Tag Archive for 'lemon'

Lamb with Mint Gremolata

Published by mel on May 18, 2009 in entree and recipe.

Lamb with Mint Gremolata

Have you ever had a Lamb Saratoga chop? Neither had I. But they looked so pretty in the butcher’s case at Whole Foods that I splurged for a fancy Saturday night dinner. According to this site, a Saratoga roll “refers to a boneless center lamb roast obtained from the blade portion of the lamb shoulder and is also known as a chuck eye lamb roast.”

Now that we got the lamb anatomy lesson out of the way, I can tell you what it tasted like. My mom was right on when she said it was like a lamb filet mignon. The chops were small, very lean and super tender. Almost melt in your mouth tender. And since they were so lean, they didn’t have as strong a game-y flavor as most lamb chops.

I grilled the chops simply with a little salt and pepper, then topped them off with a little mint gremolata. Gremolata is just a fancy word for chopped herbs, garlic and lemon zest. The mint and lemon were an extremely refreshing counterpoint to the lamb, and the raw garlic added just the right amount of bite.

I served the chops with a simple heirloom tomato salad and Pepita Rice Pilaf. It was pretty much the perfect meal for a summer night and a great way to officially kick off the grilling season.

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Steak, Asparagus & Chimichurri Pasta

Published by mel on April 28, 2009 in entree and recipe.

Steak, Asparagus & Chimichurri Pasta

Around here everyone dresses their skirt steaks with a dollop of Chimichurri. If you’ve never had it, you’re definitely missing out. Chimichurri is a steak condiment originally from Argentina and made from parsley, olive oil, garlic, salt, lemon juice, red wine vinegar and red pepper flakes. It’s rich and herbal, tangy and a little spicy. It’s the perfect accompaniment for grilled beef.

Since Chimichurri also resembles pesto, I figured it would make a great pasta sauce. And I was right. I grilled a skirt steak and some big, purple asparagus and tossed them with Rigatoni and a fresh batch of Chimichurri. I loved the grilled flavors with the pasta and garlicky sauce.

This is the perfect meal to eat outdoors when the weather is nice and you have a big frosty beer or chilly glass of wine. Is it the weekend yet?

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Pomegranate Sangria & Tapas

Published by mel on March 30, 2009 in recipe and sides & bites.

Pomegranate Sangria

I love tapas. Given the choice between them and a 3-course meal, I’ll always choose the tapas. Why eat just 3 things when you can eat 20? This Saturday, instead of a complicated dinner, we had tapas.

Some of my favorites are cured meats, cheeses, chorizo simmered in cider, hummus and pita brea, Spanish Omelettes, and Garlicky Thyme White Beans on bread. I usually make these beans because they’re easy, delicious and always a hit. Just stir white beans with olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, thyme, salt and pepper. Spoon them over bread and you’ve got a great little hors d’oeuvres or a nice tapa.

Garlicky Thyme White Beans

I was also lucky to receive some Pomegranate juice from the good folks at POM Wonderful. Since I love anything pomegranate and anything to do with red wine, I made Sangria. The perfect accompaniment to tapas and a great way to kick off Spring.

Sangria is usually made from red wine, brandy, fruit juice, simple syrup, seltzer and fruit. There are tons of great variations, including a white wine, pear one that my mom makes. I used cognac, POM juice and white grapes in my version. I loved the way the pomegranate and wine complimented each other, and the cognac adds just the right amount of booziness.

Sangria and Tapas are my favorite kind of party food. Tapas are tasty, filling and less work than a 3-course meal, Sangria is always a crowd-pleaser and this pomegranate version is really unique.

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Grilled Chicken & Fennel Kebabs w/Tzatziki

Published by mel on March 23, 2009 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

I’m happy that Spring is officially here! For most people, spring means tulips, blossoming trees, warmer weather and the all-clear to finally fish those flip flops out from under a pile of boots. Spring used to mean all of these things to me, but now I live in Miami. Here, Spring means that the perfect weather is almost gone. That the humidity will rise steadily over the next 6 months, and that soon it will downpour every afternoon.

But it also means that some of my favorite ingredients start popping up at the grocery store again! Asparagus and peas, cherries and stone fruits…Cadbury eggs! It’s also the start of the grilling season. This weekend, I was really craving Greek food. And when I have a craving, I must tame it. I made some quick kebabs with chicken, fennel and red onion. Sprinkled on some salt, pepper and dried oregano, then drizzled my meat on a stick with olive oil and lemon juice.

They were exactly what I wanted. Hearty and flavorful, but not at all heavy. I swear I could eat these every day. I served them with some homemade tzatziki sauce. Tzatziki is my favorite Greek condiment and is made from Greek yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, salt and lemon juice. It’s thick and tangy and the perfect compliment to grilled meats. (Well, that and chimichurri.) I also made a thyme-infused flatbread with chickpea flour, which was delicious, but I had some issues with it sticking to my skillet. I’m going to try again this week and post back with details.

If it’s finally warm enough to grill where you are, then these are for you. If not, then bookmark this recipe for summertime. Either way, whip up a batch of Tzatziki this week. It makes a great spread for lamb burgers or vegetarian pitas.

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Lemon Linguine

Published by mel on February 23, 2009 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

Lemon Linguine

When I lived in NYC I had about 10 favorite restaurants. A favorite casual Thai place, another for Tapas, the Ramen place, the sandwich place, the ever-delicious Babbo, and my favorite neighborhood place. I changed neighborhoods a few times, but when I was living in the East Village, that place was Lil’ Frankie’s.

