Borrowing deep fried tricks for the grill: Szechuan Buttermilk Grilled Chicken

Chicken gets a buttermilk brine and a lively spice mix—Szechuan peppercorns, cumin seeds and Korean red chile powder—then is grilled instead of frying. Recipe below.

Szechuan Buttermilk Grilled Chicken

WE LOVE FRIED CHICKEN, BUT WE DON’T DEEP FRY. Still, when I come across a particularly enticing fried chicken recipe, I’m, well, enticed. That happened last week. Spending more time than was strictly proper studying it, I decided to see what elements of the recipe could translate from deep frying to grilling. Continue reading “Borrowing deep fried tricks for the grill: Szechuan Buttermilk Grilled Chicken” →

Fresh fruit and an iconic Iowa blue cheese: Watermelon Mango Salad with Blue Cheese

Watermelon, mango, blue cheese and cayenne pepper create a sweet, savory spicy, colorful summer salad.

Watermelon Mango Salad with Blue Cheese

BLUE CHEESE—AND BLUE CHEESE DRESSING—HAVE BEEN STARRING IN MOST OF OUR SALADS LATELY. That got me thinking about one of our favorite blue cheeses, Maytag, made by heirs to the Maytag appliance makers on their farm in Newton, Iowa. And that got me thinking about this summery, tangy, spicy fruit salad we made after an Iowa road trip. Continue reading “Fresh fruit and an iconic Iowa blue cheese: Watermelon Mango Salad with Blue Cheese” →

Taming the pesky “meanwhile”: Grilled Shrimp Scampi with Orzo

For Grilled Shrimp Scampi with Orzo, the marinade for the shrimp doubles as sauce for the pasta. Recipe below.

Grilled Shrimp Scampi with Orzo

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]M[/su_dropcap]eanwhile gets tossed around rather freely in recipes. “Meanwhile, cook the pasta.” “Meanwhile, make the biscuits.” Sometimes, that’s fine—being able to multi-task is an invaluable cooking skill. But sometimes, it can feel like you’re already juggling flaming batons and someone just tossed you a running chainsaw. Continue reading “Taming the pesky “meanwhile”: Grilled Shrimp Scampi with Orzo” →

Six ways to use those capers in your fridge

Lemon Caper Butter Sole

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e use capers a lot. A scary lot. Their bright, briny tang quickly elevates everything from seafood to chicken, meats, pastas and potato salads. And capers keep forever—unless you use them like we do. Here are six recipes to help you use up the capers in the back of your fridge. You know, so you can buy some more. Continue reading “Six ways to use those capers in your fridge” →

Up North

Jay Cooke State Park, Minnesota

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e just got back from a road trip, across Wisconsin up to Duluth, Minnesota, at the western tip of Lake Superior. Then up along the lake’s northern shore. Up into the Minnesota Northwoods. Up into Canada, to Thunder Bay. Up to the top of the Sleeping Giant in Ontario’s Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, to an open observation platform 100 meters above Lake Superior’s rocky shore below. Up north. Continue reading “Up North” →

Mezzing with a vodka classic: Mezcal Mule

This summery riff on the Moscow Mule swaps mezcal for vodka; a chile/cayenne pepper mix adds a little heat to this refreshing drink. Recipe below.

Mezcal Mule

I’M A FAN OF WORDPLAY. Not puns exactly, but riffing on sounds and sometimes meanings. So when I came across a mention of a Mezcal Mule, based on the vodka classic the Moscow Mule, I was already halfway there. The mezcal quickly got me the rest of the way. Continue reading “Mezzing with a vodka classic: Mezcal Mule” →

A nicely busy Sunday ends with simple, smoky goodness: Dijon Grilled Chicken Thighs

Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, garlic, tarragon and thyme and good, hot coals add up to smoky chicken thighs with a subtle European accent. Recipe below.

Dijon Grilled Chicken Thighs

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]L[/su_dropcap]ast Sunday was Father’s Day. I mention this only because last Sunday, we went to a big box hardware store to pick up some garden supplies and something I’d thought of last minute. The parking lot was jammed, busier than we’d ever seen it. Likewise the store aisles. At first, we didn’t know what was going on. Then we realized—it was dads. Continue reading “A nicely busy Sunday ends with simple, smoky goodness: Dijon Grilled Chicken Thighs” →

Our San Francisco host turns guest cook: Blackberry Balsamic Pan-seared Tuna

Tuna quickly pan-seared with capers and parsley is served with a drizzle of blackberries, balsamic vinegar and garlic. Recipe below, courtesy of one of our San Francisco hosts.

Blackberry Balsamic Pan-seared Tuna

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e like to do our homework before we travel, carefully researching museum exhibits, places to eat (and drink), good walking/shopping neighborhoods, even overhyped things to ignore. On our recent trip to San Francisco, we did none of that. Just told our various friends we were coming and showed up. It was glorious. Continue reading “Our San Francisco host turns guest cook: Blackberry Balsamic Pan-seared Tuna” →

San Francisco Jet Lag

Calder San Francisco MOMA

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]W[/su_dropcap]e just got back from a wonderful long weekend in San Francisco. “Just got back” as in it’s Tuesday, sneaking up on midnight, and we got home after midnight this morning and both somehow managed to get up and go to work on this same morning. I’m sitting here staring at a blinking cursor, staring down my Tuesday night post deadline and realizing it’s not going to happen. We’ll be back next week, possibly with a recipe, certainly with some stories.

Meanwhile, enjoy the Calder sculpture above, one of many in the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art’s collection, this one in an outdoor courtyard with a living wall. Or as I said when we saw it, “A Calder walks into a fern bar.” Thanks, folks, I’m here all week. Try the veal.

Smoky, understated Asian flavors: Grilled Coconut Chicken Thighs

Noisy-sounding marinade ingredients—coconut milk, lime juice, ginger, garlic, fish sauce, soy sauce—produce surprisingly subtle, delicious grilled chicken. Recipe below.

Grilled Coconut Chicken Thighs

THE MAP IS NOT THE TERRITORY. That’s a line from the Robert DeNiro film Ronin that Marion and I have made part of our lexicon. We’ve quoted it here, in fact, some years ago. I requote it now because if you think of a recipe as a map—and I do—it seems appropriate with this dish. The chicken was delicious, moist and subtly flavored, but it did not taste like the recipe sounded. Continue reading “Smoky, understated Asian flavors: Grilled Coconut Chicken Thighs” →