Mint Butter Lamb Chops

When you’re making a very special dinner to serve to friends, such as my Jerusalem Cookbook Dinner Party, sometimes you really just need at least one dish that’s simple, easy, and crowd pleasing, and my Mint Butter Lamb Chops are all those things and more. Since lamb chops are on the expensive side of things, serving them on a night when there are lots of other dishes is a good way to get away with serving them in appetizer portions and still have guests feel like they got their fill. When I was creating the dish I wanted flavors that were interesting enough to stand up to the brilliant flavors and colors of the rest of the dishes; that is such an amazing quality of the Jerusalem recipes, but I also wanted to nod to things just a little more traditional like the pairing of lamb and mint. Because of the fresh mint in the Baba Ganoush via Jerusalem, I already had it on hand and it’s traditional ties to lamb made it an obvious choice. It was important to me that the mint felt savory, not sweet. Also, around this time I had mint and pea ravioli with spicy … Continue reading

Spicy Cold Shrimp Cucumber Salad

I love this Spicy Shrimp Cucumber Salad for a variety of reasons, first an foremost, as a girl from Wisconsin, I love recipes that are consistent year ‘round. It truly can be the bleak midwinter in much of the country around the Holidays, and having vibrantly colored and flavored food can make things bright. While you may not be able to find mouse melons, tender Persian cucumbers should be available. Aside from being made up of year ‘round vegetables, an exciting and hearty salad can be just what the palette (and the diet) need this time of year. There’s so much butter and milk and cream and carbs in the form of Christmas cookies and the like, and I love those things too, but sometimes one really needs a break. Finally, if you have lots of Jewish friends, like I do, you know that a common Christmas day tradition amongst Jews is Asian food and a trip to the movie theater. So this Spicy Shrimp Cucumber Salad is a break from the traditional in terms of Christmas-y recipes of baked goose and ham and is an homage to all of my wonderful Jewish friends. I encourage all of us, regardless … Continue reading

Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella

The inspiration for this Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella comes from a spread I saw in a Williams-Sonoma catalog! quite some time ago, and I must say, I’ve never made the recipe as it’s written. I served it as the salad course on my Caribbean Thanksgiving Menu and it’s so good, it’s made it into my regular fall repertoire. I always make all dishes served at Thanksgiving vegetarian (except the main dish). When I have lots of guests coming, I try to make all of the food as accessible as possible, at least in terms of accommodating allergies and dietary restrictions, but tastes, not so much. It’s the Wild West in my kitchen and you just have to give it a try, right? When I decided to make the Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella it was in no way an exception to the feed the vegetarians rule. The original calls for bacon, which I’m sure would be good, but I like it just fine without. The gingerbread croutons are very rich and when paired with pickled berries and onions, well, let’s just say there’s plenty going on. I will admit that I do salt the squash and even the arugula itself liberally, … Continue reading

Spicy Jerk Turkey Drumsticks

Even if I hadn’t printed the menu and been teasing about it forever, you probably could have guessed that the main dish would be some version of Spicy Jerk Turkey Drumsticks. This is a Caribbean Thanksgiving Menu after all and jerk chicken is about as Caribbean as it gets. I had to keep things interesting though, as well as keep the attention on classic Thanksgiving ingredients, so I changed things up just a bit starting with the poultry. For Thanksgiving, turkey kicks chicken out of the pan, and because I really love dark meat, I picked drumsticks. One of my main goals was to create a dish that I could make ahead and not have to worry about taking prime oven space the day of, so pulled meat that I could warm in the crockpot was a sensible choice that made for a fun day for the cook as well as the guests without compromising on flavor. The rich, moist, Spicy Jerk Turkey Drumsticks were paired with MacRostie’s syrah, (it’s good to be related to an amazing winemaker who brings you an entire case of magnums for the event) which was one of the best wine pairings I’ve ever had. … Continue reading

Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs

I love pesto sauce, like all Summer sun worshippers and Italophiles and these Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs encourage pesto for breakfast. And this time of year, when basil is still abundant, but it’s time to thinking about preserving Summer’s abundance, I make lots and lots of pesto and freeze it. After all, there’s only so much pesto al pasta and pizza with pesto sauce that you can eat in any given week, but when you make it and freeze it for winter, the number of pesto dishes a person is able to consume is (thankfully) greatly increased. But it doens’t have to be pasta that you make for pesto all winter long. When you need some variety, these Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs are a delicious use that makes Pesto great for an easy weeknight dinner, or even a great brunch. It’s really simple; we’re just making an alternative potato salad and then topping it with soft-boiled eggs, instead of my standard poached. Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs are also a great shoulder season meal, as the potatoes feel a little more substantial and fall, or perfect for getting to enjoy some of your fresh basil in the dead … Continue reading

St. Brie LT

Considering I grew up in a household that prized St. André cheese and fresh from the garden tomato and lettuce BTSs (otherwise know as Summer BLTs) above pretty much all other things epicurean, it was surprising to me when my friend Susan turned me on to the St. Brie L.T., and not the other way around. I mean, I don’t even like mayo and often have experimented with other condiments to sub in for mayo. Perhaps it’s because I settled upon avocado so long ago that I stopped my quest before I set upon adding the brie necessary to make a St. Brie L.T.? I’m not sure. Regardless, I’m happy to share it with you now, even if the addition of brie can’t be attributed to my genius. The name though: St. Brie L.T., that’s all mine. After all, you’ve probably figured out I like a good food pun, and this one has it all, a reference to the ingredients, a play on the traditional name, and the elevation of the perfect sandwich (with bacon!) to divine status… St. Brie LT covers all my food naming preferences. And even if bacon isn’t your thing, vegetarians, this one’s for you. Between … Continue reading

