Summertime and the sandwich is an easy choice: seven inventive recipes

Spicy Chicken Salad with Hot Giardiniera

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]A[/su_dropcap] recent visit to the Polish market in our old neighborhood hooked us up with a satisfyingly crusty loaf of bread and put us in full sandwich mode. Here are seven inspired ways to turn two slices of bread—or a baguette—into a meal. Continue reading “Summertime and the sandwich is an easy choice: seven inventive recipes”

Portugal, by way of Mozambique and Boston: Spicy Portuguese Shrimp with Garlic

The “spicy” refers as much to the paprika’s flavoring as it does the pepper’s modest heat, and what sounds like too much garlic is just right. Recipe below.

Spicy Portuguese Shrimp

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e love reading about cooking almost as much as we do actually cooking. We have at least six cookbooks out of the library right now. We have another from a publisher, waiting to be reviewed. And though right now, we’re only subscribed to two food magazines—Bon Appétit and Saveur—I think I’m about to add another. Continue reading “Portugal, by way of Mozambique and Boston: Spicy Portuguese Shrimp with Garlic”

Notes from the back roads of Quebec

No recipe this week—just a few thoughts about a road trip we’re on, driving the coast of the Gaspé Peninsula in Quebec.

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e are at Land’s End, in the town of Gaspé at the easternmost tip of the Gaspé Peninsula in Quebec. We are on another of our patented road trips, but this one is unlike the others. We are not visiting any museums. We are spending little time in urban areas. Continue reading “Notes from the back roads of Quebec”

Cocktail in a can: just add gin to Trader Joe’s Lemon Elderflower Soda

Gin and store-bought lemon elderflower soda—and maybe optional lemon—make a quick, refreshing summer cocktail. Recipe below.

Gin with Lemon Elderflower Soda

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e’re big fans of fancy cocktails. We like the arcane ingredients, the layered flavors, the rituals of making them. We like sitting at bars and watching bartenders construct artisanal cocktails (everything is artisanal these days, so why not cocktails?). We like making them at home. But sometimes, all you need is something cold, refreshing, boozy and easy to make. This cocktail is exactly that. Continue reading “Cocktail in a can: just add gin to Trader Joe’s Lemon Elderflower Soda”

Happy 4th of July. Pass the kimchi potato salad.

Kimchi Potato Salad

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]O[/su_dropcap]n this most American holiday, it is yet again necessary to remind us all that one thing that makes America what it is—that makes it, in fact, great—is immigrants. The men who drafted and signed the Declaration of Independence (and they were all men—don’t get me started on that) were either immigrants or children or grandchildren of immigrants. If you are not a descendant of Native Americans, you are the product of immigrants.

Today, Marion and I are going to a barbecue hosted by friends of ours, both first generation Americans, children of immigrants. We will be bringing this kimchi potato salad as our contribution to the meal. Not as a political statement, but because it is amazingly delicious. This is what happens when you welcome everyone to the table. You get to share wonderful riches. Happy fourth of July, everyone.

Welcoming summer with mezcal and nectarines: Nectarine Campfire

Sweet, juicy nectarines combine with smoky mezcal, basil, lime juice and simple syrup to create a cocktail that tastes like its name—Nectarine Campfire. Recipe below.

Mezcal Nectarine Cocktail

ONE OF THE PRIMAL PLEASURES OF SUMMER IS STONE FRUITS. Biting into a ripe plum and having its juice run down your chin. Slicing a fresh peach into a bowl of vanilla ice cream. Turning apricots, rosemary and sugar into an effortless, classically French dessert. Or maybe inventing a smoky, fruity summer cocktail with mezcal and nectarines. Continue reading “Welcoming summer with mezcal and nectarines: Nectarine Campfire”

Macau-style Pork Chops and a farewell dinner

Inspired by Macau street food, pork chops are pounded thin and marinated overnight, then coated with panko bread crumbs and quickly fried. Serve with tossed greens or on slices of white bread. Recipe below.

Anthony Bourdain's Macau-style Pork Chops

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]L[/su_dropcap]ast Friday, Anthony Bourdain broke our hearts. All of our hearts. Partly, of course, because we knew we would never see him again, never hear his funny/smart/poignant/fierce stories again, never vicariously share his adventures again. But what truly broke our hearts was knowing that this generous, gentle, good man had suffered such profound sadness and pain. Continue reading “Macau-style Pork Chops and a farewell dinner”