The Bitten Word

Grilled Okra with Red Curry-Lime Dressing

Food & Wine (September 2012)

Here's a confession: We haven't really cooked this week. 

We got home from vacation on Sunday and the cupboards were bare. We're talking vodka-in-the-freezer, ketchup-in-the-refrigerator-door bare. We knew we had to remedy that, so we went to the supermarket and picked up a few staples. Two days later, we got our weekly CSA share, so we've had a good amount of fresh vegetables in the house (okra, eggplant, arugula, a few tomatoes). 

But then we haven't really been motivated to do any focused cooking to share here with you. Oh, we've been eating at home. But it's been more of an improvised, no-recipe, throw-a-bunch-of-stuff-in-a-skillet kind of thing. Very, very simple.

It's been a nice respite. We've been been busy catching up at work, so it's been nice to spend less time in the kitchen. And the food we've been cooking has been very healthy, which is a nice break after decadent beach food. 

But simple food can be excellent food, and sometimes, the simplest recipes can really surprise you. 

Food & Wine's September issue happens to be full of recipes that are simple, in that they only have three ingredients (plus oil, salt and pepper). 

We're hard pressed to think of dishes in our regular rotation that only have three ingredients. Simple egg dishes? Very simple sautés? 

This recipe showcases the power of simple, because this Grilled Okra with Red Curry-Lime Dressing is a complete knock-out -- one of our favorite dishes we've cooked so far this year.  

Fresh Cherries on Ice

Bon Appétit (June 2012) 

Last Saturday afternoon, we had about 30 people over for an informal get-together, before we all walked over to watch the D.C. gay pride parade. It was a low-key gathering and we kept it simple. We served some very fancy cocktails, some pretzels, and a big bowl of cherries on ice.

The cherries are an idea we picked up from the current issue of Bon Appétit, in the BA Arsenal section at the front of the book. Fresh fruit on ice. You can't get much simpler than that. (Of course you could do this with any fruit, but BA suggests fresh cherries, which do work especially well since they're bite-sized and have handy stems for grabbing. As you know, we've been on a cherry kick of late, so that's what we did.)

Believe us when we tell you: There is no quicker way to class up a party than to throw some fresh cherries on a pile of chipped ice! So many people, when they first spied the big bowl, said something along the lines of how "nice" or "fancy" it was. This, for something that took us approximately 20 seconds to throw together.

It's a cool, refreshing way to serve chilled fresh fruit, and it literally could not be easier. The only downside: the ice, of course, melts. One suggestion: serve them in a smaller bowl, so that you can replenish the cherries and the ice throughout a gathering. 

And as great as this idea is for a party, it's also a pretty great way to enjoy cherries on your own, with a big bowl all to yourself this weekend. 

 

Scallops with Spice Oil

Bon Appétit (May 2012)

When it comes to seafood, probably the single most-quoted line around our house comes from "Top Chef" way back in 2009. Cheftestant Fabio Viviani was criticizing one of his competitors, Jamie, for making scallops too frequently. As Fabio put it, "This is 'Top Chef.' It's not 'Top Scallops!'"

What's charming about it is Fabio's Mario-and-Luigi Italian accent: "Eez no tope scallope!"

(By the way, if you're wondering what the second most often-quoted line about seafood is in our house, it has to do with ordering a certain kind of fish "just for the halibut." Thanks, folks! We're here all week.)

Anyway, these scallops from Bon Appétit....

Asparagus and Cheese Tart

Food Network Magazine (April 2012)

Sometimes when you're cooking dinner for guests, you just need to roll with the punches. Usually, that works out A-OK. Happy guests. Clean plates. Satisfied hosts.

Sometimes, not so much. 

Zach's parents recently stayed with us for a few days. Since they've visited our nation's capitol many times at this point, we no longer plan their visits around museums or memorials. Now, it's all about where we can go that's a bit offbeat. (Roosevelt Island and Lincoln Cottage made this visit's list.)

Most important, it's about where we eat. This time around, we had Thai, Vietnamese, Scandinavian and pie. (Cue music: "One of these things is not like the others....")

