Fresh Tart

Behold the world's most perfect side dish.  I'm not talking about the photo, which is meh (sorry, I was rushing this out to our National Night Out block party), but the dish itself, which is delicious and flexible and adaptable and easy and do-ahead.

No lie.

Serve it warm or serve it at room temperature.  Stir in shredded chicken or lamb, or serve it alongside a roast of either.  Add tomatoes, or corn, or peas, or any vegetable, really.

I never make it the same way twice and love all my iterations.  Perhaps narcissistic, but I don't think so.

I spy roasted cherry tomatoes, grilled corn, okra, pine nuts, scallions, kalamata olives, red onions, and feta cheese studding this version.  The soft, fluffy couscous pulls together all the lovely textures and flavors.

The basics are below - improvise away!  Include a combination of raw and cooked vegetables for the biggest flavor punch.  I bring this dish to almost every potluck I'm invited to - it actually improves as it sits there, looking pretty.

Couscous with Vegetables, Olives, & Raisins
Serves 4-6

1-10 oz. box plain couscous
1 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced into matchstick pieces
1/2 sweet onion, sliced thinly into 1-inch pieces
3 oz. white mushrooms, sliced thin
1 tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 c. raisins (or golden raisins, or currants), softened by heating in a microwave, with 1 tsp. of water, for 30 seconds
1/4 c. chopped scallions
1/4 c. chopped Kalamata olives
salt and pepper

Prepare couscous according to package directions.  Spread hot couscous out on a baking sheet, breaking up any clumps, and allow to cool to room temperature.  (Skip this step if you're going to serve the couscous warm.)

Meanwhile, heat 3 Tbsp. olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat.  Stir in pepper, onion, and mushrooms and sauté until starting to wilt, about 8 minutes. Stir in curry powder and cumin, then garlic and raisins, and sauté for 3 minutes.  Remove from heat, season with salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer couscous to a bowl.  Stir in scallions and olives, then sautéed vegetables and any oil from the pan.  Adjust seasoning if necessary.  Serve warm or at room temp.

Optional stir-in ideas:
¼ toasted pine nuts
¼ c. chopped parsley
½ c. canned, drained chickpeas
¼ c. chopped fresh mint leaves
½ c. crumbled feta cheese
1 c. cooked, shredded chicken or lamb

Have I got a gazpacho recipe for you.  This version is smooth and creamy (without cream), made crunchy with a garnish of minced cucumber, green pepper, tomato, and croutons.  Serve it icy cold for summer in a bowl.

Or cup - sip it while you fry a few potato pancakes, poach a few eggs.  That's what I did, while John worked on his 9,500-song - no lie - iTunes library and read me raves from the newspaper.  I cook, he sits with me, that's our thing.

I picked up the tomatoes and cucumber at the Minneapolis Farmer's Market yesterday.  Real garden gazpacho.  Nice.  I plan to sip more later for an afternoon snack.  It's light yet filling, perfect for a hot, sunny Saturday.

Or ooh, pour the gazpacho into a thermos and take it for a bike ride-picnic, with good bread and cheese, cold white wine, and fresh cherries or berries.  Damn, I wish I were doing exactly that right now.

But then I would have missed making the second course...  I know, I know, yet another poached egg dish, sorry for the redundancy.  But poached eggs are so easy and delicious, I can't help myself.  They just make everything special.  Agree?

What are your plans for Independence Day?  We're having our Annual Super Duper Shubert Coopster 4th of July Celebration, including my sister Stacey, and hoping it won't rain all day so we can be in and around the pool.  I'm making the no-fail pork ribs and crunchy, creamy coleslaw I posted on Dara & Co./Minnesota Monthly magazine blog, as well as mini-burgers and boiled new potatoes with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and preserved lemon.

Suz is bringing blueberry kuchen, which we'll top with a scoop of homemade strawberry-rhubarb ice cream.  Red, white & blue, woo hoo!  Have a Bangin' 4th everyone!

Andalusian Garden Gazpacho
Adapted from www.latimes.com
Serves 6-8

Author's note: the gazpacho should be the consistency of light cream.  If it is to be served for sipping, thin with additional cold water.  Lemon juice can be a substituted for the vinegar.

Stephanie's note: I used both a food processor and blender - food processor to puree the bread and tomatoes, blender to puree the gazpacho itself so it would be as smooth and creamy as possible.

4 slices bread, crusts removed (4 oz.); plus 2 slices bread, diced and fried in a little olive oil (for garnish), divided (Stephanie's note: I used the bread crusts to make the croutons)
water
5 tomatoes (2 lbs.), cored and roughly chopped; plus 1 small tomato, finely chopped (for garnish)
1/2 green pepper, cored and roughly chopped; plus extra finely chopped (for garnish), divided
1/2 cucumber, peeled and roughly chopped; plus extra finely chopped (for garnish), divided
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 1/2 c. ice cold water

Break the 4 slices bread into chunks and soak it in water to cover until softened.  Squeeze the water from the bread and place it in a food processor with the garlic.  Process until smooth.  Transfer to the bowl of a blender.

