The Bitten Word

Bo Ssam with Ssam Sauce and Garlic-Scallion Sauce

Momofuku, via The New York Times

There was a time when the thought of serving dinner for 16 would have scared the daylights out of us.

But that's just the challenge we faced last weekend, when through a series of circumstances we ended up hosting a large group of our friends for dinner (well, part of a dinner, but more on that below).

We needed a dish that would easily serve a group on a Saturday night, and we didn't want to spend all day in the kitchen.

We decided to go with this Bo Ssam served with two sauces, a Ssam Sauce and a Garlic-Scallion Sauce.

Bittens, are you sitting down?

We hope so, because this dish is about to BLOW. YOUR. MINDS.

This dish is, in a word, epic.

The Last Scene of Summer: Makers-and-Coke Cake

Here's how summer ended for us. 

We spent Saturday on the beach in North Carolina with 5 friends. It was a perfect day. Jumping waves in the ocean, bobbing along and waiting for the next big one. Sitting on the sand, each of us with a book in hand, trying to get through them before sundown. And talking about the fall, what we're looking forward to, what we're excited about, and, of course, what we look forward to eating. 

It also happened to be our friend Ralph's birthday. To celebrate, we decided to bake a cake. The drink of choice among our friends is Makers Mark bourbon from the great state of Kentucky, mixed with either a Coca-Cola, a Diet Coke or soda water.

The two of us were both quiet familiar with "Coke cakes," having grown up with them at countless church potlucks and family gatherings.

So in honor of Ralph's birthday, we thought, why not try a Makers-and-Coke Cake?

Chinese-Style Eggplant

Adapted from The Yangshuo Cooking School

We're awash in eggplant right now. 

Our CSA is having a bumper crop of eggplant. In a given week, we can easily receive three to seven pounds of eggplant. In a household of two, that's a lot of aubergine. (If you're unfamiliar with CSAs, we have a post that explains what a CSA is and how it select one.)

But we were eager for eggplant season to start this year. And we were ready. We have old standby dishes like this Eggplant Parmesan recipe (we've already made it once this month). And earlier this year we found another eggplant recipe that we loved, with these Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango (and it's on the docket to make again). 

But we were especially excited for eggplant season because we've been waiting to use this recipe we learned back in November when we were traveling in China. During a visit to Yangshuo, near Guilin in Guangxi Province in the Southern part of the country, we spent most of one day in a cooking class. We made five great dishes, but this eggplant was a standout.  

Beet Sorbet with Blackberry Ripple

adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home

We are just loving all of your great entries in our ice cream flavor contest.  Peep sauce? Fig, nectarine, and bleu cheese ice cream with a balsamic ripple? Cajeta and banana? 

You guys are such a creative bunch! And our wheels are turning. 

We tried our own flavor combo this week, creating this Beet and Blackberry Sorbet using the method from Jeni (we like to think we're on a first name basis now). 

So let's round out our Ice Cream Week with a sorbet. 

Roasted Pineapple and Sage Ice Cream

adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home

Once we'd cranked out a batch of Jeni's Salty Caramel Ice Cream, we were eager to try her method for another flavor. 

So we looked at what we had on hand in the kitchen. When Zach's parents had come to visit a week ago, we'd purchased a fresh pineapple at the supermarket. Why, exactly? We're not sure. It was one of those "company's coming!" impulse buys that marks the arrival of visitors. ("Oh, maybe they would like to eat fresh pineapple while they're in D.C."  "Definitely." "And maybe some string cheese?" "For sure.")

Needless to say, the parents came, the parents went, and the pineapple remained untouched. So there it was, ripening upside down on our counter. 

Then, last week, Clay met up with his friend Rachel for coffee, and she showed up with a huge bag of pineapple sage that she'd plucked from her yard. It was beautiful and fragrant, and we instantly knew just what to do with it. 

Pineapple sage? It was a sign!

We got to work on a Roasted Pineapple and Sage Ice Cream.

Jeni's Salty Caramel Ice Cream

From Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home

We have met our new hero, and her name is Jeni.

Way back in July, Rina -- a friend who we met through the blog and our go-to for Chicago restaurant recommendations -- sent us an email extolling the genius of Jeni Britton Bauer and recommending her (new at that time) cookbook, Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home. 

We were interested (as we are in all of Rina's recommendations) but we didn't rush out and get the book. 

Why? The shame of our ice cream maker. It sits on the top shelf of a storage closet, rarely touched and seldom used. Did we need an ice cream cookbook to keep it company? 

We thought not.

And we were so, so wrong. 

Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango

From Plenty: Vibrant Vegetables from London's Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi

At the end of last year, Plenty -- a new cookbook from London Chef Yotam Ottolenghi -- was turning up all over the place. It was mentioned in just about every magazine we receive, and we saw it on dozens of best-cookbooks-of-2011 lists. 

A few weeks ago we reserved it from the library to see what all the fuss is about. 

And let us tell you: It was love at first sight. 

