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Grilled Skirt Steak with Chimichurri and Cucumber Salad

September 5, 2014 //
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Grilled Skirt Steak

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skirt steak – about 6 oz. per person
olive oil
salt and pepper

Heat a grill pan, large saute pan, or grill until hot. Meanwhile, drizzle a bit of olive oil on both sides of your steaks and season both sides generously with salt and pepper (if you have any fresh rosemary, chop one or two sprigs and add with the salt and pepper). Add steak to pan or grill and cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side. Four minutes for medium rare, about five for medium, etc. Let the steak rest for 10 minutes before carving.

Chimichurri

The star of this meal is the chimichurri. This Argentinian sauce is usually used for grilled meats, but goes nicely with grilled fish and even vegetables. I like to make a good amount, store it in a mason jar in my fridge for a few weeks, and use it on as much as I can.

This epicurious.com recipe is great, but I usually half it since 4 cups seemed like a lot, Also, I used a few hot pepper flakes instead of a jalapeño because that is what I had.

Cucumber Salad

There is nothing easier than cucumber salad. I usually make it with red wine vinegar; but my Dad makes a killer mayonnaise version that he calls Combination Salad – does this sound familiar to any of my upstate NY readers? I was messing around on Pinterest recently and came across this recipe from Saveur. It reminds me of the cucumber salad you get at a good BBQ place. In a twist from my usual recipe it uses apple cider vinegar, which I think is one of the unsung heroes of our kitchens. My variation is below:

Cuke Salad_Web

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 TB. sugar
1/2 ts. salt
2-4 cucumbers (depending on size), peeled every 1/2 inch of so around and sliced thin
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
ground black pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, whisk together vinegar, sugar and salt. Add cucumber and red onion and toss. Season with salt and pepper and chill.

 

 

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Italian Sausage, Panzanella and Corn on the Cob

September 2, 2014 //
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Italian Sausage

You can use pork, chicken, turkey – whatever you prefer. If you have a grill, by all means use it! We don’t, so I broil the sausages for about 10 minutes, turning them over halfway through.

Panzanella (Tomato and Bread Salad)
Tomatoes_web

3 tomatoes, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
½ red onion, thinly sliced
2 cups of stale Italian bread, cubed
6-8 kalamata olives, halved
1 TB. capers
2 TB. red wine vinegar
4 TB. extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper

Mix all of the ingredients together and let sit for about 20 minutes. Add more vinegar, oil, salt or pepper to taste.

Corn on the Cob

Boil water in a pot, put shucked corn in the water, turn off the heat and put a lid on your pot. Wait 10 minutes or so. Eat with lots of butter, salt and pepper.

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Pork Tenderloin with Tomato and Peach Compote and Corn on the Cob

August 27, 2014 //
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Pork Tenderloin with Tomato and Peach Compote

Pork Tenderloin w Peach and Tomato Compote

This is another lovely recipe that you can only make in the summer. Peaches and pork make such a wonderful pairing. This meal reminds me of this favorite, but you get the added addition of tomatoes. The compote would be wonderful with fish as well.

Note: I didn’t have curry powder and it was fine without. I bet a little mixture of cinnamon and chili powder would work well too.

Corn on the cob

Boil water in a pot, put shucked corn in the water, turn off the heat and put a lid on your pot. Wait 10 minutes or so. Eat with lots of butter, salt and pepper.

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Chicken Cutlets with Tomato and Basil Salad and Green Beans

August 27, 2014 //
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Chicken Cutlets with Tomato and Basil Salad

I can’t believe I’ve been writing this blog for this long without posting this chicken cutlet recipe! I make these all of the time – winter, spring, summer and fall. Breaded chicken cutlets are sort of like dumplings – every culture has their own version. In Italy – chicken milanese, in Austria – schnitzel, in Brooklyn – a breaded chicken cutlet. Call it whatever you want.