Without washing the food processor, add the chopped tomatoes and process until smooth.  Press the tomato juice and pulp through a sieve or colander, discarding the skin and seeds.  Add the tomato juice and pulp to the blender.

Add the green pepper, cumin, and salt to the bread and tomatoes in the blender.  With the blender running, add the oil in a slow stream.  Blend in the vinegar and some of the cold water.  Transfer the gazpacho to a large pitcher and stir in the remaining water.  Serve immediately or chill until serving time.  (Stephanie's note: I like to leave a couple of hours for it to chill and for the flavors to blend.  It's best icy cold.)

To serve, pour the gazpacho into individual bowls.  Place each of the garnishes (finely chopped green pepper, cucumber, tomato, and crispy bread) in small bowls.  Pass the garnishes with the gazpacho and allow guests to serve themselves.

Poached Eggs Over Potato-Green Pepper Pancakes
Serves 2

1/2 c. safflower, canola, peanut, or other high-heat oil
1 large russet potato, peeled and shredded
1/2 green pepper, shredded
1 large shallot, peeled and shredded
2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs

Set a saucepan 1/2 filled with salted water on to boil.

Heat oil in a large (preferably nonstick) skillet over medium-high.  While the oil heats, stir together the potatoes, green pepper, shallot, flour, and salt.  When the oil is hot, drop 2 or 3 large spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the oil.  Use a spatula to flatten and spread the potatoes a bit, into pancake shapes.  Fry until golden brown, then turn pancakes over and brown on the other side.  Drain on paper towels.  Fry remaining pancakes; drain.  Place one or two pancakes on each plate.

The water will likely boil as you're frying pancakes, which is great.  Turn heat down so that the water is barely simmering - small bubbles should barely break the surface.  As soon as you're done frying the pancakes, crack one egg into a small dish and slide it into the water.  Quickly do the same with the second egg.  Set the timer for 3 minutes.  The eggs whites will look shredded, but that's OK.  When the timer goes off, use a slotted spoon to scoop one egg out of the water.  Tilt the spoon so the water drains completely off, then place the egg on top of one of the plates of hot potato pancakes.  Repeat with the second egg and second plate of pancakes.  Top eggs with a sprinkle of salt and a few grinds of black pepper each.  Serve immediately.

If mint over-runneth your garden - chives too, for that matter - then this pesto is for you.  It's surprisingly mild, luscious with toasted almonds and olive oil (no cheese).  It makes a quick, lovely dinner, especially tossed with fresh tomatoes (as written) or a handful or two of your favorite lightly sauteed vegetables.  (My tomatoes were just meh, so I added English peas, asparagus, and spinach instead.  Very un-meh, as in tasty.)

This recipe hails from Lynn Rosetto Kasper's The Italian Country Table, one of my favorite cookbooks.  She suggests a combination of toasted almonds, pistachios, and pine nuts for maximum nuttiness.  But if you're pinched for time (and ingredients), almonds alone are fabulous too.  I used garlic scapes in place of garlic, because I had them, but I'll print the original recipe below and you can riff away.  Seriously, if you do have tons of chives, throw some in.  And if you like, add more olive oil than called for.  This pesto is less oily than others, which works because you toss it into the pasta with plenty of pasta cooking water (a great trick for getting by with less oil).  But if you like an oilier pesto, then add it.  That's the cool thing about pesto (other than being completely delicious) - it's pretty hard to screw up.

While you contemplate your pesto ingredients and wait for your water to boil, crush several mint leaves in a glass with a wooden spoon, then fill the glass with ice, add a shot of gin (or vodka), and a shot of grapefruit juice.  Top it all off with tonic water and give a little stir.

So pretty, right?  Pure summer.

Ahhhh...

Linguine with Pistachio-Almond Pesto
Adapted from The Italian Country Table by Lynne Rosetto Kasper
Serves 8 as a first course; 4-6 as a main dish

Note: I added 1/2 c. of shelled peas, 1/2 c. of chopped asparagus, and 1 c. of chopped spinach to the version in the photo.  While the pasta cooks, saute the vegetables in 1 Tbsp. of olive oil, with a sprinkle of salt, for a few minutes until spinach is wilted and peas and asparagus are just tender-crisp.  Add to the serving bowl along with the pesto, tomatoes, and olive oil, per below.