And, as always when we're with Zach's mom, we cook. Such were our plans for a recent Saturday night when, after a marathon of eating meals out at restaurants, we all needed a night in. So we planned to cook a spring meal, with this Asparagus and Cheese Tart featured as the entree. 

Doctor-Your-Own Potato Chips + Other Menu Ideas for the Super Bowl

Adapted from Martha Stewart Living (September 2011)

 

Our interest in sports can be summed up in this small snippet of recent conversation: 

Zach: "I don't even know who's playing in the Super Bowl."

Clay: "Uh, duh? Madonna."

So yes, it's Super Bowl Week, when America's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of snacks.

And whether you're a fan of the Giants or the Patriots -- or just Madonna or the commercials -- we've got the perfect snack for the big game: heated and spiced potato chips.

Yup, you heard us.

Pickled Shrimp

Saveur (October 2011)

Back in the summer, on one of those steamy, swampy, oppressively hot evenings that Washingtonians know so well, we went to our friends' Trevor and Owen's place for a potluck dinner. The air was thick as velvet, and all the guests arrived sweaty and bedraggled from the heat.

Then, a lifeline: Our friend Jen had brought a bowl of pickled shrimp.

We all dove in. The lemony, pickly, vinegary shrimp was the perfect antidote to the sweaty summer night. The sharp flavors of the chilled shrimp instantly cooled things off for everyone. (A libation or three didn't hurt, either.)

So when we saw this recipe for Pickled Shrimp in the latest issue of Saveur, we knew we wanted to try it out ourselves.

Scallop Crudo

Bon Appétit (August 2011)

We've been lucky enough to have eaten at our fair share of fancy restaurants. And more than a few times, we have ordered some version of a scallop crudo. You see it there, lurking among the first courses on menus. And it pops up, occasionally, on cooking competition shows.  

It seems so upscale, so refined, so (dare we say it?) classy.  

So we wanted to make it ourselves, and Bon Appétit gave us the perfect excuse with this recipe from Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Dan Kluger, current kings of the fancy restaurants in New York City. 

And there was one thing we were shocked to find about this recipe. 

Minted Pea and Prosciutto Crostini

Everyday Food (April 2011)

Just a couple weeks ago we said that crostini and other party snacks can "get a little tiresome."

Let's retract that statement, shall we?

Because these Minted Pea and Prosciutto Crostini are anything but tiresome. They're fresh, filling -- and easy, to boot.

Garlic-Herb Pinwheels and Harissa-Sausage Pinwheels

Everyday Food (April 2011)

When you have guests over for dinner -- or any get-together, really -- it's always nice to have some snacks for them to nibble on. After all, depending on how the cooking is going, you may have some time to kill. We've served more than our fare share of late dinners while entertaining, so we're always sure to have some sort of snack on hand in case, you know, dinner actually ends up being served at 9 p.m.

And while crudités, crostini and a bowl of nuts are great, they can get a little tiresome, so it's always good to have a few other tricks up your sleeve. We love to serve something that's easy to make but also impressive on the plate, like pinwheels: pre-made dough filled with flavors of your choosing, rolled up, sliced and baked. 

For our book club meeting last week (where we also served Bagna Cauda Dip with Assorted Vegetables), we wanted something simple and tasty, so we were happy to see these Garlic-Herb Pinwheels in Everyday Food. And they inspired us to try our own version -- a Harissa-Sausage Pinwheel.

Bagna Cauda Dip with Assorted Vegetables

Bon Appétit (April 2011)

Food magazines frequently have a page toward the back of an issue where they'll pull together some of the recipes featured that month into little menus for different dinners or events.

We often find these menus a little humorous, just because they can be oddly specific, like "Bridal Luncheon" or "Poker Night." Like, "We'll, I hadn't thought of throwing a baby shower, but gosh this menu sounds good..."

Anyway, the joke's on us, we guess. Last night, we hosted a meeting of our book club. And there at the back of the April issue of Bon Appétit, right at the top of a menu labeled "Book Club," was this Bagna Cauda with Assorted Vegetables.