grilled basil citrus salmon

going by memory here. a worker came to my home a few years ago, and commented on the basil growing in the herb garden. he marinates salmon in basil with other ingredients and throws in on a hot grill. i scrawled the list on a scrap of paper, as i was heading to charleston and cooking on the wilsons' houseboat.

olive oil
lime juice and zest
orange juice
honey
liberal crusted garlic
chopped tomatoes
slivered basil
diced onion
wine vinegar if you need it
red pepper flakes, salt and freshly ground black pepper

marinate salmon in a ziploc with these ingredients. grill. enjoy. it is very very good.

Steak Teriyaki

You can either pan-fry or grill this steak, either way you'll want to sear it on very high heat. If pan frying, I recommend using a large cast iron frying pan or griddle pan.
Ingredients

* 1/3 cup mirin rice wine
* 1/3 cup sake
* 1/3 cup soy sauce (if cooking gluten-free, use gluten-free soy sauce)
* 1 Tbsp sugar
* 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger

* 1 1/2 to 2 lb flank steak or skirt steak
* Olive oil or grapeseed oil

Method



1 Combine the mirin, sake, soy sauce, sugar, and grated ginger in a large, shallow bowl. Place the steak in the marinade and let marinate for at least an hour, and up to 48 hours. If marinating for more than an hour, keep chilled until an hour before you plan to cook.


2 When ready to cook, remove steak from marinade, reserving the marinade. Place steak on a plate and set aside. Place marinade in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 minutes, or until the marinade has reduced to a thin glaze, becoming your teriyaki sauce.

Please note that if you are concerned by the idea of reusing the marinade after raw steak has been sitting in it, you will be boiling the heck out of this marinade, killing anything that may have decided to grow in it during the marinating process. Also steak isn't the same as chicken. People eat steak raw (beef carpaccio). Salmonella is not a problem with steak; it is with chicken. If you are still concerned, make twice as much marinade, and reserve half to boil down to make the sauce, using the other half as a marinade.

Soup au Pistou

, Recipe

I made this soup in late spring/early summer. I'd encourage you to substitute vegetables based on whatever is seasonal at the time. Also, I had flageolet beans, but you could substitute other small white beans.

1 pound / 16 oz / 450 g dried flageolet beans, soaked for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, then drained

1/4 cup / 60 ml olive oil
4 medium onions, chopped
2 medium leeks, trimmed and chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
12 cups / 3 liters water
1 28-ounce can, whole tomatoes, well drained, chopped
4 medium yellow potatoes, chopped
1 bouillon cube, optional
1/4 pound / 4 oz. stellette (tiny star) pasta, or other small pasta
3 small zucchini, chopped
1/2 cup (a big handful) chard stems, finely chopped
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste


Pistou

1 tablespoon crushed garlic
scant 3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
4 1/2 cups / 2 oz / 60 g basil leaves, torn into small pieces
1 tomato (from above), well chopped
1/4 cup / 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup / 2 oz / 60 g grated aged Gruyere cheese

In your largest soup pot heat the oil, then add the onions, leeks, and celery. Saute for about 5 minutes, then stir in the soaked beans and 12 cups water. Bring to a boil, dial back to a simmer, then cook for about 15 minutes. Reserve one of the tomatoes for the pistou, then stir the remaining tomatoes into the pot, then the potatoes. Cook for another 15-20 minutes, or until the beans seem like they are nearly cooked. Add a bouillon cube if you like, then the pasta, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and the chard stems and cook for another 3 minutes. Stir in salt - perhaps less if you used a salty bouillon - essentially, you want to salt to taste. At this point the pasta should be cooked through, as well as all the beans and vegetables. For the soup to taste good, you really need to get the right amount of salt in it - just be mindful of this, and adjust if needed.

While the soup is cooking, you can make the pistou. I use a mortar and pestle, but you can use a food processor if you like. Pound the garlic with the salt into a paste. Add the basil a handful at a time and pound and grind until nearly smooth. Add the tomatoes, then gradually stir in the olive oil a bit at a time. Stir in the cheese, then chill until ready to use.