1/2 c. unblanched whole almonds, toasted
1/2 c. shelled salted pistachio nuts, toasted
1/3 c. pine nuts, toasted
1 large clove garlic
pinch of hot red pepper flakes
1/4 c. fruity extra-virgin olive oil, or more to taste, plus extra for drizzling
40 large mint leaves
salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 lb. linguine, spaghetti, bucatini, or other string pasta
1 lb. good cherry tomatoes, quartered

Mix the cooled toasted nuts.  Coarsely chop about one quarter of them and set aside.  Add the garlic, hot pepper flakes, olive oil, remaining whole nuts, and 2/3 of the mint leaves to the bowl of a food processor.  Process until the mixture looks like very coarse meal.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Tear up the remaining mint leaves.

Cook the pasta in fiercely boiling water, stirring often, until tender yet firm to the bite.

As the pasta cooks, gently blend the pesto, tomatoes, and a drizzle of the oil in a deep pasta bowl.  Skim off 1/2 to 3/4 c. of the pasta cooking water just before draining, and drain the pasta in a colander.  Add the pasta water to the bowl.  Add the sauce, pasta, chopped nuts, and salt and pepper to taste and toss.  Then toss in the reserved torn mint.  Taste for seasoning, adding extra oil, mint, salt, and/or pepper if needed.  Serve hot or warm.  No cheese is used here.

As I've complained before, it's hard to find good salmon in Minnesota.  I know, we're in the middle of the country, about as far from any ocean as you can get in North America.  It's an unimportant problem.  My not-terribly-local solution is that I buy wild salmon filets online from VitalChoice, the king salmon to be specific, and they are fabulous.  We don't have them often, because they're dear, but I'm OK with that.  Better infrequently awesome than reguarly lame.  True.

The inspiration for this salad is two-fold.  It began with a gorgeous photo in one of my favorite cookbooks, Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin.  The picture captures a long, colorful tangle of a wild salmon salad, studded with beets, potato, egg, and fresh herbs, drizzled with a tart mustard vinaigrette.  I'd tucked the recipe into the back of my mind until I saw Jaden Hair's mouth-watering post - on her wildly popular blog Steamy Kitchen - of a Marcus Samuelsson-inspired open-faced salmon sandwich with sweet mustard sauce. Check out that sandwich - amazing, right?  (Side note: remember Marcus, owner/chef of Aquavit, Minneapolis-version RIP 2003?  He's still one of the top chefs in the country, still running Aquavit NYC, and is preparing to open a new Harlem restaurant called Red Rooster.  Man do I miss our Aquavit, sigh.  My sister Stacey worked there when it opened.  As a result, we celebrated my brother David's 21st birthday at the chef's table in the kitchen.  Top five meals of my life, blew my mind a little bit.)

Anyhow, back to cooking at home.  Sorry to break that Aquavit-reminiscing bubble, but reality is...real.  Seven years real, wow.  Anyhow, if you put your hands on decent salmon, you'll be delighted with this salad.  It hits all the important notes - hot/cool, crunchy/creamy, salty/sweet.  You'll demolish it, as John and I did.  Destroy it.  Yeah.  It's got it all going on, all good, deliciously healthy.  Bonus: It's easy to put together and is so pretty that it's worthy of sharing with others.

I can't believe that I'm saying this, and perhaps take note that I am, but I wish you Minnesota's gorgeous weather for your holiday weekend.  How often does that happen?

Grilled Salmon with Avocado, Egg, Greens, & Mustard Vinaigrette
Inspired by Jaden Hair at www.steamykitchen.com and Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin
Serves 4

Dressing
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. minced fresh dill
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. capers, drained
1/4 tsp. salt
freshly ground black pepper

Salad
olive oil
Four-4 oz. salmon filets
salt
2 large eggs
1/2 lb. new potatoes
3 cups greens (spinach, arugula, or a combination of the two)
1/2 c. quartered cherry tomatoes
1 large shallot, peeled & sliced thin
1 avocado, pitted and sliced into 1/2-inch slices

Heat grill.  Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.  Smear a few teaspoons of olive oil over both sides of salmon filets and sprinkle both sides lightly with salt.  Set aside.

Fill a large saucepan with cold water.  Add 2 tsp. of salt, then potatoes and eggs.  Set uncovered over high heat.  When water boils, turn heat to low.  Simmer potatoes and eggs for 10 minutes; when timer goes off, transfer eggs to a bowl of cool water.  Continue simmering potatoes until tender, another 10 minutes or so (test with a fork; when fork pierces easily, potatoes are done).

Remove potatoes from water and let sit at room temperature.  Grill salmon, depending on how hot your grill is, and how thick your filets are, 2-4 minutes per side (you want slightly under-done salmon; it will continue cooking as it sets up).  Transfer salmon to a cutting board and let rest while you assemble the salad.

Spread greens over a large platter.  Quarter potatoes and scatter over greens.  Top with tomatoes, shallots, and avocado.  Peel and quarter the eggs and arrange over the greens.  Spoon half the dressing over the salad.  Break apart the warm salmon into 2-inch pieces and arrange over the greens.  Top with the remaining dressing.  Serve immediately.