use of any leftovers:

1. Make it into a salad dressing with romaine, chicken, jicama, and lots of salad veggies. For dressing take 1/4 cup pesto and add ½ cup olive oil and 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice, or more to taste.
2. Slathered crostini for an appetizer;
3. Stirred into Minestrone or other soup just before service;
4. Tossed with steamed green beans as a side dish

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Caesar Salad

I've always been a sucker for croutons. My good friend Kristine fed me this and then taught me how to make it.

Print recipe only here

Serves 4

Romaine - 3 heads (I buy the organic ones that are three to a pack and are just the interior leaves - adjust if you but the bigger single heads)

Grate about ½ cup parmesan.

Combine in a blender:

* 1 T mayo
* juice of one lemon ( you can add more later if you want)
* 1-2 cloves garlic (I use a garlic press first, pressing it into the
* blender, If you don't have a press just chop it up a bunch first)
* 2 t Worcestershire sauce
* 2 t grey poupon dijon mustard
* 4 anchovies
* several turns fresh ground pepper

Blend until smooth, scraping sides of blender as necessary.

Add slowly while blender is running:

* 1/3 cup olive oil (you can use half canola oil if you want)

Don't spin too long on the blender or it will get WAY too thick. Just
blend until all the oil is emulsified in there.

Pour over romaine, add parmesan and toss to coat.

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