Chicken and Fig

Figs are in season! This is a fabulous recipe for Chicken and Figs. It is another one of those recipes that we make repeatedly. It is always good. It gives great leftovers. If you haven't made it you should give it a try. I know you will like it!. You can find the recipe on our blog of: June 27, 2007. Click the date to get the recipe. 

We started with an Endive Salad with Pine Nuts and Shaved Parmesan Cheese. It was a wonderful outdoor summer meal!

Convention Night

We never watch TV while we eat. However, being ardent Democrats we watched from our living room steps the speakers. Every rule needs an exception. This was ours. 

Scarpetta’s Pasta

We made the Scarpetta’s Pasta we liked so much. We also made Endive Salad with Creamy Pine Nut Dressing and Shaved Parmesan. These are two favorites that make for a wonderful dinner.

You can get the recipe for Scarpetta’s Pasta from our blog of: August 24, 2015. Click the date to get the recipe. The recipe for the Endive Salad With Creamy Pine Nut Dressing And Shaved Parmesan is below. They are both great!

Endive Salad With Creamy Pine Nut Dressing And Shaved Parmesan

The Scarpetta Cookbook

Scott Conant

For The Dressing

¼       cup pine nuts, toasted

¼       cup fresh lemon juice

3       tablespoons honey, such as wildf lower

Kosher salt

Pinch of crushed red pepper

½       cup extra-virgin olive oil

For Serving

16       endive leaves, cut in half lengthwise

12       radicchio leaves, quartered

16       arugula leaves, preferably wild arugula, torn in half

28       strips shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

¼       cup pine nuts, toasted

For the Dressing: In a blender, puree the pine nuts, lemon juice, honey, m teaspoons salt, and the crushed red pepper. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil a little at a time; the dressing should be a thick, mayonnaise-like consistency, transfer the dressing to a bowl and stir in 2 tablespoons water. Taste and season with additional salt if necessary. (The dressing can be kept in a covered container for 2 days in a refrigerator).

To Serve: In a large bowl, gently toss the endive, radicchio, and arugula with ¼ cup of the dressing and half of the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Divide among the serving plates and top with the remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano and the Pine Nuts. Drizzle with the remaining vinaigrette and serve.

Zucchini Pasta

Zucchini Pasta is one of our favorites! It is from a recipe by Mark Bittman from the New York Times. We make it every summer when Zucks are at there best. You WILL see this again, because we are patiently waiting for our FAVORITE Zucchini's to arrive at the Hollywood Farmer's Market. They are an heirloom zucchini and are only sold there for a very short period. Every week we ask are they there yet? They tell us to cool our jets. The zucchini is sliced very thin and sautéed until dark and crisp. They cook down to very little, so start with a lot of zucks. You can find the recipe for this simple and delicious pasta in our blog of: June 19, 2009. Click the date to get the recipe.

Buttermilk Roast Chicken

We made Miso Chicken. We did not like it as much as the Buttermilk Chicken. Make that one! You can find the recipe on our blog of: June 24, 2016. Click the date to get the recipe.

We started with a Tomato and Mozzarella Salad with Basil and Red-Onion. The refreshing taste of summer is here!

Pork Ragu Pasta

We had lots of leftover Pork Butt. Cathy had the great idea to make a pasta sauce with it. She used a recipe from one of our favorite restaurants Campanile (now closed) for Duck Ragu but substituted the Pork Butt for the duck. It was fantastic. We also used a new a different pasta. Is is called:  Casareccia. I really like it. It has a chewy texture,e being thicker than normal pasta, and has a slit down the side allowing for more sauce to penetrate the pasta. It can be bought on Amazon (as most everything can be). You can find the recipe for this on our blog of: May 30, 2016. Click the date to get the recipe.

July 4th

What a beautiful butt!

We had the usual cast of characters over to watch the fireworks and eat bar-b-que on our deck. We did do a few things differently however. We always get the ribs, brisket and pork from our favorite place in Compton: Bludso’s. However this time we decided to try their other restaurant on LaBrea. It was a wise choice: closer and NO lines. We also did not get the pulled pork. We decided to make our own Pork Butt with Ssam Sauce using the great recipe from Momofuku in New York City. It is a winner!

We purchased a 12 pound Pork Butt Sauce from McCall’sMeat and Fish. You can get the recipe on our blog of: May 27, 2016. It is delicious!

We had all the side dishes that you could think of, and lots of great desserts. The weather was very warm and the sky was clear, so we saw lots of fireworks.

Salmon with Sauce Gribiche

We like the Thomas Keller recipe for Salmon with Sauce Gribiche so much, we decided to make it again. You can find the recipe on our blog of: June 4, 2016. Click the date to get the recipe. It is a delicious combination.

We started with a Nectarine Salad with Almonds and Prosciutto. The sun was just setting and we had some great shadows on the wall!

Salmon with Sauce Gribiche

We like the Thomas Keller recipe for Salmon with Sauce Gribiche so much, we decided to make it again. You can find the recipe on our blog of: June 4, 2016. Click the date to get the recipe. It is a delicious combination.

