Riviera Salad

Strawberry season may be my favorite two weeks of summer. To me, it's the true sign that summer is finally here. In Michigan, we're lucky to have U-pick farms and farmers markets in abundance, so it's easy to get your hands on the berries at their peak.  I make jam and freeze berries, but it's impossible to resist snacking on the little beauties as well.

This year, I happened to be going to a birthday party on the same day that I picked up a flat of perfectly ripe, locally grown strawberries. A Riviera salad was a natural next step.  The salad went over very well at the party. Who can resist fresh fruit and a creamy dressing?

The rundown:

• Flavor/Texture: I love this salad because it's a mix of textures and complimentary fresh and bright flavors. You get a great crunch from the Romaine and walnuts, while the berries and oranges give it a sweet twist. The dressing has some savory notes, which is a nice balance.
• Difficulty: It's a salad, so it's bound to be pretty easy. There aren't many ingredients, so quality really matters. Make sure your fruit is perfectly ripe, the lettuce is fully rinsed and dried, and that you choose a good quality cheese.
• Pros: Quick and easy to put together. The ingredients are things pretty much everyone likes. The colors in this dish are also amazing. It's much more fun to eat food that's visually appealing.
• Cons: The dressing will wilt the Romaine fairly quickly in the summer heat, so dress it just before serving so you don't end up with a soggy salad.
• Misc.: The dressing is quick and easy, but if you must, you can use a store-bought version. Locally, you can get Arnie's, which is the best. Marie Callender's is good as well.
• Repeat Performance: I have made this salad many times in the past and it will continue to be a summer favorite.

Riviera Salad

2 Romaine hearts, torn or sliced into bite-sized pieces

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 lb Swiss cheese, finely shredded

1 small can of mandarin oranges, rinsed and drained

1 cup sliced strawberries

Dressing:

1/3 cup mayo (don't use Miracle Whip, it will NOT taste good)

2 Tbsp milk

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp vinegar (you can use any kind, but I prefer something milder, like champagne or sherry vinegar)

1 Tbsp of poppy seeds

1/4 of a small sweet onion

salt to taste

Whisk the mayo, milk, sugar, vinegar and a dash of salt together in a small bowl. Using the finest side of a box grater (or a microplane, if you have one), grate a tiny bit of the onion into the dressing.  Mix well and then taste. Add more onion if necessary. When you're satisfied with the dressing taste, mix in the poppy seeds and stir well. 

Put half of the Romaine into a large bowl.  Layer half of the berries, oranges, walnuts and cheese.  If serving immediately, add dressing the the layers and toss.  If not, store the dressing in a separate container. Repeat the layers with the rest of the ingredients and toss.

Chill until ready to serve.



Meyer Lemon Tart with a Layer of Chocolate

There's not much that I love more than a good lemon dessert. I've always had more of a liking for citrus or more savory desserts than for true sweets. With its thin layer of dark chocolate, this recipe is the best of both worlds. I'll admit that I was skeptic about the combination at first, but it came out great. I needed a dessert with a "wow factor" for Father's Day, and I think I inherited my lemon affinity from my dad. When I was young, he always shared his lemon drop candies with me on long car rides. A lemon tart seemed like a natural way to go.

The tart was a huge hit. After sneaking a taste, my dad was so eager to dig in that he wouldn't let me do my usual fussing to get a good picture! I had to use a stock photo from the cookbook, which was less than ideal, although it said a lot for the tart itself.

The rundown:

• Flavor/texture: The flavors in this tart were amazing! I was a bit worried since I had to use regular lemons (the sweeter Meyer variety are out of season here), but it turned out great. The chocolate was subtle and really enhanced the lemon curd. The curd itself was very silky and in all honestly, it's the best one I've ever made.
• Difficulty: More time consuming than difficult. I did have a rough go of it with the crust at first, but that was because making butter-laden pastry in summer is often difficult.
• Pros: Amazing flavor and it looked great, too!  It was a very impressive dessert. Both the chocolate and lemon lovers in the crowd were happy, which is hard to accomplish in a single dish.
• Cons: Oh, the crust. I knew that the heat and humidity of summer really don't condone making a butter crust, but I was determined.  In order to get a perfect crust, some of the butter pieces should remain solid in the dough. When the pieces melt, they leave spaces and make the crust beautifully flaky.  To accomplish this, all of the ingredients need to be cold and you have to be very careful not to overwork it. It can be accomplished even during the summer, you just have to be more patient and chill the dough a couple of times during the process. When I figured that out, my crust was light and flaky. If your butter gets too warm or you overwork the dough during rolling (as I did), the butter dissolves into the flour and the crust will be very dense. Just be careful and you'll get it right. 
• Misc.: The chocolate layer is very thin. Next time I would use three ounces instead of two. I also added a bit of superfine sugar and a splash of vanilla to the whipped cream, just because that's how I like it.
• Repeat Performance: It's not something I'd make every day, but I can definitely see myself putting another one of these together for something/someone special.