In the summer I love pairing them with a raw tomato salad. As a teenager, I used to get this dish almost every time I went to my favorite Italian restaurant on Long Island and I have been trying to recreate it ever since.
Chix Cutlets w Tomato

For the chicken cutlets:
1 1/2 lb. chicken cutlets, pounded thin
1/2 cup (ish) flour
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup (ish) bread crumbs (Progresso Italian Style or 4C Seasoned – seriously, go with old-school here)
1/4 cup (or more) vegetable oil (enough so that the skillet is covered)

Note: Only cook 2 or 3 cutlets at a time so that you don’t crowd the skillet. Leave a plate in the oven on a low temperature to keep your finished cutlets warm.

Place eggs, flour and bread crumbs in their own dish or on a plate and season each with salt and pepper. Season the chicken, on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Dip the chicken, on both sides, into the flour, shaking the excess off. Then dip the chicken into the egg on both sides, letting the excess drip off. And, finally dip the chicken into the bread crumbs. Place cutlets carefully into the skillet. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until one side is nicely browned. Turn chicken over and cook for another 2 minutes, or so. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

For the tomato salad: 
1 large tomato, chopped
1/2 small-medium red onion, sliced thin
2 TB. (or more) balsamic vinegar
several basil leaves, torn
salt and pepper, to taste

Toss all of the above ingredients together and let sit while you are preparing the chicken so the flavors meld together.

Steamed Green Beans

1 lb. green beans, trimmed and halved if very long
1 Tb. butter
salt and pepper

Over medium-high heat, place beans in a steamer basket set in a pot with enough water to almost touch the beans, cover. It should take between 5-10 minutes for the water to come to a boil and steam the green beans until they are tender, but keep an eye on them so they don’t overcook and become limp. Remove from basket and toss with butter, salt and pepper.

 

 

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Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta + Garlic Bread

August 25, 2014 //
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Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta
Greek Shrimp

If you close your eyes while eating this dish I swear you will hear the waves of the Mediterranean Ocean lapping on the shore. It is that good. Not only is it delicious, but it is really pretty. We obviously had it as our main course, but it could easily be served as a first course for a dinner party or even as an appetizer, tapas-style.

I went ahead and skinned the tomatoes, but if you are pressed for time you could probably skip this step.

Garlic Bread

Maybe not the healthiest, but you have to indulge once in awhile…

1 baguette, halved lengthwise
1 TB. butter
¼ cup of olive oil
6 cloves of garlic, minced
handful of parsley, minced (optional)
¼ ts. garlic powder
salt and pepper

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a small saucepan, heat butter, olive oil and garlic until the garlic releases its aroma and gets a little bit golden.

Garlic Cooking

Remove from heat and stir in the parsley (if using), garlic powder, salt and pepper. Brush mixture all over the inside of the baguette. Wrap the baguette in foil and place in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, then open up the foil so that the top of the baguette is exposed and bake for another 2-3 minutes, or until the bread is hard to the touch and a bit crispy.

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Summer Sauté with Corn

August 25, 2014 //
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Summer Sauté with Corn

This vaguely titled recipe came to be when I was trying to come up with a new way to eat corn. Treating corn as you would any other grain (pasta, quiona, rice, couscous, etc.) allows you to be really creative, and you can incorporate whatever you think looks good at the farmers market. I’ve used fresh green beans, tomatoes and sausage one night and then another night I was inspired by this New York Times recipe which called for greens, red pepper, scallions and bacon. Both were great and really quick. The key, of course, is using fresh ingredients that are in season.

Summer Saute the NY Times way

Summer Saute with Corn the NY Times way

1 TB. olive oil
1 lb. of Italian sausage, crumbled
1 shallot, minced
4 ears of corn, kernels cut off the cob
1/2 lb. green beans, trimmed and cut in half
1 large tomato, chopped

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add sausage and cook until no longer pink. Remove sausage from skillet.

In the same skillet sauté the shallot for 1-2 minutes. Add corn and green beans and sauté for another 3-4 minutes. Add tomatoes and sausage and toss carefully. Season with salt and pepper.

