Summer Recipes

Monday, January 10, 2011

Potato and Salmon Salad

"The Best Colslaw"

By Barbara Lauterbach

Makes 8 cups

3/4 - 1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons sugar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 cups green cabbage finely sliced, or 4 cups green and 4 cup red cabbage, finely sliced

1 cup grated carrots

1 cup chopped red onion

Combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, and sugar. Season with salt and pepper.

Toss the cabbage with the carrots and onions, then mix thoroughly with the dressing.

Taste again, reseasoning if necessary, and marinate, refrigerated, for at least 2 hours. Longer marination tenderizes further.

Options:

Add caraway seeds

Add chopped red or green Bell peppers, or celery

Replace mayonnaise with sour cream, or use half mayonnaise and half sour cream

Omit the mayonnaise altogether and just use vinegar

Fabulous Salmon & Potato Salad

In New England salmon, peas and new potatoes make up the traditional meal. While making this dish with frozen peas is one option, the flavor and texture of just-shelled fresh peas can't be beat.
Serves 8 to 10

2 pounds red Bliss or red new potatoes

2 pounds salmon steaks, poached and flaked

1 cup shelled green peas

1/2 cup sliced radishes

4 hard-boiled eggs, quartered

Lettuce leaves, red-leaf or Bibb

Cook the potatoes until fork tender. When cool enough to handle, peel if desired, then cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place the potato slices in a large bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk the lemon juice, dill, shallot, salt and pepper.

Gradually whisk in the oil until an emulsion forms.

Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the dressing over the warm potatoes and toss gently. Add frozen peas or briefly cooked fresh peas. Add the flaked salmon, peas, and radishes to the potatoes and toss again.

Garnish with the hard-boiled eggs. Note: Add a bouquet garni and about 3/4 cup wine to the poaching water for the salmon for additional flavor.

Dressing

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

1 shallot, thinly sliced

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Blue Berry Tart

Lisa Laskin's Blueberry Tart is originally from Food & Wine Magazine.

1 1/4 cup whole almonds ( 1 1/2 ounces)

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Unbaked tart shell (recipe below)

1 1/2 pints blueberries (4 cups)

1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

sweetened sour cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. in a food processor combine the almonds, 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar and the flour. Process until the almonds are finely ground. Sprinkle the mixture evenly into the tart shell. Spread the blueberries over the almond mixture. Sprinkle the berries with the remaining 1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon granulated sugar.

Place the tart on the bottom rack of the oven and reduce the temperature to 400 degrees. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the crust is golden brown. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Before serving, lightly sift the confectioners' sugar over the tart. Serve in wedges, accompanied with sweetened sour cream or vanilla ice cream.

***

Tart Dough

The recipe for tart shell dough can be mixed using two procedures - the "creaming method" or the "pie dough method." Both have the same ingredients. Below is the creaming method, and the tart shell dough will be "short" like a cookie dough, crumbly and tender, and it will not cut clean. This type of mixing is good for tarts that would have the filling baked right in it like fresh fruit or custard type tarts. The pie dough method cuts the butter into the dry ingredients and the cream is added last to bring the mixture together.

By Steve James, Certified Master Baker. Managing Partner, Popovers on the Square in Portsmouth.

Use half of this recipe for one 9-inch tart shell.

Yield: Two 9-inch tarts

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

pinch of pure salt (not iodized or free pouring)

12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter

(1 1/2 sticks or 6 ounces)

1/2 cup heavy cream

Cream the butter and sugar together,then add the cream and lastly, the dry ingredients being careful not to over-mix.

Place mixture onto a table and gently press the dough until it comes together.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours or overnight to rest and chill thoroughly.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

On a floured table, roll out the well-chilled dough to about a 12-inch circle approximately 1/4 inch thick. Fold the dough in quarters and place into tart shell pan and unfold carefully to settle into the pan.

Gently press dough into the sides of the pan. Trim off the excess dough and place tart shells in the refrigerator to chill or freeze until needed.

I like to use leftover tart shell dough for cookies. Add a small amount of chopped walnuts to the leftover dough and mix slightly.

Portion the cookies and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan, bake at 350 degrees.

Roll into powdered sugar and set aside to cool. great with tea or coffee.

The All-American Brownie

By Master Baker Steve James

This classic dessert is easy and fun to make.

Brownies

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Yield: 24 to 36 brownies, depending on how you cut them.

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup unsalted butter (melted) (2 sticks)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup whole eggs (4 to 5 depending on egg size)

1/2 cup natural Hershey's cocoa 1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup walnut pieces

1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Melt the butter over a low heat. When butter is melted, using a whisk, mix in the two sugars and the vanilla.

Add the eggs one at a time to the butter/sugar mixture. After all the eggs are added, scrape the bowl well.

Add the cocoa and mix until well blended. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together, add and mix till smooth.

Add the walnuts and chocolate chips until well combined.

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 38 minutes, depending on your oven.

Tip: Don't open oven door before 35 minutes. Bake until brownies start to pull away from the sides of the pan.

For adults, the brownies are great served as they are, but for kids, you’ve got to frost the top with either a fudge icing or a classic ganache, and then cut into 2-inch squares.