Lil’ Frankie’s was everything a neighborhood restaurant should be — dark, casual, consistently good, no reservations, reasonable prices and a great bar menu. The food is simple and satisfying with enough variety in the daily specials to keep it interesting. And as with any favorite place, I had a favorite dish. A mainstay that I’d order again and again…and again. The Spaghetti Limone.

Simple spaghetti, tossed with a lemony, buttery sauce and topped with cheese. No garnishes, nothing fancy. Just plain delicious noodles. The simplest dish on the menu and my favorite. I’ve been trying to recreate it for a few years and this has been best imitation to date. Dear Frankie, if you’re out there, help a girl out and send me the real recipe! Oh, and a Norcini pizza while you’re at it. Please and thank you!

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Crisp Gnocchi with Lemon & Garlic Greens

Published by mel on September 24, 2008 in entree and recipe.

Crisp Gnocchi with Lemon & Garlic Greens

Hot on the heels of the homemade gnocchi post, here’s another method for cooking fresh gnocchi that will make those little potato pasta pillows even more delicious and addicting. Pan fry them until they’re crisp and brown. I would describe the taste as a cross between pasta and a french fry. MMM. There’s nothing better than that!

As with the last batch of gnocchi, I didn’t want to smother them in sauce. I wanted them to really shine. So, I sauteed some kale with basil, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and serrano peppers. The greens were spicy and garlicky and lemony and the perfect compliment to the crisp, starchy gnocchi.

I used a batch of frozen homemade gnocchi for this dish — it went straight from the freezer into the oiled pan and crisped up nicely. You can also use fresh and frozen gnocchi, but I would avoid the shrink-wrapped kind you find in the pasta aisle. You’ll lose all of the creamy potato-ness if you go that route.

This dish came together in under 20 minutes and is delicious and fancy enough for guests. The Lemon and Garlic greens would also be fabulous tossed with pasta and a little olive oil. Just make sure you make a whole bunch — people will be wanting seconds.

Shamless Plug: Head over to Kelly Spitzer’s Flavor a Deux to read her “Foodie Spotlight” all about yours truly. I had a great time working with her on this interview. Thanks Kelly!

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grilled chimichurri tofu sandwich

Published by mel on September 11, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

grilled chimichurri tofu sandwich

Is it wrong to dress tofu in chimichurri? Maybe. But, it makes a damn good sandwich. Chimichurri is a delicious Argentinian sauce usually drizzled over freshly grilled meat, and most often over skirt steak. It’s made by blending olive oil, parsley (I like Italian Parsley myself), lemon juice, garlic, red pepper flakes and salt together like you would a pesto. The bright green sauce is rich, herbal, tangy and a little spicy. Just the thing for grilled meats, and apparently just the thing for spicing up an otherwise bland piece of tofu.

As you all know, I’m by no means a vegetarian. I love my bacon, beef, pork and lamb. Seafood, too. Yum! So, it may seem surprising that I’ve also grown to love tofu. You just can’t think of it as a meat substitute. It’s no replacement for steaks and burgers, but it has its own unique flavor and texture. I love how it soaks up its marinade and develops nice, crisp grill lines. Paired with some greens and piled onto toasted pumpernickel, it made a hefty and flavorful sandwich.

My beef-jerky-loving Midwestern man ate it up and asked for seconds. Chimichurri and a grill are always a winner, and can probably turn the most rabid tofu haters into tofu lovers.

Related: Steak Sandwiches with Chimichurri Jicama Slaw

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chickpea & bulgur salad w/soft boiled egg & breadcrumbs

Published by mel on June 20, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

chickpea & bulgur salad w/soft boiled egg & breadcrumbs

You know those days when you open your fridge and find that there isn’t much in there. Or, there’s plenty of food, but you’re not in the mood for any of it. Steak? Nah. Sausages? Nope. Pasta? Not again…

So you turn to your pantry and start poking around for something, anything, that seems appetizing. Last night, that happened to be a can of chickpeas, some bulgur and a bag of greens. Ah, a perfect summer salad. But I didn’t want a simple salad – that wouldn’t do. I wanted a salad that felt like a meal. Something hearty, but also refreshing.

The result was a chickpea and bulgur salad topped with a soft boiled egg and fresh, homemade breadcrumbs. I mashed half the can of chickpeas so that they’d hold together with the bulgur. Otherwise, those little suckers are impossible to get on your fork unless you chase them around your plate. Too much effort for a weeknight, really.

The breadcrumbs were a sort of ode to croutons. For some reason, whenever I try to make homemade croutons, I cut enormous chunks of bread and the salad ends up more like a panzanella. These breadcrumbs added a much more subtle crunch. And the soft boiled egg was perfect, coating everything with a glossy yellow richness that made the salad feel substantial and just a bit indulgent.

Cilantro and a lemony shallot vinaigrette brightened it all up for a delicious summer dinner.

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a different kind of potato salad

Published by mel on May 28, 2008 in entree, recipe and sides & bites.

a different kind of potato salad

Usually potato salad means boiled potatoes and globs of mayonnaise. (Um, duh.) And while this kind of potato salad can be just the thing for a backyard BBQ, it’s not exactly what you want to eat for lunch everyday. I posted a vinaigrette-based version a few weeks ago, and when I saw the pretty, locally-grown fingerlings at the grocery store, I snatched them up for more potato salad.

This time, a simple green salad with oven-roasted fingerlings, greens, feta cheese and pistachios dressed with a lemony vinaigrette. A lighter alternative to the standard potato salad that works equally well as an entree or side. And honestly, roasted potatoes are just perfect for a salad. Hearty and creamy and perfectly satisfying.

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