We started with a Nectarine Salad with Almonds and Prosciutto. The sun was just setting and we had some great shadows on the wall!

Zuni Fish

We are trying to eat more fish. This recipe from Zuni Cafe is great one. Sea Bass with Leeks, Potatoes, & Thyme. It is definitely a one dish meal. We purchased the fish at McCall’s Meat and Fish. This would make a great dish on a cool night. You can get the recipe from our blog of: May 4, 2015. Click the date to get the recipe.

We started with a Salad of Avocado and extremely sweet Cherry Tomatoes from Cookbook in Echo Park.

Sea Scallops

We had some left over Risotto and decided to use it as the base for making Caramelized Sea Scallops. Tom and Scott joined us for dinner. This is a good recipe although we didn’t brine the scallops.

We completed the dinner with Peach Pie from McCall’s Meatand Fish (and bakery).

It was another warm night, perfect to eat outside on the deck.

Caramelized Sea Scallops

Ad-Hoc

Thomas Keller

2      cups kosher salt, plus more to taste

2      cups hot water

8      cups cold water

12    U7 sea scallops (about 1-1/2 pounds; see headnote), preferably dry-packed, tough side muscle removed from each one

About 2 tablespoons (1 ounce) Clarified Butter

½     le mon (optional)

I always buy big scallops, graded U7, meaning there are 7 of this size in a pound, and for this dish, we brine them to season them all the way through. Scallops are great with sweet, earthy, or salty things, such as the Braised Pork Belly or Melted Leek Rounds.

Line a small baking sheet with paper towels Combine the 2 cups salt with the hot water in a large bowl, stirring to dissolve the salt. Add the cold water.

Add the scallops to the brine and let stand for 10 minutes (no longer, or the scallops may become too salty).

Drain the scallops, rinse under cold water, and arrange in a single layer on the paper towels.

Heat the clarified butter in a large stainless steel frying pan over medium-high heat until it ripples and begins to smoke. (Although you may be tempted to use a nonstick pan, a stainless steel pan will produce a more beautiful caramelized exterior.) Sprinkle the scallops lightly with salt and add them to the pan, without crowding. (If necessary, cook the scallops in two pans or in 2 batches; if they touch, they will steam rather than caramelize.) Cook, without moving the scallops, until the bottoms are a rich golden brown, 3 to 3-1/2 minutes. Turn the scallops and caramelize the second side.

Buttermilk Roast Chicken

We found this recipe for Buttermilk Roast Chicken in the New York Times. One of the advantages of the way that the NYT publishes recipes is that people comment on the recipes. Many of the comments suggested putting Potatoes and Brussel Sprouts under the chicken while it is cooking. The chicken drippings season the vegetables as they crisp up in the very hot oven. The skin (which I know I shouldn't eat, but love) got exceptionally crispy. This is a very good and easy recipe. Note you need to start a couple of days before you cook the chicken so that the Buttermilk and herbs marinade can penetrate the meat. We used only chicken thighs.

Buttermilk Roast Chicken

New York Times

Nigella Lawson

Roast a chicken and you know you have a comfortable meal. Alter that a little by butterflying the chicken, a surprisingly simple task that can be carried out with a pair of kitchen scissors, and you have a quick dinner that carries with it the casual air of barbecue, without the bother. Here, buttermilk, which is usually associated with fried chicken, helps to tenderize the chicken and conveys the aromatics: you really get the full value of the rosemary, pepper and garlic. If you want to substitute maple syrup for the honey, you can. Best of all, you can leave the marinating bird in the fridge for up to two days; thus, it gets more tender and you know you have a dinner that needs no more than to be popped into the oven.

Ingredients

1       4-pound chicken

2       cups buttermilk

¼      cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2       cloves garlic, lightly crushed

1       tablespoon crushed black peppercorns

1       tablespoon Maldon or other sea salt

2       tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves, roughly chopped

1       tablespoon honey

1.   Butterfly chicken by placing breast side down and using heavy-duty kitchen shears to cut along both sides of backbone. Discard backbone, turn chicken over and open it like a book. Press gently to flatten it.

2.   Place chicken in a large freezer bag. Add buttermilk, 1/4 cup oil, garlic, peppercorns, salt, rosemary and honey. Seal bag securely and refrigerate overnight or up to two days.

3.   Heat oven to 400 degrees. Remove chicken from marinade and place on a rack so excess can drip off. Line a roasting pan with foil and place chicken in pan. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Roast for 45 minutes, then reduce heat to 325 degrees. Continue roasting until well browned and until juices run clear when chicken is pierced where leg joins thigh,about another 20 minutes.

4.   Place chicken on a carving board and allow to rest for 10 minutes before cutting into serving pieces. Place a portion on each of four plates, and drizzle each serving with pan juices.

Moroccan Fish Tagine

Moroccan Fish Tagine with Tomatoes, Olives, and Preserved Lemons is one of my very favorite fish dishes. It has it all. It is beautiful to look at with all of the red tomatoes and peppers. It has a fantastic aroma. It is a fish dish that can be reheated. We definitely like this recipe and frequently make it. You can find the recipe on our blog of: July 31, 2010. Click the date to get the recipe.