Meyer Lemon Tart with a Layer of Chocolate

by Suzanne Goin

from Sunday Suppers at Lucques, 2005

For the pâte sucrée (makes enough for two crusts)1/4 cup heavy cream
2 extra-large egg yolks
2 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 pound unsalted butter

For the tart2 ounces bittersweet chocolate
4 extra-large eggs
3 extra-large egg yolks
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 cup Meyer lemon juice
10 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
A pinch of kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream

Make the pâte sucrée

Whisk the cream and egg yolks together in a small bowl. Set aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and butter on medium speed until you have a coarse meal. Gradually add the cream and yolks and mix until just combined. Do not overwork the dough.

Transfer the dough to a large work surface and bring it together with your hands to incorporate completely. Divide the dough in half, shape into 1-inch-thick discs, and wrap one of them to freeze and use later.

If the dough is too soft, put in the refrigerator for 5 to 10 minutes to firm up a little. If the dough is manageable, place it on a lightly floured work surface, sprinkle a little flour over the dough, and roll it out into a 1/4-inch-thick circle, flouring as necessary. Starting at one side, roll and wrap the dough around the rolling pin to pick it up. Unroll the dough over a 10-inch tart pan. Gently fit the dough loosely into the pan, lifting the edges and pressing the dough into the corners with your fingers. To remove the excess dough, roll the rolling pin lightly over the top of the tart pan for a nice clean edge, or work your way around the edge pinching off any excess dough with your fingers. Chill for 1 hour.

Make the tart:

Preheat the oven to 375°F

Take the tart pan with the pâte sucrée from the refrigerator. Prick the bottom with a fork and line it with a few opened and fanned-out coffee filters or a piece of parchment paper. Fill the lined tart shell with beans or pie weights and bake 15 minutes, until set. Take the tart out of the oven and carefully lift out the paper and beans. Return the tart to the oven and bake another 10 to 15 minutes, until the crust is an even golden brown. Set aside on a rack to cool completely.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over medium-low heat. Spread the chocolate evenly on the crust and chill in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes, until the chocolate has solidified completely.

While the crust is chilling, make the curd. Whisk the eggs, yolks, sugar, and lemon juice together in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously, alternating between a whisk and rubber spatula, until the lemon curd has thickened to the consistency of pastry cream and coats the back of the spatula.

Remove the lemon curd from the heat. Add the butter a little at a time, stirring to incorporate completely. Season with the salt. Let the curd cool about 8 minutes, and then strain it into the prepared tart shell. Chill the tart in the refrigerator.

Just before serving, whip the cream in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or by hand) until it holds soft peaks. Cut the tart into six wedges, plate them, and serve with dollops of whipped cream.

Grab a fork and get to it!

Baked Lemon Tart

Yummy Pork Ziti

This summer, I decided to participate in a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) share with two friends.  Every Tuesday, we get to pick up our veggies at the farmers' market near my house. Last week was the first pick-up and I was so excited to see all of the gorgeous produce. One of the items included was a beautiful bunch of rainbow chard. Never having cooked with it before, I set out on a hunt for an interesting recipe. I stumbled across this gem and had to give it a try. I am a big fan of mustard of any kind (seriously, it's the perfect condiment), I always like thyme, and who doesn't love a good pasta dish?

The rundown:

• Flavor/texture: The bold flavors of the thyme and mustard worked very well with the pork. At the same time, they didn't overwhelm the more delicate flavor of the greens. 
• Difficulty: No muss, no fuss! I whipped this one up in less than half an hour. How's that for a 30-minute meal?
• Pros: Tasty, easy and quick. The trifecta of weeknight cooking, not to mention that it was a great way to incorporate veggies into a new recipe.  The recipe is also very adaptable. You could use chicken instead of pork or substitute almost any variety of dark/bitter greens for the escarole.
• Cons: The recipe was intended for four people, but it yielded more than enough for six.  I don't like to have more than one meal of leftovers, so I would recommend halving the recipe.
• Misc.: I used rainbow chard in place of the escarole, since that is what I had on hand. I used a grainy Dijon mustard and upped the quantity to more like two tablespoons instead of teaspoons. Taste the sauce and season it as you like. Make sure that your pork is just done, so that it stays tender. Now that the USDA has acknowledged that pork need only be cooked to 145 degrees, it's ok if there's a little pink in the middle.  Letting the meat rest for 5 minutes before slicing will allow the cooking process to finish up gently. Start your pasta water as the first step. The pasta takes longer than everything else added together.
• Repeat Performance: I don't eat a great deal of pork, but this recipe will definitely go into the rotation.

Ziti with Pork and Escarole in Creamy Thyme Sauce

Food & Wine, January 1997

1 lb pork tenderloin

salt

freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 lb escarole, leaves cut crosswise into 1/2-inch strips (about 4 cups)

1 shallot or 2 scallions, including green tops, chopped

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 tsp grainy or Dijon mustard

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 pound dry ziti pasta

Cut the pork into 1/2 inch thick slices. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat 2 tbsp oil over medium heat. Cook the pork until just barely done, about 1 minute per side. Remove the pork from the pan and let it rest for 5 minutes, then cut into thin strips.

