Instead of our usual two weeks, Maxwell and I are able to fit in two days away this summer. So today, we're heading for the hills for a little R & R. Expect light posting.
It's now your job, dear readers, to keep the flame (or coil, whatever your preference may be) alive. Get busy on the most recent open thread, get that last-minute submission together for our call for writers, or just browse the archives.
Or just cook up something tasty, and tell us all about it.
We'll see you on Monday.
I made this salad the other day and it's my new favorite!! Easy and yummy.
Antipasto Salad
1/2 pound rotini, fusilli, or other short pasta
1 pound green beans, trimmed
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 pound bocconcini or mozzarella, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 15- to 19-ounce can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
3 1/2 ounces sliced hard salami, cut into strips
1 9-ounce box frozen artichoke hearts, thawed
1 6-ounce jar roasted red peppers (about 4), cut into strips
1/2 16-ounce jar pepperoncini (hot Tuscan peppers), drained (about 12)
1/2 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
1 cup loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, minced
Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Remove from cooking water with a slotted spoon, rinse under cold water, and drain well. Add the green beans to the boiling water and cook until crisp-tender. Remove the green beans, rinse, and drain with the pasta.
In a large bowl, using a wire whisk, blend the garlic, mustard, and vinegars. Slowly whisk in the oil and add salt to taste.
In a very large bowl, toss the pasta with the dressing and stir in the bocconcini, garbanzos, salami, artichoke hearts, roasted peppers, pepperoncini, red pepper flakes, and parsley. Cover and chill for 1 hour. The salad may be made up to 2 days in advance.
Last night's supper: 1.Roasted 20-30 mins.: cherry tomatoes, matchstick-cut carrots, sliced red onion, snow peas, thick-sliced green pepper.
2.made pesto: 1 cup basil, olive oil, sundried tomato, garlic, Parmesan
3. cooked red (tomato) rotini
4. combined all. simple & delicious.
Dessert: sliced (local) strawberries with plain yogurt, drizzled with maple syrup.
Tonight it's chicken teriyaki,rice,snow peas, I'll start w/shrimp & cocktail sauce.
What is everyone cooking these (hot) days?
what are your cooking strategies? preparations?
My strategy is to keep it simple & fresh & choosing quick-cooking dishes whenever possible.
rr ~ that sounds amazing!! Another good recipe to add to my box!
Leeds ~ I hate to admit it but yesterday being so hot and such a long day that I ate leftover salad and a sopressata sandwich on white bread with plain yellow mustard. Nothing gourmet about it... Might have to change that later this weekend!
forgot-a handful of pine nuts goes in the pesto!
rr, yes, good recipe idea. Eric, salad & sopressata is good (anything that doesn't require a lot of work, esp. after a long day:)!)
I've been making iced tea with non-caffeinated fruit blend teabags-no sweetener-good thirst quencher. That and lemonade and limeade.
for dinner last nite, as a quick break from stripping the windows in my dining room: sliced tomatoes on toasted fig bread with fresh mayonaiise, argula salad with meyer lemon and dijon mustard vinagrette, herb and parmesan potato chips from trader joe's (these are amazing)
as i'm typing this: turkey meatball soup from the truck downstairs with fresh cilantro, diced sweet onion & warm corn tortillas, a thursday treat. might have to try the ceviche next week -- crab, sea bream & fresh tomatillo sauce!
tonite, an excursion to nook bistro, a place in west la that i've haven't yet been to although it's gotten raves from many friends & was written up in los angeles magazine as being one of this year's top ten. i've heard the brownie cup with vanilla gelato is amazing, so i've got to remember to save room for that, and short ribs gets me every time and shitake and gruyere bread pudding as a side caught my eye...you can see the menu at www.nookbistro.com
yeah leeds, like you, i try to keep it simple and fresh and quick -- got a current obsession with fruit & protein combos, maybe because of all the GORGEOUS fruit at the farmer's market. might need to experiment with a cherry salsa for fish...and i'm loving clotilde's pasta absorption method...and after seeing how good the ceviche at the truck looked, i know what's going on my menu this weekend...
i'm keeping things really simple as well. i love making a big pasta salad at the beginning of the week that has some protein and i find i've been eating it for lunch and sometimes dinner. mint iced tea, lots of salads. even though it was too hot last night, made fajitas with lime and avocado. i think it's just because i wanted a red stripe and it seemed like a good fit. : )
rr, the above salad sounds delicious! thanks for sharing it.
abby, if you want,let us know how the cherry salsa for fish goes; give us recipe maybe, also other fruit/protein combos, sounds good. The soup, ceviche etc.-wow,amazing!
do you have a good ceviche recipe?
christina-love the red stripe!! fajitas-good summer idea; maybe make some next week.
Off to make myself a soya milk/green tea powder/frozen yogurt smoothie!
I think tonight I will end up just having a burrito from Quesada (new place in Toronto that makes amazing burritos)... I'm just too freakin' tired to do much of anything else today! LOL
tonight made a riviera-inspired fish and veggie hobo packet: tilapia, tomatoes, zucchini, capers, kalamata olives, lemon zest, basil, a bit of anchovy paste, and a few tablespoons of white wine and olive oil, wrapped up nice and tight in two layers of foil.
i cooked it for 45 minutes at 350 but should have taken it out after 40. also, i undersalted. ah, well. next time!
So, burritos it was for dinner last night. Eaten with my boyfriend in a nice park by a large water feature (pictures of said water feature and boyfriend on my flickr site but I was far too hungry to take photos of my burrito - sorry!)
leeds, here's a basic ceviche (or seviche) from my parent's cookbook:
1 lb firm white fish cut into cubes
juice of 6 limes (about 1/2 cup
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded & diced
1 medium onion, finely diced
2 jalapenos, fresh or canned, finely diced
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 c chopped cilantro
salt, pepper
place fish in a glass or stainless bowl (or something that won't react with the acid)
cover with lime juice
marinate overnite (5/6 hours) in frig
the fish will "cook" - it will become white, opaque & firm
remove fish from lime juice, reserve juice
combine rest of ingredients with reserved juice, pour over fish & toss.
refrigerate til serving time.
serves 6 as app; 4 as light main dish
once you get the jist of it (think of it as a salad with fish as its base instead of lettuce), its time to get creative. some thoughts:
lime juice -- lemon, orange, vinegar
fish -- scallops, shrimp, crab
additions: capers, cubed avocado, minced garlic, bell peppers, fruit.
by the way, if any of you guys are ever in la, the place i went last nite is worth seeking out. some of the best restaurants here are hidden in mini malls so part of the adventure of discovering a new place is figuring out where it is! last nite's meal started with boiled peanuts, instead of bread, which is apparently a traditional snack in the south. they're really interesting, a textural & taste cross between edamame and chickpeas. i've definitely got to find a source in la!
thanks a lot abby! and I love discovering good restaurants in unlikely spots too! those are some of my favourites, small neighbourhood places etc. Little hidden treasures. fun!
liz, the fish packets sound terrific...something else for me to cook next week (I've made similar dish but with chicken, thin sliced potato, julienned carrots, celery & onion).