The Bitten Word

Honey-Ginger Chicken with Lime

Food & Wine (July 2014)

We haven't been spending a whole lot of time in the kitchen these past few weeks.

It's been drop dead gorgeous in our nation's capital, and we've been trying to maximize time outdoors, running errands that don't really need to be run and walking far out of our way (sometimes very far) to get a cup of coffee. 

Even though we've been in the kitchen less, we've still been eating most of our meals at home. It's weeks like these past few -- when we need food on the table but don't want to spend a lot of time preparing it -- that we often rely on Food & Wine and Bon Appétit. Both magazines have monthly sections featuring recipes that are, in Food & Wine's case, "Quick & Easy," and in Bon Appétit-speak, "Fast, Easy, Fresh." (Possible rejected names? "Expeditious & Elementary"? "Breakneck & Unchallenging"?) 

We love these sections because they're reliable sources of dishes that don't take a lot of ingredients or time. We all need those sorts of recipes now and then.  

We found this Honey-Ginger Chicken with Lime in Food & Wine's "Quick & Easy" section. It was just the thing we needed on a Monday night. 

Lemony Layered Cheesecake

Food & Wine (July 2014) 

This isn't our usual kind of recipe.

Everything comes pre-made out of a jar; you essentially just mix a few things together in a bowl and then layer it in a loaf pan and shove it in the fridge. Then you dump some fresh fruit on top and serve.

But sometimes, this is exactly the kind of recipe you need to have in your back pocket, to throw together at the (relatively) last minute. 

The other day we were in need of an easy dessert that we could make in advance and take to a dinner. See, months ago we committed ourselves to cooking a charity dinner for six, prepared by us (it was included as an auction item at a fundraiser). Turns out, the dinner needed to take place in the burbs. On a Friday. At 6 p.m. With rush hour traffic -- and needing to be there in time to finish prepping the food -- that meant leaving D.C. at 4. Which of course meant we had to make most of the meal -- and especially the dessert -- well in advance.

That's when we saw this Lemony Layered Cheesecake in Food & Wine. Everything comes pre-made out of a jar. You essentially just mix a few things together in a bowl, layer it in a loaf pan and then shove it in the fridge. Then you dump some fresh fruit on top and serve!

Maybe this was our kind of recipe!

Wine-Pickled Beets

Fine Cooking (July 2014)

 

Oh beets, it must be so hard to be you. 

You're loved, you're hated, you're worshipped, you're scorned. You're "sweet like candy" to some but "taste like dirt" to others. 

It's no secret that we're in the love camp when it comes to beets. And these Wine-Pickled Beets are more validation of our beet love. 

It turns out that a drunk beet is a good beet. 

Nashville Hot Chicken

Adapted from Saveur (June/July 2014) and Food Network Magazine (June 2014) 

Have you ever heard of Nashville Hot Chicken?

It's a Nashville specialty -- fried chicken that's slathered in a super-hot, spicy glaze. There are a few joints in Nashville that are known for it, including Prince's, Bolton's and relative newcomer Hattie B's. 

It is seriously hot -- the last time we had some on a visit to Tennessee to see Zach's family, we made a beeline from Bolton's straight to Jeni's ice cream to cool down our fiery gullets.

Even if you hadn't heard of Nashville Hot Chicken a couple months ago, odds are -- if you read food magazines -- you know about it now. Why? Because no fewer than four magazines have featured this dish in the past two months (and two of the recipes are from Hattie B's)! There it was in the June issues of Saveur, Bon Appétit, and Food Network Magazine. Then this month, there's a feature on it in Good Housekeeping (not a mag that's in our regular rotation, but we happened to see a copy).

It's gettin' hot in herre! Anybody hungry for some chicken?*
 

 

Clearly, Nashville Hot Chicken is having a moment. (And Hattie B's has an excellent publicist!)

So last week, it had a moment at our house.

Spiced Lamb Burgers

Bon Appétit (July 2014)

When we first saw this Bon Appétit recipe for a lamb burger served in a pita, we sort of shrugged. It sounded fine.

But then we went back and read the recipe more carefully, and we realized the lamb is cooked inside the pita. 

That, friends, was something we had to try.

It sounded potentially amazing. But also, we were a bit dubious. Would this actually work? Would we end up with charred pita? Would the lamb cook through in time? 

We were up for the challenge, so this past Sunday we treated ourselves to a lunch of Spiced Lamb Burgers. 

The Bitten Word on the Radio

What do Paula Deen and The Bitten Word have in common? (No, not that.) We were both interviewed this weekend on Food Talk, a Florida radio show hosted by chef Kim Bailey. The show included us, Paula, and James Beard award-winning chef Marty Blitz.

If you want to hear about some of our favorite travel stories, what we'd both eat for a last meal on earth, and which one of us is the better chef (!), listen to Kim's show. (Our interview is at the top of the hour, starting around minute 3:30.)

 

 

Shrimp and Avocado Salad

Food Network Magazine (July/August 2014)

Last year, we spent the Fourth of July in Las Vegas with 10 friends for a bachelor party. The year before, the two of us were on the beach in Provincetown, on Cape Cod.

This year we spent the Fourth at home. It was just what we needed. Between work trips, a vacation and visits to see family, the two of us traveled a heckuva lot this spring and early summer. What we wanted and needed most was some downtime at home.

Our Fourth weekend was fantastic in a gloriously low-key way. The weather was insanely nice -- definitely the most pleasant Fourth either of of us can remember. We walked around town, saw some friends, saw D.C.'s beautiful fireworks show, grilled out a couple times, ate an ice cream sandwich, caught a movie (at a pop-up theater!), kayaked on the Potomac, and went to the pool.

And we made this Shrimp and Avocado Salad.

Asian Marinated Tomatoes

Food & Wine (July 2014)

 

We like to keep our food simple in the summer: Lots of raw or simply prepared vegetables. Proteins cooked on the grill. Absolute minimal use of the oven.

But simple doesn't have to mean dull. To us, a perfect summer recipe has few ingredients, but big flavors. In Our Favorite Summer Recipes, you'll see lots of variations on this theme, like steaks served with flavorful gremolatas, or an absolutely knock-out summer pesto that we'd slather on almost anything. 

A new recipe enters the pantheon of Our Favorite Summer Recipes this week with these Asian Marinated Tomatoes.

They might not look like much, but they pack a crazy punch you won't want to miss.

Iced Almond-Macadamia Milk Latte

Is This The Best Iced Latte in America? The New York Times Thinks So

"Have you tried it?!"

"Tried what?

"The Best Iced Latte in America! Have you tried it??"

We were at a friend's art gallery opening a couple weeks ago, and our friend Trevor grabbed us by the arm, eager to know if we had sampled this apparently life-changing beverage. 

What beverage was Trevor referring to? The Iced Almond-Macadamia Milk Latte that had recently been featured in the New York Times. We'd been vaguely aware of having seen it online, but we hadn't actually read the story.

"It sounds amazing," Trevor told us. "You guys should try it and report back."

So we tried it.

And we're reporting back.

And you know what? It is amazing!