In the same pan, heat the remaining oil over medium heat. Add the escarole, shallot/green onion, 1/4 of the salt and 1/4 tsp of pepper and cook, stirring until the escarole wilts, about 1 minute. Add the broth and thyme. Simmer until the broth is reduced to 1/4 cup, about 3 minutes. Whisk in the mustard and cream and bring to a simmer. Add the pork and any accumulated juices to the sauce. Remove from heat.

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the ziti until al dente (10-12 minutes). Drain and toss pasta with the sauce.

Grab some crusty bread and dig in!

Grilled Flank Steak

First of all, I apologize for the lack of posts over the last couple of weeks. But now, I am back from vacation and ready to go!

I am normally not much of a red meat fan. I eat beef or even pork only once a week or so. I gravitate strongly to fish, chicken and vegetarian meals.  Last week in New Orleans, though, my inner carnivore was making a strong showing.  I often find that when I visit the South, I want meat, and lots of it!  Maybe it's because most meat there is grilled or smoked. Whatever the reason, I had brisket, burgers, catfish, duck, pulled pork and some praline bacon that was to die for!  When I came home, a good grilled steak definitely sounded like it would hit the spot. So I picked up a beautiful flank steak and used my favorite quick marinade.

The rundown:

• Flavor/texture: This is my go-to marinade for a reason. Not only is it easy, but it's very flavorful and goes well with just about any kind of meat. The flavors are bold, but not overpowering. I cooked the steak to medium-rare (medium is the max for a cut like flank steak) and cut it against the grain in thin strips, which kept it juicy and tender.
• Difficulty: This recipe is a snap and all of the ingredients should be readily available in your pantry.
• Pros: Easy and tasty! This steak will make you look like a pro. It would be great for Father's Day (hint, hint).
• Cons: I should have let my grill heat up a little more to get some color on the outside of the steak.
• Misc.: I served the steak with roasted herb potatoes and salad. The citrus vinaigrette that I whipped up for the salad made everything look a tad orange, but oh well. I added a bit of fresh rosemary to the marinade just to bring things up a notch. If you don't like cumin, substitute chili powder instead.
• Repeat Performance: This steak already holds a prime spot in my repertoire.

Grilled Flank Steak

2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
1 tbsp grill seasoning (mix salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder if you don't have grill seasoning)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp hot sauce
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
2 lbs flank steak

Mix first 6 ingredients together in a shallow dish.  Whisk in olive oil.  Add meat and turn to coat evenly.  Let meat marinate for 15 minutes.

Heat grill to high heat. Grill the steak 5-6 minutes on each side for medium-rare, 7 minutes per side for medium.

Remove meat from grill and let it rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Get to grillin'!

Cheddar and Onion Smashed Burgers

Summer is the season of farmers markets, relaxing in the backyard and grilling.  And what's more classic than grilling burgers? This year, I have resolved to do more grilling and I've been looking for interesting recipes. So imagine my surprise when I got this month's issue of Food & Wine and grill-master Adam Fleischman was extolling the virtues of making burgers on a griddle! It seemed wrong and intriguing at the same time. I decided to see how his burgers would stack up on a beautiful night when the smell of charcoal was wafting all over the neighborhood. 

The rundown:

• Flavor/texture: Let me just be honest - these burgers were outstanding! Simple but strong flavors and the patties were moist and messy. In other words, they were perfect.
• Difficulty: Amazingly easy and quick to prepare.
• Pros: Everything about the burgers was great and I liked the twist on typical steamed onion sliders. I was worried that smashing the patties with a spatula would just end badly, but it worked out well. 
• Cons: I wouldn't change or add anything, which is a rare thing!
• Misc: I used 80/20 ground Angus beef, which was perfect. If the beef is too lean, I don't think the onions will cook properly. I like my meat medium, so I cooked the burgers for about 3 minutes per side. I went with a bun made of egg bread. I forgot to toast them, but they were still good. I also omitted the recipe step of covering your skillet with a roasting pan to help melt the cheese. I forgot to do it and it didn't make a difference overall. I don't like pickles, so I scrapped them and topped my burger with tomato, ketchup and mustard.
• Repeat Performance: This will definitely be my go-to burger recipe when grilling isn't feasible.

Cheddar and Onion Smashed Burgers

Adam Fleischman for  Food & Wine, June 2011

16 thin bread and butter pickles, patted dry

4 potato buns, buttered and toasted

1 1/4 lbs ground beef chuck

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 small onions, sliced paper thin

4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, sliced

Heat a cast-iron griddle over medium heat. Layer the pickle slices on the bottom buns.

Without overworking the meat, loosely form it into 4 balls and place them on the griddle. Cook the meatballs for 30 seconds. Using a large sturdy spatula, flatten each ball into a 5-inch round patty.  Season the patties with salt and pepper and cook for 2 minutes, until well seared. Press a handful of sliced onions on each patty. Using the spatula, carefully flip each burger so the onions are on the bottom. Cook for 2 minutes. Top patties with cheese. Cover with a roasting pan and cook just until the cheese is melted, 1 minute more. Transfer the burgers with the onions to the buns. Top and serve.

Grab a napkin or two and dig in!