Spicy Tuna and Avocado Tartar

Dear readers, you may have noticed that I (unintentionally) took a week off of blogging, but I’m finally back with Spicy Tuna and Avocado Tartar. Whoops. I have excuses of course: it was a busy week, I was out of town, we had lots of social obligations, the light wasn’t right for photos… But the truth is, I only drink cocktails and eat salads in the summer, so sometimes there isn’t much to write about. I mean, how many “recipes” can there be for G&T’s? And this past week, it’s been all about Caprése. Which is great, but not for blogging purposes. You already have my creative take on that in the Peach Caprése Salad. So I finally went to the store and bought some ingredients so I could make you a new salad. This Spicy Tuna and Avocado Tartar has been in my repertoire for years, but I’ve been keeping it from you. Devious, I know. Especially since it’s one of my go-tos for hot summer nights when you don’t want to cook-but you have guests coming over-so you need something that appears fancy. … Continue reading

Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo

I love these Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo. They came about during my time teaching Public Health Law at the University of Pennsylvania. One of the easiest ways to get lunch at Penn is from food trucks, and many of us eat from the trucks almost every day. So you can imagine how exciting a new truck is. New options, new everything. One of the new trucks that opened while I worked there was called Tyson’s Bees. It was Korean Taco fusion and it was really really popular. So popular that sometimes the line was so long that I couldn’t wait for tacos, even if I really wanted to. And one of my favorite lunches was their, you guessed it, Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo. They were really simple and good and just enough spice and I realized that I needed to learn to make them myself. So this is my take on Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo inspired by the original Tyson’s Bees truck. These Edamame Tacos with Chipotle Mayo, quickly became one of my all-time favorite weekday meals (especially in the summer). They are really quick and easy and light and refreshing. But in our house, we eat … Continue reading

Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes

It’s true; I should probably just call this Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes a frittata. But that’s the Italian version. And my croquet party was a French, Old Fashioned Croquet Party. So Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes it is. After all, sticking with the theme is what counts, right? I mean, I got the guests to the garden, all in white, I had the croquet set up, I made french salads with french herbs and had a lovely lavender lemonade. We’re sticking to the theme on the quiche! In all seriousness, regardless of your theme, or what you call it, the Crustless Quiche & Sundried Tomatoes is a great make ahead dish for a party any time of day for a variety of reasons. One great feature of this dish is that it’s composed of all ingredients you can buy ahead of time, from the French onion dip, to the sundried tomatoes. Furthermore, it’s a breeze to make, you can serve it warm, cold, or room temperature, like I did, and if you cut in on the bias, the diamond shaped pieces look really fancy. This is definitely a repertoire sort of dish to know because you can whip it up for … Continue reading

Blue Ridge Mountain Benedicts

This Spring, one of our mini adventures was a weekend trip to Charlottesville, VA. It’s a gorgeous town, situated at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains for which my Blue Ridge Mountain Benedicts are named. It’s a tiny town, but it’s packed with art, music and great food. We had lots of awesome meals, but the one I knew I had to recreate, and I dare say best, was a breakfast sandwich from the Bluegrass Café. It was a sweet little breakfast place that’s so good at what it does that it can afford to yell, “No Substitutions” at you. That said, if you’re famous for made from scratch biscuits and you’re located in the South, you should serve your breakfast sandwich on that, and not a store bought English muffin. Since there were “No Substitutions,” I ate it as recommended, but was wishing I had a biscuit all the while. So, when last Sunday night turned into a little party to toast, and well-wish, and “Bon Voyage!” some dear friends moving to California… I had a hankering of what to make: Blue Ridge Mountain Benedicts. And then they sealed the deal. “We’ll bring bubbles” they said. “All we … Continue reading

Seriously Good Extra Crispy Fried Chicken

Many years ago, when we still lived in California, I made a Tyler Florence recipe for fried chicken, that called for adding herbs and garlic to the oil before frying the chicken, and it was so good, I still remember it, all these years later. So when I returned from my latest California trip inspired by the updated Southern dishes at Fremont Diner with a hankering for Fried Chicken, I started by looking for that recipe. The result of discovering that Florence actually has MANY published recipes on the subject (and of course, so do many other cooks) is my own version, this Seriously Good Extra Crispy Fried Chicken for my Updated Southern Supper. I have culled through probably 100 recipes to figure out what exactly I like best in fried chicken. This recipe is all about flavorful tender meat, a spice-ful, but not spicy crispy crust as well as a method for making this recipe useful for a dinner party. My Seriously Good Extra Crispy Fried Chicken is written with entertaining in mind and I’ve got techniques you can use so that the chicken is ready to go and you’re out of the kitchen and at your own party. … Continue reading

Crab Boil Chesapeake Style

If you’re doing a mini-break on the Chesapeake Bay, like we did, or spending some time down the shore this Summer, at least one of your dinners needs to focus on Maryland crabs à la this Crab Boil Chesapeake Style. Since our house included a very cool outdoor range as part of our gas grill setup, I settled on a Crab Boil, instead of bake, to maximize our outdoor time. This approach requires a really large pot, which a lot of shore houses are equipped with, but I brought my own, just in case. And of course, I consulted Ina Garten’s Clam Bake, to get ready for my own Crab Boil. This recipe leaves lots of room for adjustment, because your available ingredients could vary widely based upon time of year, coast you’re on, etc. No matter what, this Crab Boil Chesapeake Style is an exciting dinner that properly celebrates shore vacations of all types and will have your friends electing you master or mistress of shore parties. … Continue reading