MANY HERB SALAD & DRIED CRANBERRIES
I CAME UP WITH THIS near Thanksgiving one year when I had cranberries on my mind. It would also be really good sprinkled with feta or Mexican goat cheese.
ACTIVE & TOTAL PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup roughly chopped fresh chives
¼ cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons dried cranberries
Juice of ½ lemon
Coarse salt
Combine the olive oil, herbs, cranberries, and lemon juice together in a small bowl and season with salt.
Place one piece of chicken on each of four dinner plates and divide the herb salad over each piece.
TOMATO & AVOCADO SALAD
I LIKE THIS VERSION in the summer. For extra taste, add a teaspoon of ground coriander into the bread crumb mixture.
ACTIVE & TOTAL PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes
1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
¼ cup roughly chopped scallions or red onion
1 tablespoon roughly chopped cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 limes
Combine the avocado, tomatoes, scallions, and cilantro in a bowl. Dress with the olive oil and the juice of 1 lime.
Place one piece of chicken on each of four dinner plates and divide the salad over each piece. Quarter the remaining lime and put a piece on each plate for each person to squeeze over the food.
indian-spiced tuna steaks
A GRILLED TUNA STEAK with a twist. I love this Indian-inspired spice rub—it definitely livens things up. Served with Raita and Tamarind Chutney, the flavors are complex enough to make things interesting while making kids happy.
SERVES: 4
ACTIVE PREPARATION TIME: 20 minutes
TOTAL PREPARATION TIME: 20 minutes plus at least 2 hours marinating
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons peeled and finely minced fresh ginger
¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
4 tuna steaks, each about ¾-inch thick
Raita (here)
Tamarind Chutney (here)
Combine the cumin and fennel seeds with the salt and pepper and crush them using a mortar and pestle, coffee grinder, or Jamie Oliver’s ingenious Flavour Shaker until the seeds are broken but not powdery. Add the ginger and cilantro and crush until a rough paste begins to form. Stir in the olive oil. The mixture should be a bit like pesto. Rub the tuna steaks all over with the mixture and let them sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, up to overnight.
Preheat the grill or grill pan over high heat.
Grill the tuna steaks for about 2 minutes on the first side, or until a spatula slides easily under a steak and the bottom half of it has turned opaque. Flip each steak and cook for an additional minute. Serve with Raita and Tamarind Chutney.
raita
YIELD: 1 cup
ACTIVE & TOTAL PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes
½ large English cucumber, peeled, seeds removed, finely diced (about ¾ cup)
2 tablespoons peeled and finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon finely sliced fresh mint
½ cup plain yogurt
A few fresh grinds black pepper
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir. Serve with the Indian-Spiced Tuna Steaks.
tamarind chutney
YIELD: ½ cup
ACTIVE PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes
TOTAL PREPARATION TIME: 45 minutes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
⅛–¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, depending on how spicy you like things– ¼ teaspoon has a lot of heat)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 generous teaspoon garam masala
Tiny pinch asafetida (optional)
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon tamarind paste
¼ cup unrefined dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the cumin and fennel seeds and stir for 30 seconds. Add the remaining spices and cook, stirring, for a minute. Add the 1 cup of water, tamarind, and sugar and stir or whisk until smooth. Simmer on low for 25 minutes and then stir in the vinegar. Bring it up to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for another 10–15 minutes, until the sauce has reduced to a slightly thicker consistency.
note: You can lessen the amount of or leave out the cayenne if you are making it for the kids, but they like the sweetness of this chutney.
roast chicken, rotisserie style
I GREW UP HAVING AMERICAN rotisserie chicken at the Brentwood Country Mart in Los Angeles—nothing can beat that place. Still, this version helps bring me back to my childhood. Here, as opposed to putting chicken on a turning spit, you rotate the chicken and it self-bastes. I read about this technique in a Joël Robuchon cookbook and adapted it to have an American rotisserie flavor.
SERVES: 4
ACTIVE PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes
TOTAL PREPARATION TIME: 1½ hours
1½ tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
¾ teaspoon garlic salt
¾ teaspoon sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Coarse salt
1 organic whole chicken (3–4 pounds), washed and dried (See Salt Scrubs for Poultry, here)
Preheat the oven (preferably a convection oven) to 400°F.
Mix the butter together with the garlic salt, paprika, pepper, and a very large pinch of coarse salt. Gently separate the skin from the breast by inserting your fingers between the skin and breast and breaking the facia. This will lead to crispier skin. Rub the butter all over the chicken, including a bit between the breast and the skin. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and tie one piece of kitchen twine around them to secure them. Tie the legs together with another piece of kitchen twine.
Put the chicken on its side (resting on its thigh and wing) in a large heavy roasting pan and roast for 25 minutes. Turn it onto its other side and sprinkle with a few tablespoons of water. Return the chicken to the oven and roast for an additional 25 minutes. Turn it on its back and roast for 10 minutes. Turn it onto its breast and roast for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the oven and let it rest breast side down for at least 15 minutes. Carve and serve.