Ladle soup into bowls and top with a generous dollop of pistou.

Serves 8 - 12.

lemon broccoli and chickpea rigatoni

From Food and Wine, from a new cookbook by Marc Meyers, chef at Five Points.

Ingredients

1. One 19-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2. 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
3. 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4. Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
5. 1 1/2 pounds broccoli, cut into florets
6. 1 pound rigatoni
7. 5 large garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
8. 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
9. 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, toss the chickpeas with the lemon juice and 1/2 cup of the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
2. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the broccoli until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the broccoli to a colander and rinse under cold water until cool. Add the rigatoni to the boiling water and cook until al dente.
3. Meanwhile, in a large, deep skillet, heat the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper and cook over moderate heat until the garlic is golden, about 3 minutes. Add the broccoli and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the chickpea mixture and cook until warmed through, about 1 minute.
4. Drain the rigatoni, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the broccoli and chickpeas along with the reserved cooking water and season with salt and pepper. Cook over moderate heat, stirring, until the rigatoni is coated with sauce. Remove from the heat and stir in 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese. Transfer the pasta to a bowl, sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan and serve.

creole spice paste

1. 2 garlic cloves
2. 1/2 small onion, coarsely chopped
3. 1 jalapeño, halved lengthwise and seeded
4. 1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley
5. 1 teaspoon thyme leaves
6. 1/2 medium green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
7. 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
8. 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
9. 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
10. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a food processor, puree the garlic, onion, jalapeño, parsley and thyme. Add the bell pepper, salt, cayenne and black pepper and pulse until finely chopped. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the oil.


Make Ahead

The paste can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Notes

Best Uses Mix the spice paste into mayonnaise to use in chicken or tuna salad. You can also rub it on steak, chicken and pork.

Creole Grilled Shrimp Rolls

* TOTAL TIME: 30 MIN
* SERVINGS: 4

* Staff Favorite

Ingredients

1. 1 pound shelled and deveined jumbo shrimp, butterflied
2. 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon Creole Spice Paste
3. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4. 1/4 cup mayonnaise
5. 1 celery rib, finely chopped
6. 1 tablespoon finely chopped celery leaves
7. 2 sour gherkins, finely chopped (2 tablespoons)
8. 4 hot dog buns

Directions

1. Light a grill. In a medium bowl, toss the shrimp with 1/4 cup of the spice paste and the oil and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the mayonnaise, celery, celery leaves, gherkins and the remaining 1 tablespoon of paste; refrigerate.
3. Grill the shrimp over high heat until pink and charred in spots, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and freeze just until cooled, about 5 minutes. Chop the shrimp and stir it into the mayonnaise. Mound the shrimp salad in the buns and serve.

Savory Cherry Compote Recipe

Simply recipes? 101?

an excellent accompaniment to pork, chicken, or even duck. Serve with pork chops, pork tenderloin, seared duck breasts, or baked chicken. Yum.

Ingredients

* 3 Tbsp olive oil
* 2 Tbsp minced shallots (can sub red onion)
* 2 1/2 cups pitted cherries, quartered
* 1 cup walnuts, chopped
* 1 Tsp minced rosemary
* Salt and pepper to taste
* 1/4 cup Port, red wine, cassis, or cherry juice (or water)
* 1 Tbsp honey

Method

1 Heat the olive oil in a pan in a frying pan on medium high heat. Add the shallots and sauté until they just begin to color on the edges, about 2-3 minutes. Stir a few times while they’re cooking.

2 Add the walnuts, rosemary and cherries and stir everything to combine. Turn the heat down to medium and cook until the cherries are soft, about 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a little black pepper and taste for salt.

3 Pour in the Port, wine or cassis and the honey, and stir again. Boil this down slowly until the softening cherries and the liquid cook down to a syrupy texture.

Makes a couple cups, enough to accompany meat dish for 4 to 6 people.