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Salmon with Peach and Tomato Salsa + Corn on the Cob

August 22, 2014 //
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Salmon with Peach and Tomato Salsa

Salmon with Peach and Tomato Salsa

 

As usual, begin by preparing the salmon the Pioneer Woman way (olive oil, salt and pepper on a filet, pop in a cold oven turned to 400 degrees for 20 minutes).

While the salmon is roasting start the salsa. Peach salsa is a great example of how awesome it is to cook in the summer because the preparation takes no time at all and there is literally no cooking involved – just mixing. 

1 peach, pitted and chopped
1 large tomato, chopped
1/4 red onion, sliced thin
several basil leaves, ripped (or mint – whatever is on hand)

Soak red onion slices in a bit of red wine vinegar for 15-20 minutes. Drain and toss with peach, tomato and basil.

Corn on the cob

Boil water in a pot, put shucked corn in the water, turn off the heat and put a lid on your pot. Wait 10 minutes or so. Eat with lots of butter, salt and pepper.

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Citrus Asian Marinated Chicken Thighs + Sesame Broccoli

August 22, 2014 //
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Citrus Asian Marinated Chicken Thighs

Even though the recipe says that you can marinate the chicken for just 20 minutes, I made the marinade the night before because I had some free time and let the chicken sit overnight. The flavors were intense and delish. I didn’t have an orange so I just used more lime juice and it was fine.

Sesame Broccoli

Basically roasted broccoli, but with an Asian twist!

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Striped Bass with Green Beans and Tomatoes + Corn on the Cob

August 22, 2014 //
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Striped Bass with Summer Beans and Heirloom Tomatoes
Fish w Green Beans and Tomatoes_Web

This recipe is from The New Greenmarket Cookbook, which is near and dear to my heart. This labor of love was written by my former manager and mentor Gabrielle Langholtz, who is also the editor of Edible Manhattan and former editor of Edible Brooklyn. It is a compilation of seasonal recipes from New York’s best chefs and even some of the farmers who grow our produce, needless to say, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it! Fortunately, as someone with close ties to Greenmarket, even eight years after my departure, I was able to purchase one of the first copies at the book release party. Very exciting! It was spring when I first thumbed through the cookbook, but I, of course, longingly turned to summer’s recipes. So, the minute I saw the season’s first green beans and tomatoes at the market I made this dish.

I couldn’t find stripped bass that day so I substituted it with halibut. Just make sure to use a thick(ish) white fish.

2 TB. olive oil
4 5-ounce fillets striped bass
1/2 lb. green beans, trimmed and halved
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1 medium shallot, peeled and sliced
1 TB. thyme leaves
2 large heirloom tomatoes, diced, juices reserved
salt and pepper to taste
half a lemon

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Heat a 12-inch oven-safe saute pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to coat the bottom. Season the fish with salt and pepper and place in the pan, skin side down. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until the skin is crispy. Transfer to the oven until just cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat another 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and the green beans, season with salt and pepper, and cook until slightly charred, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic, shallot and thyme. Add the tomato and its juices and cook until the tomato stews down, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve the stewed tomatoes and green beans in a shallow bowl and top with the stripped bass. Finish with a squeeze of lemon.

Corn on the cob

Boil water in a pot, put shucked corn in the water, turn off the heat and put a lid on your pot. Wait 10 minutes or so. Eat with lots of butter, salt and pepper.

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Gnocchi with Chicken Sausage and Tomato + Kale Caesar Salad

August 22, 2014 //
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Gnocchi with Chicken Sausage and Tomato
Gnocci w Sausage and Tomatoes

This was the first time I had ever prepared gnocchi. I like it, but most of the time I think it is a big heavy. However, it is one of Patrick’s favorites and this recipe is different from the typical way gnocchi is prepared so I tried it. It was really tasty. I used chicken sausage, but I have a feeling regular pork sausage would be even better. You would have to cook the sausage for a bit longer, but probably only a few minutes.

Kale Caesar Salad

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