This book grabbed us at the introduction. Although Ottolenghi is not a vegetarian, he has written a column called "The New Vegetarian" for a British newspaper. This book is essentially a collection of recipes from that column, so it's all vegetables from the point of view of a meat eater. Often, recipes will include suggestions of what meat to serve along with the dish. Most of the recipes, though, look substantial enough to serve as the main dish of any meal. 

As you know, we usually find ourselves at the carnivore end of the scale. But we've wanted to cut back the amount of meat in our diet. If you're looking to do the same, Plenty may be all the inspiration you need. 

The book is categorized by vegetables ("Funny Onions," "Roots," "Leaves," etc.) and there are at least a dozen dishes we're eager to make. A Caramelized Garlic Tart. Chard and Saffron Omelettes. Sweet Corn Polenta. We're dreaming of spring and summer already. 

But one dish lept out to us from the page: these Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango. 

Nigella's Chocolate Fruit Cake

We're back from China!

We just arrived home yesterday, and once we're fully unpacked and have downloaded all our photos, we'll share some tales with you. Needless to say, it was a wonderful and adventurous few weeks away. Now we're both eager to get back into the kitchen and take a break from our endless parade of noodles and dumplings and rice. 

It seems that the Christmas season exploded while we were gone. Greeting us at the airport were sparkly trees, big faux packages and holiday songs on the loudspeaker. The houses up and down our block are already done up in strings of lights and festive wreaths. 

So, mere hours back from our trip, we already have holiday cooking on the mind. And for us, holiday cooking involves one recipe that we're eager to return to each year: Nigella Lawson's Chocolate Fruit Cake.

Eat This Now! 6 Dishes to Make Before the End of Summer

Kids, we've got a little bit of bad news: Summer is nearly over.

But you've still got a little time! Meteorologically speaking, you've got 23 days. And even if you count Labor Day as the end of summer, you still have the better part of a week.

One good use of these waning days? Cook up a favorite summer dish!

We scrolled through our recipe index to round up 6 Summer Dishes that you should definitely make before fall. They're some of our all-time favorites!

 

Raw Corn and Zucchini Salad: This salad is simple, fresh and bursting with flavor. It's the taste of summer in a single bite!

 

 

 

 

 

Sweet and Spicy Fried Peach Pies: There's literally not a single word in the name of this dish that we don't love.

 

 

 

 

Pan-Roasted Corn and Okra: Just four ingredients: corn, okra, oil and salt. It doesn't get simpler, or tastier.

 

 

 

 

 

Best BBQ Chicken with Simple Barbecue Sauce: This is one of the most popular posts we've ever had on The Bitten Word, and for good reason. This dish is a knockout!

 

 

 

Basil-Blackberry Crumble: A crumble is just about the most perfect summer dessert you can find. We've made dozens of variations of this recipe over the past three years. Pick your favorite summer fruit, and get to crumblin'! 

 

 

 

Burgers with Blue Cheese Mayonnaise and Sherry Vidalia Onions: This is probably our favorite burger we've ever made. Sweet, smoky and tangy all in one bite!

 

 

 

 

As for us, we're heading to the beach for a loooong Labor Day week with a houseful of friends. We've got sunscreen, a stack of unread magazines and a bag full of books. We'll do some cooking, and we just may have a cocktail or two.

We'll see you in a week -- it's going to be a fantastic autumn! 

 

 

 

 

Dorie Greenspan's "Visitandine," or Your New Favorite Strawberry Shortcake

Adapted From Around My French Table

Here's a tip: Before you start cooking any recipe -- or really, before you even go shopping for the components of a recipe -- read the full instructions all the way through.

Not that we're good about following that advice ourselves. Time and again, we find ourselves barreling toward the end of a dish, and suddenly -- ohhhhh, cripes! -- "Let rest for 90 minutes before proceeding to next step." 

We were glad to see this tip, submitted by Chef John Besh, included in Food Network Magazine's terrific May feature, "The 100 Greatest Cooking Tips of All Time." It bears repeating: "Take the time to actually read recipes through before you begin."

Of course, sometimes things turn out okay. In fact, not heeding that advice led us to make this strawberry shortcake. More on that in a moment.

But first: strawberries. 

Strawberry season is upon us, at least in our neck of the woods. If you're south of our nation's capital, you no doubt already have them by the bushels. Folks up north: Hold tight! They're coming. Our CSA kicked off this week, with a small quantity of strawberries, but it sounds like a bunch more are on their way to Chez Bitten Word. 

We have some favorite recipes we'll revisit, like Strawberry Dumplings, or maybe this Strawberry-Citrus Salad. We also love making Freezer Jams, so that we have all that deliciousness on hand year-round (or at least as long as we can ration it). 

And then there's shortcake. 

We've made a handful of strawberry shortcakes here on the blog, our favorite being these Balsamic and Brown Sugar Strawberry Shortcakes. The compote was our own, but the shortcake itself was from Everyday Food, and it was very good.  

But it looks as if we may have found a new favorite shortcake recipe.